2020 continues to grow with strong field for Winton

We have hardly wrapped up Round 1 and we are fast closing into Round 2 at the northern rural facility of Winton Motor Raceway. Round 2 is brought to us by the Wangaratta Gateway Hotel, a venue we will be coming together as a series for dinner on Saturday night.

The round will headline again with a strong outright V8 grid, all four big banger V8’s are returning for round 2 with the much awaiting return of the MG SV-R delayed with ongoing timeline challenges.

Round 1 winner Vince Gucciardo is buoyed from a strong run at the opening round and the last time we were at Winton he took pole position and an outright win, “I am looking forward to it, it’s been a great place the last couple of years for me, a happy hunting ground at times and I am ever more comfortable in the car so excited for Winton” Gucciardo commented. The GB Galvanizing V8 will have a challenge up against reigning champion Philip Chester who is hoping to bounce back, “Sandown was a bit of a nightmare so I am keen to turn the page and push on, I know the car can do it, we are working hard to get the car sorted, the bodywork is fine, the extractors are repaired, so we go onwards” he noted.

Robin Bailey will be back, his car performing the best it has in recent years, and Ben Muller who is coming to grips with the blue beast will be no doubt a top 5 threat. Rhys Howell was hoping to find himself in the SV-R but the car has been delayed again, “we are really trying but we made a mistake rushing it last year and we lost 2019 having to go back to square one, so this time we want it to be right.  The car is basically all new, its basically a different car but we want to make sure it’s right when we run it again so we will roll out the ZR again and see if David can upset Goliath at Winton!” commented Howell.

Returning for Winton is the big MG ZT 520 of Rodney Gibb, after missing the season opener he will be keen to get the car back on the grid and start moving forward, “I love MG Racing, and wanted to be at the opening round but it just wasn’t to be, it’s a bloody long way from Adelaide if things aren’t okay so we elected to skip the opener but we will be in for the next 5 rounds” commented Gibb.

In the modern field we see Bruce Astbury in the TF LE500 once more, Chris Gidney returns in his MG ZR for the first run of 2020, and Calean Chester will return in her MG F hoping for a better run. Our Invited British Sportscar field is buoyed with Glen Coutinho and Sue Tahir in their matching Triumph TR6’s joining Keith Ondarchie’s Stag.

Our Classic and Group S field is once again swelling, Mike Wood in his B GT V8 is back for round 2, but he might have a fight on his hands with Trevor Dunford back from South Australia earlier than anticipated in his B GT V8. To make a matching set after a few years off we will see the return of Mark O’Neill, O’Neill in his burnt orange B GT V8 will be back on track making the first time in many years we have had 3x historic B GT V8’s.  The four cylinder contingent spread with David Anderson, Darren Souter, Jane Vollebregt, Gary Bulmer, David Mottram and Rodger Chapman all continuing on from Sandown, however to add to the competition level we will see NSW driver David Baigent in a sole Midget and debutant Leigh Broughton in his B GT, the sole classic B GT in the field.

Entries are still growing with up to another 5 entries expected before close off for one of the best fields at Winton in recent years.