Hyundai is hoping to maintain its winning form in the TCR Australia Championship and breakthrough for its first victory at Queensland Raceway during this weekend’s fourth third round of the series.
HMO Customer Racing has dominated the opening rounds of the 2023 TCR Australia Championship with Bailey Sweeny and Josh Buchan currently occupying the top two positions in the drivers’ championship, having won five of the nine races held so far.
But the team faces a tough challenge at Queensland Raceway this weekend as it has never finished higher than fourth on the demanding 3.13km circuit, located near Ipswich, south-west of Brisbane.
However, a productive pre-event test session last week has given the team critical set-up information, and allowed both drivers to fine-tune their machines at a circuit where thousands of a second will likely make the difference in qualifying.
With only six corners, Queensland Raceway places huge emphasis on braking performance, traction and straight-line speed, all of which will be compromised by the weight penalties carried by Sweeny and Buchan as a result of their success in setting the second and third fastest times respectively in qualifying for the previous round at Winton Motor Raceway.
Sweeny has the best form at HMO Customer Racing heading to Queensland Raceway, having scored two top-five finishes in his rookie season last year.
HMO Customer Racing will have two 30-minute practice sessions on Friday to fine tune the cars ahead of qualifying on Saturday before three races over the remainder of the weekend.
Fans can catch all the action from Queensland Raceway and the Motorsport Australia Shannons Speed Series live and on-demand via Stan Sport.
What the drivers said:
Car 30: i30 Sedan N TCR – Josh Buchan
“Historically, Queensland Raceway has been a bit of a bogey track for us at HMO Customer Racing. We got ambushed there last year on my side of the garage with a failure in first practice and then rain in the second practice, so I went into qualifying completely blind. And then I got my pants pulled down a bit.
“But we don’t have any excuses this year in terms of preparation. The test was extremely productive in getting a head start on the weekend ahead of us, and we’ll take what we’ve learned and hit the ground running.
“It’s not going be an easy weekend with the success ballast we’re carrying in the Hyundai i30 Sedan N TCR, but I’ve got the best team around me and if I can just chip away at it and stay out of trouble then I’m positive we’ll have a great result.”
Car 130: i30 N TCR – Bailey Sweeny
“We had good speed at Queensland Raceway last year with a couple of top five results, and a good fightback from being turned around in the other race. So, I’m looking forward to improving on those results this weekend and maintain my position at the top of the championship as we head into the second half of the season.
“We had a really positive test day there which we highlighted some areas of the car we had to improve, which is really beneficial to understand before this weekend.
“I like Queensland Raceway as a circuit, and it always produces great action for the fans who can see the whole track from wherever they are watching. The big braking zones really suit my driving style, so hopefully we can put on a great show and come away with a podium – or two!”
| Track Facts | Queensland Raceway |
| Location | Ipswich, Queensland |
| Length | 3.13km |
| TCR Pole Record | 1:12.52sec – Tony D’Alberto, Honda Civic Type R (2022) |
| TCR Lap Record | 1:13.90sec – Jay Hanson, Audi RS3 LMS (2022) |