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Motorsport Recap: Podiums at Sebring, while weather causes havoc at the Grand Prix in Melbourne.

Hunter McElrea finished 3rd in the LMP2 class at Sebring, and Ryan Yardley started strong in the Porsche Carrera Cup North America with two P2 finishes. Liam Lawson faced difficulties in his F1 opener in Melbourne and a handful of top 5 finishes among the Supercar drivers.

North America

Hunter McElrea clinched 3rd place at the 12 Hours of Sebring in car #11 with TDS Racing in the LMP2 class after claiming the Pole position. Fellow Kiwi Earl Bamber was 4th overall in car #31 with Whelen Cadillac (GTP class). Scott Dixon followed in P10, and Brendon Hartley in P11. You’ll find these drivers next on track on April 11-12 at the 2025 Acura Grand Prix of Long Beach.

It was an excellent season opener for Ryan Yardley in the Porsche Carrera Cup North America at Sebring, with P2 in both races across the weekend—a strong start to the year. Yardley’s next race is at the Miami Grand Prix on May 2-4 as an opening category to Formula 1.

Brendon Leitch kicked off his North America Lamborghini Super Trofeo in the Pro-Am class at Sebring, claiming the top of the podium in race 1 with his driving partner Anthony McIntosh. Race 2 unfortunately ended with a DNF after the Sebring track showed its toughness and McIntosh lost control of the car. Brendon is next racing back at Phillip Island for GT World Challenge Australia on April 4-6.

Shane van Gisbergen struggled to get lucky in Las Vegas, with three flat tires and a crash that ultimately ended his race at the oval in Sin City. The NASCAR Cup Series heads back to the east coast for the Homestead Miami Speedway - Straight Talk Wireless 400 in Miami.

Melbourne, Australia

Liam Lawson’s Formula 1 season didn’t get off to the start we all wanted, with technical issues and then ultimately the wet conditions on race day putting a dampener on the first round. Lawson started the race from the pits, a wet and wild start for the whole grid. Running a different strategy to the lead cars, he worked his way up to P6 on intermediate tires. However, the rainfall intensified more than expected, making it nearly impossible to keep control. On Lap 47, he lost grip at Turn 2, spinning his rear wheels and sliding into the barrier, bringing his race to an unfortunate end.

There was a mixed bag of results across our Supercar Championship drivers—Ryan Wood, Matt Payne, and André Heimgartner. They had a busy schedule with four races across the weekend and a handful of top 5 finishes among the drivers. Ryan Wood had an impressive Race 4, moving up 12 spots to finish P5. Race 7 was cancelled due to the heavy rain on Sunday after a few laps under a safety car. Supercars Championship is heading to New Zealand soil with the next round at Taupo Motorsport Park on April 11-13.

Melbourne hosted round 2 of the Porsche Carrera Cup Australia. Clay Osborne secured top 10 finishes across the three races. While Marco Giltrap struggled with technical issues at the start of the weekend, he managed to get out on track for the races. There is now a break in racing until June 20-22 when the series heads to Darwin.