Callum Hedge has moved up to second in the Porsche Carrera Cup Australia standings following a dramatic round in Townsville which saw him stripped of a race win before finishing on the podium twice.
Hedge had begun the weekend well, topping a tight qualifying session over Max Vidau and Bayley Hall to start Race 1 on pole.
He would convert this to race victory, only to be sensationally stripped of his result post-race after a rival team protested his tyre warm-up strategy on the formation lap.
The rule breach comes in the form of a violation of the driver briefing instructions; no breaking of traction from Turn 13 on the formation lap.
A five-place penalty dropped him to sixth and saw Vidau awarded the win over Alex Davison and David Wall. New Zealander Fabian Coulthard was bumped up to fourth and championship leader Jackson Walls to fifth.
The third Kiwi in the field, Chris Pither, would move from 11th on the grid to finish seventh and is beginning to show further pace as he comes to terms with an unfamiliar car.
Hedge’s penalty had further repercussions, with Sunday’s Endurance Race grid set based on Saturday’s result. He would still progress from sixth to finish third following a great battle with Coulthard during the race. Coulthard would come home sixth, while Pither was 12th.
Vidau would again emerge at the front in Race 2, topping Davison, while Walls was fourth.
Hedge started Race 3 in third, and that was where he finished, as Davison took race and round honours and Walls came home second. Coulthard was fourth, his best result since returning to the Carrera Cup, while Pither achieved a season-best sixth.
Walls now holds a 20-point lead over Hedge in the championship battle, while Vidau sits a further 67 points back in third. Despite not competing in Round 1, Coulthard is up to seventh in the standings, while Pither also moves forward to 12th and within reach of the top 10.
The Porsche Carrera Cup Australia returns for Round 4 at The Bend over 18-20 August.
Header Image: Porsche Motorsport Australia
