Multispares Racing Report: Darwin GT4 Drama & SMP Preview
Here’s your monthly recap from the Multispares Racing pit wall.
The team headed north to Darwin’s Hidden Valley Raceway from July 24–26 for the Monochrome GT4 Series’ first-ever appearance at the track. Facing brutal Top End heat and managing rear tyre wear on our heavy Mustang, the weekend turned into a masterclass in strategy, grit, and pure racecraft.
Laying the Groundwork in Practice & Qualifying
With four practice sessions on Friday, the crew and drivers Aaron Cameron and Lochie Dalton bypassed chasing single-lap qualifying glory. Instead, the focus was entirely on long-run race pace to survive Darwin’s high track temperatures.
- Timed Session 1 / 2: 5th / 9th
- Practice 1 / 2: 13th / 15th
Saturday morning qualifying was an ultra-tight affair. Aaron took on Q1, securing 12th just 0.4s off pole position. Lochie took over for Q2, putting the Mustang in the top order for the race.
Race 1: Solid Progress & An Overnight Decision
In Saturday’s opening race, Aaron launched off the grid, pulling off a clinical opening lap to carve past four cars and move into 8th. Handing the car over in 7th position, Lochie drove a stellar second stint to bring the car home in an impressive 4th place.
While the result was fantastic, the post-race telemetry told a concerning story: our car was lacking top-end speed, running 5 km/h slower on the straight compared to the nine other Mustangs in the field.
Wanting to give our drivers a fighting chance, the team made a bold call: swap out the motor overnight for a brand new Ford spare straight off the support truck.
Race 2: The 27th-to-5th Thriller
Swapping an engine comes at a cost. The stewards handed down a rear-of-grid penalty, forcing us to take the start from 27th place for Sunday’s race.
Lochie took the opening stint and put on an absolute driving clinic:
- Lap 1: Carved through six cars from 27th to 21st.
- Lap 17 (Pitstop): Slashed all the way up to 8th place before handing over to Aaron.
- Aaron: Rejoined the action in 15th after the pit stop and set off on a classic charge.
- In the final laps: Aaron hunted down the front runners, crossed the line in 5th, and delivered one of the fastest cars on track.
Race 3: Closing Out Strong
Darwin kept delivering, with the team securing another strong result to round out the weekend.
What’s Next on the Calendar?
The team has another busy stretch ahead:
- Monochrome GT4 Series (next round): SMP
- Touring Car Masters (next round): upcoming race week
As always, you can catch all the action live on Fox Sports and Kayo.
Thank you to our incredible team, our primary sponsor Multispares, and all of our fans for the unwavering support. Let’s keep this momentum rolling!
