The Toyota GR Cup Australia returned to action for Round 2 of the 2025 season (formerly the Toyota GR86 Racing Series) at Queensland Raceway, supporting the Supercars Ipswich Super 440 event.
Qualifying took place on Friday, with Lachlan Evennett and Lincoln Taylor securing the front row. Charlie Parker and Kade Davey lined up on row two, while Kiwi drivers Fabian Coulthard (Toyota Gazoo Racing Australia) and Ben Stewart (99 Motorsport) qualified 13th and 16th, respectively.
Race 1 –
The first race of the weekend got underway on Saturday morning with Evennett and Taylor battling side by side into Turn 1.
Evennett managed to edge ahead, forcing Taylor to defend fiercely against Parker. Stewart gained two positions on the opening lap, slotting in behind Coulthard in 14th.
At the start of lap two, Coulthard passed Tyler Cheney at Turn 1 to move up to 12th, with Stewart following closely to take 13th by overtaking Cheney on the same lap.
A false start penalty was handed to Alice Buckley, resulting in a five-second time penalty for a race start infringement.
As the race unfolded, the Kiwi drivers fought their own midfield battle while Evennett maintained a strong lead, holding a six-tenth advantage over Taylor and a 1.7-second gap to Davey. Parker and Jack Westbury completed the top five with five minutes remaining.
In the final minute, Taylor launched a determined challenge for the lead. Behind them, Coulthard and Stewart battled intensely, separated by just a tenth of a second. Cheney also joined the fray, engaging in close, door-to-door racing.
Taylor executed a decisive move, squeezing Evennett wide and overtaking him on the following straight to claim the lead.
Meanwhile, Davey ran off into the gravel while defending third place, dropping to 12th and promoting Coulthard to 11th. Stewart emerged victorious in his battle against Cheney, regaining 13th position.
Despite a fierce wheel-to-wheel contest on the final lap, Taylor held on to secure the Race 1 victory by a slim margin of 0.162 seconds. Evennett and Parker completed the podium.
Rounding out the top ten were Joshua Anderson, Jack Westbury, Jayden OJeda, Hayden Hume, Jordan Freestone, Oliver Wickham, and Lachlan Gibbons. Coulthard just missed out on a top ten finish, placing 11th, while Stewart crossed the line in 13th.
Race 2 –
Taylor, fresh from his victory in Race 1, meant he secured pole position for Race 2 alongside Evennett on the front row.
Row two featured Parker and Anderson, while Westbury, OJeda, Hume, Freestone, Wickham, and Gibbons completed the top ten starters after strong finishes earlier in the day.
Starting from 11th was Coulthard, paired with Davey, while Stewart lined up in row seven alongside Brock Stinson.
Race 2 began under challenging wet conditions. Though the rain had ceased, significant standing water on the track created slippery surfaces and poor visibility due to spray.
Evennett quickly seized the lead from pole-sitter Taylor as the field carefully navigated the treacherous conditions.
Coulthard made an impressive start, advancing six positions on the opening lap to fifth by overtaking Westbury, OJeda, Wickham, Freestone, Hume, and Gibbons. Stewart, on the other hand, slipped back a couple of spots to settle in 15th.
By the start of lap three, Coulthard continued his charge, passing Anderson to move into third place. Meanwhile, Anderson was handed a five-second time penalty for a false start.
Tension peaked when Taylor and Evennett made contact, resulting in Taylor spinning with 13 minutes remaining. This incident elevated Coulthard to second place.
In the midfield battle, Stewart held 13th, contesting closely with OJeda, who had dropped eight places, and was trailed by Murray and Taylor, who remained just ahead.
The safety car was deployed with eight minutes left after Tyler Cheney became stranded in the gravel at Turn 6.
With two and a half minutes remaining, the race resumed with Evennett leading the pack, followed by Coulthard, Anderson, Parker, Westbury, Davey, Stinson, Wickham, Hume, and Freestone.
Anderson overtook Coulthard at Turn 3 to reclaim second place, although his five-second penalty still loomed. The safety car returned once again when 2022 champion Gibbons suffered extensive front-end damage off at Turn 6.
The race concluded under the safety car, with Evennett initially crossing the line first and Anderson second.
However, Anderson’s time penalty demoted him down the order, promoting Coulthard to second and Parker to third.
Post-race, Evennett was investigated for his earlier contact with Taylor and subsequently penalised, handing the victory to Coulthard. This also meant Parker was promoted to second and Davey to the podium in third.
The final top ten featured Stinson, Wickham, Evennett, Hume, Westbury, Anderson and Freestone (after penalty adjustments).
Stewart navigated the slippery track conditions to secure a respectable 12th-place finish.
Race 3 –
Race 3 commenced under much improved conditions, with a dry track and the sun breaking through, setting the stage for the weekend’s final contest.
Coulthard, inheriting yesterday’s race win following his impressive wet-weather drive, started from pole position alongside Parker. Stewart lined up 12th after finishing 12th in Race 2.
The race start was delayed briefly when Max Walton suffered an engine failure before reaching the grid.
Once underway, the shortened time-certain race saw Coulthard explode off the line, taking the lead into Turn 1 with Parker close behind. Stinson and Davey trailed in pursuit, while a tight midfield battle featured three-wide racing for position.
Stewart enjoyed a strong start, moving up to 9th on the opening lap and quickly closing in on Hume for 8th.
On Lap 2, Taylor went off track into the grass, rejoining near the back of the field. Meanwhile, Stewart and Hume battled wheel-to-wheel down the front straight, with Evennett close behind.
Hume ran wide at Turn 3, allowing Stewart to pass. Stewart then found himself side-by-side with Evennett until Anderson made an aggressive inside move, pushing Hume into Evennett.
Evennett momentarily lost control of the rear of his car, went wide, and dropped a few positions. This gave Stewart a brief respite to regroup and prepare to defend against Hume and Anderson, who had moved into 7th.
At the front, Coulthard maintained a commanding lead with three minutes remaining, as Stinson, Parker, and Westbury battled three-wide for second. Westbury emerged victorious in this tussle, leaping six positions into second, with Parker settling into third.
With one lap to go, Stewart held a solid seventh place while Coulthard led the pack, Westbury close behind, followed by a tight train of four cars.
Westbury launched a bold move on the outside at Turn 3, gaining the preferred inside line for Turns 4 and 5. The two ran wheel-to-wheel into Turn 4 before Westbury cleared Coulthard, who also lost a position to Parker.
In a dramatic final corner battle for third, Coulthard was spun and clipped by Wickham, sending him off track into the gravel. Despite the setback, Coulthard managed to rejoin and complete the race, though he fell back to 30th.
Stewart narrowly avoided contact during Coulthard’s incident and crossed the line in 6th place. Westbury took the checkered flag for the win, followed by Wickham and Parker completing the podium.
Post-race penalties reshuffled the order, with Anderson relegated from 7th to 12th and Davey dropping from 5th to 10th. This promoted Stewart to 5th place in the final classification.
The official top ten after penalties read: Westbury, Wickham, Parker, Stinson, Stewart, Hume, OJeda, Freestone, Evennett, and Davey.
Header Image: Kade Davey Racing (Facebook)
