2023 Vailo Adelaide 500 – Sticks and Stones Photography

Some photos from the Friday of the 2023 Vailo Adelaide 500 which took place in November. Friday is a good value day offering a full day’s action. Thursday had been a wet day challenging many of the drivers, but Friday was dry. Apart from the Gen3 Supercars (Ford Mustangs and Chevy Camaros) Friday featured a host of support categories including: Fanatec GT World Challenge Australia, Gulf Western Oil Touring Car Masters, S5000 Australian Drivers Championship, Porsche Carrera Cup, Tyrepower V8 SuperUtes and Dunlop Super2. During the day there are practice, qualifying and races, dependent on the category, culminating with qualifying session of the Supercars. During the weekend there are also on track displays like fire breathing, wheelie’ing drag cars and up in the sky the Royal Australia Air Forces’ F-35A Lightning II.

Several of the Fanatec GT teams had two drivers, a “Pro” driver and an “Am” driver, with each taking turns behind the wheel during the race, otherwise some teams just had the one driver, eg Brad Schumacher and Renae Gracie, who finished 4th and 6th respectively. Top teams were able to secure factory or European GT drivers from Europe as the “Pro” drivers. The Fanatec GT race in the afternoon (Race 1 at 40mins) saw a tightly contested affair between local Yasser Shahin with Matt Campbell in a Porsche against Liam Talbot and Christopher Mies (who had actually partnered with Shahin previously) in a Audi R8. Shahin and Talbot would drive the first stints. With a long wait at the mandatory pit stop/driver change to Talbot/Mies, Shahin/Campbell were able to have a decent gap, but this didn’t stop Mies hunting down Campbell. In the end Campbell would cross the line only 1.5secs ahead of the fast charging Mies, showing why he is such an accomplished Audi factory driver in Europe. Geoff Emery/Max Hofer occupied the 3rd spot on the podium.

SuperUtes and S5000 categories had their Race 1 in the afternoon. Dunlop Super2 had both their Race 1 and Race 2 run on Friday.

In the Porsche Carrera Cup Race 1 (24 laps) results were Dale Wood (No. 992) in 1st, Callum Hedge (no. 17) in 2nd and Jackson Walls (No. 11) in 3rd. A Dale Wood would also be teamed up with Andre Heimgartner in the Brad Jones Racing’s Chevy Cameros in the Supercars. Sam Shahin and Dean Cook tangled at the final corner. Rain drops began to fall on the track but luckily real rain didn’t eventuate like Thursday. Vidau spun trying to overtake Wood at turn 9. Hall also had a spin at the same corner.

Touring Car Masters Race1 (10 laps) results were local Joel Heinrich (No. 95 Chevy Camaro RS) in 1st, Ryan Hansford (No. 6 Holden Torana A9X) in 2nd and Steven Johnson (No. 33 Ford Mustang Mach1) in 3rd. Both Hansford (father Gregg Hansford) and Johnson (father Dick Johnson) are keeping their family names going in motorsport! Joel Heinrich has driven in Aussie Cars, speedway sprintcars, Dunlop Super2, HQ Holdens, Nissan Pulsars also. Heinrich would take out both wins of the Touring Cars Masters.

Friday

0835 Fanatec GT World Challenge Australia Qualifying