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2023 S5000 Australian Drivers' Championship

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The 2023 S5000 Australian Drivers' Championship was the third season of the S5000 Australian Drivers' Championship. The championship was held under the new unified SpeedSeries banner, promoted and organized jointly by Motorsport Australia and the Australian Racing Group.[1]

Drivers not only competed to win the Australian Drivers' Championship (the MA Gold Star), the last round of the season also doubled as the third edition of the S5000 Tasman Series.[2]

At the first race of this last round, GRM driver Aaron Cameron won the Drivers' Championship. After claiming three victories from three races through the weekend, he also became the Tasman Series Champion.

Through the end of the 2023 season, discussions about the future of the series arose. Particularly the eligibility rules for a Supercar license de facto mandating a stint in the Super2 series were accused to draw interest away from the S5000 championship. After these arguments could not be resolved, the championship was parked indefinitely at the beginning of 2024.[3]

Teams and drivers

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All teams competed with identical Rogers AF01/V8 single-seater racecars, Ligier/Onroak chassis powered by Ford Coyote V8 engines.[4] For the 2023 season, a Pro-Am class was to be introduced, but it received no entries.[5]

Team No. Driver Rounds
88Racing 1 Australia Joey Mawson[6] 1–3
8 Australia Kobi Williams[7] 6
88 Australia Aaron Love[8] 4–5
Spain Roberto Merhi[7] 6[a]
New Zealand Kaleb Ngatoa[9] 6
Team BRM 2 Australia Mark Rosser[10] All
3 Australia Zane Goddard[11] 1
Versa Motorsport 12 Australia Matt McLean[12] 1
28 Australia Winston Smith[13] 2–3
37 Australia Cooper Webster[14] 1–3, 5–6
48 Australia Blake Purdie[14] All
Garry Rogers Motorsport 18 Australia Aaron Cameron[15] All
29 Australia Nathan Herne[16] 6
31 Australia James Golding[17] 1–3
41 Australia Kody Garland[18] 4–5
49 Australia Jordan Boys[19] All
96 Australia Nic Carroll[20] All
98 Spain Roberto Merhi[21] 1
Amadio Motorsport 22 Australia Sebastian Amadio[22] 4, 6
Bargwanna Motorsport 71 Australia Ben Bargwanna[23] 4–6

Race calendar

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The calendar for the third S5000 season was announced on 7 December 2022. After two years of holding the main S5000 season and the S5000 Tasman series as separate championships over five and two rounds respectively, this changed in 2023. All six rounds now counted towards the main S5000 Australian Drivers' Championship, with the last round also counting towards the S5000 Tasman Series.

The category debuted at Winton Raceway, while rounds at Albert Park and the Hidden Valley Raceway were not part of the calendar.[2] The second round was later confirmed to be held at Phillip Island Grand Prix Circuit, while an originally planned round between the races at Tailem Bend and Adelaide did not come about.[24]

Round Circuit Location Date Supporting Map of circuit locations
1 R1 Tasmania Symmons Plains Raceway Launceston, Tasmania 25 February TCR Australia Touring Car Series
Touring Car Masters
Trans-Am Australia
Tassie Tin Tops
R2 26 February
R3
2 R1 Victoria (state) Phillip Island Grand Prix Circuit Ventnor, Victoria 13 May TCR Australia Touring Car Series
Trans-Am Australia
V8 Touring Cars
GT World Challenge Australia
R2 14 May
R3
3 R1 Victoria (state) Winton Motor Raceway Winton, Victoria 10 June TCR Australia Touring Car Series
Touring Car Masters
Trans-Am Australia
V8 Touring Cars
R2 11 June
R3
4 R1 New South Wales Sydney Motorsports Park Eastern Creek, New South Wales 29 July Supercars Championship
GT World Challenge Australia
Porsche Sprint Challenge Australia
TGR Australia 86 Series
R2 30 July
R3
5 R1 South Australia The Bend Motorsports Park Tailem Bend, South Australia 19 August Supercars Championship
Porsche Carrera Cup Australia
V8 SuperUte Series
TGR Australia 86 Series
R2
R3 20 August
2023 S5000 Tasman Series
6 R1 South Australia Adelaide Street Circuit Adelaide, South Australia 24 November Supercars Championship
GT World Challenge Australia
Porsche Carrera Cup Australia
Super2/Super3 Series
R2 25 November
R3 26 November

Race results

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Round Circuit Pole position Fastest lap Winning driver Winning entrant
1 R1 Tasmania Symmons Plains Raceway Australia Joey Mawson Australia Joey Mawson Australia Joey Mawson 88Racing
R2 Australia Joey Mawson Australia Joey Mawson 88Racing
R3 Spain Roberto Merhi Australia Joey Mawson 88Racing
2 R1 Victoria (state) Phillip Island Grand Prix Circuit Australia Cooper Webster Australia Joey Mawson Australia Joey Mawson 88Racing
R2 Australia Joey Mawson Australia Cooper Webster Versa Motorsport
R3 Australia Cooper Webster Australia Cooper Webster Versa Motorsport
3 R1 Victoria (state) Winton Motor Raceway Australia James Golding Australia James Golding Australia Joey Mawson 88Racing
R2 Australia Joey Mawson Australia Joey Mawson 88Racing
R3 Australia Joey Mawson Australia Joey Mawson 88Racing
4 R1 New South Wales Sydney Motorsports Park Australia Aaron Cameron Australia Jordan Boys Australia Aaron Cameron Garry Rogers Motorsport
R2 Australia Aaron Love Australia Aaron Cameron Garry Rogers Motorsport
R3 Australia Aaron Love Australia Aaron Cameron Garry Rogers Motorsport
5 R1 South Australia The Bend Motorsports Park Australia Aaron Cameron Australia Cooper Webster Australia Cooper Webster Versa Motorsport
R2 Australia Cooper Webster Australia Cooper Webster Versa Motorsport
R3 Australia Aaron Cameron Australia Aaron Cameron Garry Rogers Motorsport
2023 S5000 Tasman Series
6 R1 South Australia Adelaide Street Circuit Australia Aaron Cameron Australia Aaron Cameron Australia Aaron Cameron Garry Rogers Motorsport
R2 Australia Aaron Cameron Australia Aaron Cameron Garry Rogers Motorsport
R3 Australia Aaron Cameron Australia Aaron Cameron Garry Rogers Motorsport

Season report

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The 2023 season kicked off in late February at Symmons Plains Raceway with 88Racing's defending champion Joey Mawson on pole position. He converted that into the lead of the first race ahead of GRM's Aaron Cameron and Versa's Cooper Webster, and was never challenged by his rivals to take the fastest lap and the race win. This win then handed him pole position for the second race, where he continued his pace right on to take another victory. GRM's James Golding came second, but a penalty demoted him to fourth and allowed Webster and GRM's Roberto Merhi past him. The main event saw the first time Mawson was beaten at the start, but after 14 laps of following Webster, Mawson made a well-timed move into turn six to take the lead and the win, with Golding clinching a podium this time. Mawson left Tasmania unbeaten and with a 29-point lead.[25][26][27]

The field then headed north to Phillip Island, and this time it was Webster who claimed pole position. His advantage was short-lived, however, as Mawson took the lead right at the start of the first race and never looked back from then on to take his fourth straight win. Behind the pair, Golding moved past Cameron to complete the podium. The second race saw the battle between Webster and Mawson continue. Webster led from the start until Mawson passed him on a safety car restart but was penalized for his maneuver to hand Webster the win and Golding second. The third race was comparatively calm, with Webster fending off Mawson at the start and showing superior pace from then on to take the win. Golding continued his podium streak in third as Webster diminished Mawson's championship lead.[28][29]

Round three was held at Winton Motor Raceway, where Golding became the third different polesitter. Mawson once again had the better start to move into the lead, while Golding dropped to fourth. He worked his way back right behind Mawson, with a safety car then setting up a one-lap final. Mawson made a clinical restart to claim the win, while Golding failed to warm up his tires, running off track to hand podium spots to Webster and his teammate Blake Purdie. The second race was also won by Mawson, while his closest challenger Webster had a bad start that resulted in multiple crashes and ended his race. Only five cars took the chequered flag as Golding and Cameron completed the podium. They also did so as Mawson swept the weekend with another win in race three. Webster was able to slightly soften the blow to his title campaign by coming fourth.[30][31][32]

Both Webster and Mawson missed the fourth round, with the latter suspended after failing a routine test for supplement use. Cameron continued the streak of non-repeating polemen, but was jumped by Purdie at the start of race one. He made an unsuccessful comeback attempt right after and then waited until lap ten, where he tried again and this time was able to retake the lead. GRM's Jordan Boys came third, before making it one better in race two and claiming second. Cameron was first again, this time undeterred by anyone behind him, and Purdie came third. Race three saw Cameron sweep the weekend, hugely profiting by the absence of Webster and Mawson to put himself level on points with championship leader Mawson. Purdie and Boys again fought out the podium places among themselves, with the former eventually coming out ahead.[33][34][35][36]

The penultimate round at the Bend saw Cameron became the year's first repeat pole position winner. Championship contender Webster returned to the series and was right back at the front, taking away Cameron's lead into turn one starting the first race. He led from then on until the finish, gapping Cameron and Boys by five seconds. His win saw him start from the front for race two, in which the top four cars of Webster, Cameron, Boys and Purdie all held their position throughout the encounter. Webster's pole position for the main event was challenged by 88Racing's Aaron Love, before Cameron slipped past both of them to take the lead. He went on to win the race, while Webster beat Love for second place. Cameron's win allowed him to build a gap of 84 points ahead of Webster, with the still absent Mawson now in third.[37][38]

The season finale and the 2023 S5000 Tasman Series were held at Adelaide Street Circuit, and Cameron was on pole again. With his sights set on the championship title, he crushed his opposition through the first race to win lights-to-flag ahead of Boys and Purdie. Race two delivered much of the same, although this time Cameron had to defend his lead through two safety car restarts. He did so, leading Boys and Ben Bargwanna, driving for the team of the same name, home. Webster was disqualified post-race, handing Cameron the championship title and bringing Boys right with him in the standings. The final race saw another controlled lights-to-flag effort by Cameron, who therefore became just the third driver to win both the MA Gold Star and the Tasman Cup in the same season. Boys came second, thereby clinching second in the standings.[39][40][41]

The season saw two clear halves: defending champion Mawson dominated the first three rounds, winning seven of the nine races. Following his suspension, Cameron did the exact same through the final three rounds. Webster was the clear second fastest through the first half and swept the weekend at the Bend, but missing the round at Sydney and an anonymous final weekend hurt his campaign. This allowed Boys, who steadily improved his pace throughout the season, to narrowly pip him to the runner-up spot.

Championship standings

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Scoring system

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At each meeting, a qualifying session and three races were held. Meeting points were awarded to the fastest three qualifiers in qualifying, where the grid for Race 1 was set. For Race 2, the grid was set by the results of Race 1. The grid for the Main Event was defined by the points earned by the drivers across the weekend.[42]

Position 1st 2nd 3rd 4th 5th 6th 7th 8th 9th 10th 11th 12th 13th 14th 15th Ret
Qualifying 10 5 1 0 0
Race 1 and 2 30 27 24 22 20 18 16 14 12 10 8 6 4 2 1 0
Main Event 60 50 40 32 26 24 22 20 18 16 14 12 10 8 6 0

Drivers' standings

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Pos Driver SYM
Tasmania 		PHI
Victoria (state) 		WIN
Victoria (state) 		SYD
New South Wales 		BEN
South Australia 		ADE
South Australia 		Pts
R1 R2 R3 R1 R2 R3 R1 R2 R3 R1 R2 R3 R1 R2 R3 R1 R2 R3
1 Australia Aaron Cameron 2 6 4 4 7 4 53 3 3 11 1 1 21 2 1 11 1 1 616
2 Australia Jordan Boys 4 5 7 Ret 6 7 4 4 5 3 2 3 33 3 4 22 2 2 458
3 Australia Cooper Webster 3 2 2 21 1 1 2 Ret 4 12 1 2 6 DSQ 5 446
4 Australia Joey Mawson 11 1 1 12 3 2 12 1 1 364
5 Australia Blake Purdie 6 8 6 5 4 5 3 Ret 6 22 3 2 7 4 6 33 4 Ret 364
6 Australia Nic Carroll 7 7 9 6 5 6 8 5 8 5 6 7 8 7 8 7 7 6 332
7 Australia James Golding 52 4 3 33 2 3 71 2 2 282
8 Australia Ben Bargwanna 4 4 4 6 6 5 4 3 3 224
9 Australia Mark Rosser 10 9 10 Ret 8 9 Ret Ret 9 7 9 9 9 9 9 9 Ret 9 206
10 Australia Aaron Love 83 5 5 4 5 3 143
11 Australia Kody Garland 6 7 6 5 8 7 114
12 Australia Winston Smith 7 9 8 6 Ret 7 88
13 Spain Roberto Merhi 93 3 5 WD WD WD 63
14 Australia Sebastian Amadio Ret 8 8 8 Ret 7 60
15 Australia Nathan Herne Ret 6 4 50
=16 Australia Zane Goddard 8 10 8 44
=16 Australia Kobi Williams 10 8 8 44
18 New Zealand Kaleb Ngatoa 5 5 Ret 40
— Australia Matt McLean WD WD WD —
Pos Driver R1 R2 R3 R1 R2 R3 R1 R2 R3 R1 R2 R3 R1 R2 R3 R1 R2 R3 Pts
SYM
Tasmania 		PHI
Victoria (state) 		WIN
Victoria (state) 		SYD
New South Wales 		BEN
South Australia 		ADE
South Australia
Colour Result
Gold Winner
Silver Second place
Bronze Third place
Green Points finish
Blue Non-points finish
Non-classified finish (NC)
Purple Retired (Ret)
Red Did not qualify (DNQ)
Did not pre-qualify (DNPQ)
Black Disqualified (DSQ)
White Did not start (DNS)
Withdrew (WD)
Race cancelled (C)
Blank Did not practice (DNP)
Did not arrive (DNA)
Excluded (EX)

Bold – Pole

Italics – Fastest Lap

1 2 3 – R1 qualifying positions awarding extra points

Tasman Series standings

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Pos Driver ADE
South Australia 		Pts
R1 R2 R3
1 Australia Aaron Cameron 11 1 1 130
2 Australia Jordan Boys 22 2 2 109
3 Australia Ben Bargwanna 4 3 3 86
4 Australia Nic Carroll 7 7 6 56
5 Australia Nathan Herne Ret 6 4 50
6 Australia Blake Purdie 33 4 Ret 47
7 Australia Cooper Webster 6 DSQ 5 44
8 Australia Kobi Williams 10 8 8 44
9 New Zealand Kaleb Ngatoa 5 5 Ret 40
10 Australia Sebastian Amadio 8 Ret 7 36
11 Australia Mark Rosser 9 Ret 9 30
Pos Driver R1 R2 R3 Pts
ADE
South Australia

Notes

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  1. ^ Merhi was entered into round 6, but withdrew after falling ill ahead of the event.

References

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  1. ^ arggrant (21 October 2022). "Unified SpeedSeries primed for bumper 2023". S5000. Retrieved 7 December 2022.
  2. ^ a b richardrt (7 December 2022). "2023 S5000 Australian Drivers' Championship schedule confirmed". S5000. Retrieved 7 December 2022.
  3. ^ Herrero, Daniel (11 January 2024). "S5000 parked over Supercars eligibility rules". Speedcafe.com. Retrieved 11 January 2024.
  4. ^ richardrt (21 April 2021). "Introducing the Rogers AF01/V8". S5000. Retrieved 7 December 2022.
  5. ^ richardrt (28 September 2022). "Pro-Am battle to add to S5000 competition in Tasman, Gold Star series". S5000. Retrieved 7 December 2022.
  6. ^ richardrt (15 February 2023). "New partnership brings Mawson back in search of title three-peat". S5000. Retrieved 16 February 2023.
  7. ^ a b richardrt (20 November 2023). "Cameron shoots for Gold Star as S5000 field heads to Adelaide". S5000. Retrieved 21 November 2023.
  8. ^ richardrt (24 July 2023). "Aaron Love to make S5000 debut in Sydney". S5000. Retrieved 24 July 2023.
  9. ^ richardrt (21 November 2023). "KALEB NGATOA TO THE (S5000) RESCUE". S5000. Retrieved 22 November 2023.
  10. ^ richardrt (23 February 2023). "Five things to watch: S5000 Australian Drivers Championship". S5000. Retrieved 23 February 2023.
  11. ^ richardrt (7 February 2023). "Zane Goddard joins Team BRM for S5000 opener". S5000. Retrieved 8 February 2023.
  12. ^ O'Brien, Connor (16 February 2023). "Cult hero signs full-season S5000 deal". Retrieved 16 February 2023.
  13. ^ "Versa Motorsport on Facebook: Winston Smith signs with VERSA Motorsport to race S5000!". www.facebook.com. Retrieved 3 May 2023.
  14. ^ a b richardrt (31 January 2023). "Versa returns in strength for 2023 Gold Star campaign". S5000. Retrieved 31 January 2023.
  15. ^ arggrant (29 January 2023). "Garry Rogers Motorsport's Aaron Cameron set for full-season S5000 Australian Drivers' Championship campaign". S5000. Retrieved 29 January 2023.
  16. ^ richardrt (17 November 2023). "Nathan Herne to Make Australian Return at Adelaide 500". S5000. Retrieved 17 November 2023.
  17. ^ richardrt (17 February 2023). "Golding returns for Tassie Cameo to shake up S5000 opener". S5000. Retrieved 18 February 2023.
  18. ^ richardrt (1 July 2023). "TCR Star Garland Joins S5000 Field". S5000. Retrieved 13 July 2023.
  19. ^ richardrt (12 February 2023). "Jordan Boys Commits to Full S5000 title campaign". S5000. Retrieved 13 February 2023.
  20. ^ richardrt (14 February 2023). "S5000 switch for Super3, Trans-Am Racer Carroll". S5000. Retrieved 14 February 2023.
  21. ^ van Leeuwen, Andrew (17 February 2023). "Ex-F1 racer Roberto Merhi secures S5000 return". Motorsport.com. Retrieved 17 February 2023.
  22. ^ "Sydney Motorsport Park". S5000. Retrieved 28 July 2023.
  23. ^ richardrt (25 July 2023). "HANGCHA FORKLIFTS AND BARGWANNAS JOIN FORCES IN NEW MOTORSPORT PARTNERSHIP". S5000.
  24. ^ arggrant (15 January 2023). "Phillip Island joins SpeedSeries calendar". SpeedSeries. Retrieved 16 January 2023.
  25. ^ richardrt (25 February 2023). "Mawson bursts to early lead in Gold Star race". S5000. Retrieved 3 January 2024.
  26. ^ richardrt (26 February 2023). "Mawson charges to Race 2 win, Merhi charges". S5000. Retrieved 3 January 2024.
  27. ^ richardrt (26 February 2023). "Decisive pass delivers Mawson Symmons Plains sweep". S5000. Retrieved 3 January 2024.
  28. ^ richardrt (13 May 2023). "Fast start, re-start delivers Mawson fourth win". S5000. Retrieved 3 January 2024.
  29. ^ richardrt (14 May 2023). "Webster claims Round 2 with emphatic Sunday drive". S5000. Retrieved 3 January 2024.
  30. ^ motorsportaus (10 June 2023). "Mawson claims Winton win after dramatic last lap shootout". S5000. Retrieved 3 January 2024.
  31. ^ motorsportaus (11 June 2023). "Mawson two from two, disaster for Webster". S5000. Retrieved 3 January 2024.
  32. ^ motorsportaus (11 June 2023). "Mawson's Winton wonderland". S5000. Retrieved 3 January 2024.
  33. ^ "Mawson suspended over supplement concerns". www.motorsport.com. 20 July 2023. Retrieved 3 January 2024.
  34. ^ zacdowdell (29 July 2023). "Cameron Forced to Fight for Opening Sydney S5000 Win". S5000. Retrieved 3 January 2024.
  35. ^ zacdowdell (29 July 2023). "Cameron too Classy on Sunday Morning in Sydney". S5000. Retrieved 3 January 2024.
  36. ^ zacdowdell (30 July 2023). "Cameron Claims Sydney Sweep with Dominant Display". S5000. Retrieved 3 January 2024.
  37. ^ richardrt (19 August 2023). "Webster Claims Saturday S5000 Double". S5000. Retrieved 3 January 2024.
  38. ^ richardrt (20 August 2023). "Cameron Claims S5000 Finale at The Bend". S5000. Retrieved 3 January 2024.
  39. ^ zacdowdell (24 November 2023). "Cameron Cruises to Opening Adelaide Win". S5000. Retrieved 3 January 2024.
  40. ^ zacdowdell (25 November 2023). "Cameron Wins Disrupted Saturday Race in Adelaide". S5000. Retrieved 3 January 2024.
  41. ^ zacdowdell (25 November 2023). "Cameron Clinches Historic Double Title". S5000. Retrieved 3 January 2024.
  42. ^ Technical regulation motorsport.org.au
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