Mount Panorama, Bathurst: HMO Customer Racing has broken its Bathurst bogey with rookie sensation Bailey Sweeny scoring his first TCR Australia race victory and finishing second overall in the third round of the championship at Mount Panorama.
The 19-year-old proved his star quality with a string of stunning passing manoeuvres and outright speed to be the leading Hyundai i30 N TCR driver in just his third round of the super competitive championship.
Sweeny was the fastest HMO Customer Racing driver in qualifying, setting the ninth quickest time on the challenging 6.2km circuit, ahead of Josh Buchan in 11th and Nathan Morcom in 14th.
He maintained that position in the opening race, which gave him a front-row starting position for the reverse-grid second sprint. He didn’t waste the opportunity, winning the 10-lap race by a near-record 11 second margin for his maiden TCR victory.
Sweeny showcased his speed again in the final, double points-paying race, charging from fifth on the grid to come home second while re-setting his own Bathurst TCR Lap Record.
Buchan also had a solid weekend with two podium finishes that has revived his challenge for the championship. The 27-year-old finished eighth, third and third in the three 10-lap races which has elevated him to sixth place in the TCR Australia Championship standings.
Morcom, meanwhile, had a much tougher weekend at Bathurst, crossing the finish line in 12th in race one, 20th in race two and 17th in race three.
The fourth round of the 2022 TCR Australia Championship will be held on May 27-219 at Sydney Motorsport Park where HMO Customer Racing dominated last year with Buchan scoring his first two race wins and outright round victory.
What the drivers said:
Car 130 – Bailey Sweeny
“What an awesome weekend, and to score my first race TCR race victory with HMO Customer Racing at a circuit like Bathurst is very special. To back it up with second place in the last race proved that wasn’t a fluke and we have the pace. Being familiar with the track certainly helped accelerate the learning curve on Friday and we had good speed all weekend. It’s a huge confidence boost for me heading into the second half of the championship.”
Practice 1: P5 – 2:18.5802sec
Practice 2: P16 – 2:17.3120sec
Qualifying: P9 – 2:15.1923sec
Race 1: P9 – 2:15.2775sec
Race 2: P1 – 2:13.9468sec
Race 3: P2 – 2:13.9023sec (TCR Bathurst Lap Record)
Car 30 – Josh Buchan
“I never thought I’d leave Bathurst this happy, and with a couple of trophies to put in the cabinet. This place hasn’t been very kind to us in the past, but the reverse Top 10 in race two gifted Bailey and I a bit and we certainly capitalised on that. I had to really work hard and definitely had the elbows out and did some good ‘ol touring car racing, which was fun. Most importantly, it has put us back in the hunt for the championship as we head to Sydney Motorsport Park where I won last year.”
Practice 1: P7 – 2:19.1051sec
Practice 2: P12 – 2:17.0659sec
Qualifying: P11 – 2:14.7525sec
Race 1: P8 – 2:15.3331sec
Race 2: P3 – 2:14.7270sec
Race 3: P3 – 2:14.5791sec
Car 11 – Nathan Morcom
“I’m really happy for the team with Bailey and Josh on the podium, and Bailey’s first TCR win – that was pretty impressive. But it was a weekend to forget for me. We got caught out by a yellow flag on a hot lap in Qualifying, which meant we didn’t make the top 10 shootout and that put us on the back foot from there.
“I’ll put this weekend behind me and look forward to Sydney Motorsport Park where we know we have a fast car.”
Practice 1: P8 – 2:19.2574sec
Practice 2: P7 – 2:16.5251sec
Qualifying: P14 – 2:15.3398sec
Race 1: P12 – 2:15.7663sec
Race 2: P20 – 2:16.9594sec
Race 3: P17 – 2:15.2939sec
2022 TCR Australia Championship Standings
| 1. | Tony D’Alberto | Honda Civic Type R | 322 |
| 2. | Will Brown | Audi RS3 LMS TCR | 285 |
| 3. | Dylan O’Keefe | Peugeot 308 TCR | 280 |
| 4. | Ben Bargwanna | Peugeot 308 TCR | 267 |
| 5. | Aaron Cameron | Peugeot 308 TCR | 266 |
| 6. | Josh Buchan | Hyundai i30 N TCR | 263 |
| 7. | Zac Soutar | Honda Civic Type R | 261 |
| 8. | Jordan Cox | Peugeot 308 TCR | 260 |
| 9. | Michael Caruso | Alfa Romeo Giulietta | 255 |
| 10. | Jay Hanson | Audi RS3 LMS TCR | 250 |
| 11. | Bailey Sweeny | Hyundai i30 N TCR | 249 |
| 13. | Nathan Morcom | Hyundai i30 N TCR | 225 |
