Matt Day has won the 2025 Three-Hour South Island Endurance Series title after finishing on the podium at the final round held at Highlands Motorsport Park in Cromwell on Saturday.
Having won the second round in Invercargill two weeks ago with Lamborghini specialist and co-driver Brendon Leitch, the pairing just needed to stay ahead of Day’s title rivals, which he did, finishing on the podium in third place.
“Thrilled to get the result,” commented Day.
“It’s (Lamborghini GT3 Evo) completely different to what I have driven before, so I have learned a lot. Brendon (Leitch) has been great and has taught me a lot.”
Sam Fillmore/Jonny Reid (Audi R9 LMS GT3 Evo) had the near-perfect race, coming home strong to win, adding to their podium second place in Invercargill.
“That went great,” commented Sam Fillmore.
“The boys gave me a great car, so thank you to the team.”
“The car was on rails today,” said Reid.
“It was about managing tyres and traffic. Full credit to Sam for getting a great start and doing his job.”
Second home, adding to a similar result in Invercargill, was the Lamborghini Huracan GT3 of Glen Brazier/Andrew Waite.
“I was doing everything I could to catch Jonny (Reid),” said Waite.
“Jonny and I have had many battles over the years, and I nearly got him today, but the tyres weren’t really there at the end.”
The race proved to be one of making the most of opportunities, with several top contenders slightly hamstrung in having to overcome obstacles to not only get to the finish but to maximise their points scoring potential.
Day went into the finale leading the overall points table 12 ahead of Steve Brooks, with Andy Childe/Tom Alexandra (Porsche 992 GT3 Cup) in third, ahead of Paul Kelly/Kaleb Ngatoa (Porsche 992 GT3 Cup).
Having set the fastest lap in qualifying, Day led from the start through to the halfway mark, only to have a brake issue impede further progress, and it then was a matter of managing the situation to the finish.
His title rival, Steve Brooks (Audi R8 GT3), who had Brad Schmacher as co-driver for this round, had to manage a tyre issue. This was compounded by a right rear wheel that could not be replaced at their first pit stop.
The Lamborghini Huracan GT3 of Kane Lawson/Hayden Knighton/Ronan Murphy, which had shown front-running pace all season, had an ABS brake issue all weekend, which, for the race, was switched off, having an impact on their race speed.
Making a welcome one-off appearance in the series were father and son duo Rick and Marcus Armstrong (Porsche GT3 Cup 992). Current IndyCar driver Marcus proved very quick, bringing the car home fourth and top Class 1 runner, despite a 10-second penalty for exceeding track limits.
Having damaged their Audi R8 LMS GT3 Evo at the second round, Luke Manson and James Penrose were competing in a Porsche GT3 Cup 992, which proved not quite as competitive as their Audi. They finished up in fifth place and sixth overall for the series.
In overall Class results, Day won the GT Class from Brooks and Brazier/Waite.
A consistent series from Andy Childe/Tom Alexandra saw them win Class 1 from Paul Kelly/Kaleb Ngatoa and Martin and Allan Dippie.
Barry Moore/Andrew Giles (VW Golf GTI TCR) were first in Class 3 while Duncan Cundall-Curry/Blake Knowles (BMW M1 GTR E87) took out Class 4.
The battle of the Honda Civic teams resulted in Chris Wall/D. Thomsen/L. Hammond winning the Class 5 title from Donavan Isted/J. Mitchell/R. Turner.
The Brooks/ Riding/ Schumacher entry won the Michelin AM Cup while the Rookie Cup went to the Isted/Mitchell/Turner pairing.
Round 3, Three-Hour Overall Results:
| Position | Drivers | Car | Class |
| 1 | S Fillmore/J Reid | Audi R8 GT3 | GT |
| 2 | G Brazier/A Waite | Lamborghini GT3 Evo | GT |
| 3 | M Day/B Leitch | Lamborghini GT3 Evo | GT |
| 4 | R Armstrong/M Armstrong | Porsche GT3 Cup 992 | 1 |
| 5 | L Manson/J Penrose | Porsche GT3 Cup 992 | GT |
| 6 | A Childe/T Alexander | Porsche GT3 Cup 992 | 1 |
| 7 | K Lawson/H Knighton/R Murphy | Lamborghini GT3 Evo | GT |
| 8 | P Kelly/K Ngatoa | Porsche GT3 Cup 992 | 1 |
| 9 | S Brooks/B Schumacher | Audi R8 GT3 | GT |
| 10 | D Cundal-Curry/B Knowles | BMW M1 | 4 |
| 11 | G Askew/C Askew | Volkswagen Golf TCR | 3 |
| 12 | C Wall/D Thomsen/L Hammond | Honda Civic | 5 |
| 13 | D Kelly/S Kelly | BMW E46 | 3 |
| 14 | D Isted/J Mitchell/R Turner | Honda Civic | 5 |
| DNF | P Sutherland/C Sutherland/W Walker | Honda Civic | 5 |
| DNF | B Moore/A Giles | Volkswagen Golf TCR | 3 |
| DNF | G Rhodes/P Rickerby | Marc II Mustang | 1 |
Three-Hour Overall Points (Top 16):
| Position | Drivers | Car | Points |
| 1 | M Day | Lamborghini GT3 Evo | 263 |
| 2 | S Brooks | Audi R8 GT3 | 235 |
| 3 | A Childe/T Alexander | Porsche GT3 Cup 992 | 234 |
| 4 | P Kelly/K Ngatoa | Porsche GT3 Cup 992 | 225 |
| 5 | G Brazier/A Waite | Lamborghini GT3 Evo | 200 |
| 6 | L Manson/J Penrose | Audi R8 GT3/Porsche GT3 Cup 992 | 185 |
| 7 | K Lawson/H Knighton/R Murphy | Lamborghini GT3 Ev | 183 |
| 8 | B Leitch | Lamborghini GT3 Evo | 181 |
| 9 | S Fillmore/J Reid | Audi R8 GT3 | 181 |
| 10 | B Riding | Audi R8 GT3 | 165 |
| 11 | D Cundal-Curry/B Knowles | BMW M1 | 151 |
| 12 | B Moore/A Giles | Volkswagon Golf TCR | 147 |
| 13 | M Dippie/A Dippie | Porsche GT3 Cup 992 | 146 |
| 14 | S Cotterill/M Vidau | Porsche GT3 Cup 992 | 146 |
| 15 | C Wall/D Thomsen/L Hammond | Honda Civic | 122 |
| 16 | G Rhodes/P Rickerby | Marc II Mustang | 104 |
Header Image: Richard Opie Photography
