‘Perfect' weekend for Ferrari in Sydney
Arise Racing GT dominated the second round of the GT World Challenge Australia, with Jaxon Evans and Elliott Schutte combining to claim both pole positions and both race wins in their CarExpert-backed Ferrari 296 GT3.
With the team now entering its second season in GT racing, it has begun strongly, as the Evans/Schutte combination look to claim back-to-back titles for the team, following Chaz Mostert and Liam Talbot's successful 2024 season.
Team Principal Jordan Oon was understandably ecstatic with the performance of his drivers and team.
'It was a perfect weekend – a clean sweep with double pole and double wins – and I couldn't be prouder of the team,' he said. 'The amount of preparation and attention to detail that goes into everything they do is huge, and they earned every bit of this result. It was calm, methodical, and totally faultless from start to finish.
'Elliott and Jaxon are really hitting their stride. They looked confident from the first session, nailed qualifying, and controlled both races with maturity and precision. It's the kind of performance we've come to expect from them – and it's great to be giving them a package that allows them to deliver at that level.'
The first win came under lights on Saturday night, when the Ferrari pair greeted the chequered flag 15 seconds clear of the rest of the field.
The podium was completed by the Tigani Motorsport pair of Mercedes-AMG GT3 EVOs, with Supercars ace Tom Randle and his co-driver Marcel Zalloua claiming second, with Jayden Ojeda and Paul Lucchitti right behind in third place.
In Sunday's race things were slightly closer, with the Evans/Schutte Ferrari only 10 seconds ahead at the finish. This time, instead of a pair of Mercedes-AMGs, it was an Audi duo that completed the podium.
The Melbourne Performance Centre R8 LMS EVO II of Ryan Wood and Steve Brooks claimed second ahead of their teammates Brad Schumacher and Broc Feeney.
The second Arise Racing GT 296 GT3 shared by Jordan Love and Steven Wyatt didn't enjoy the same success as their teammates, but Oon was still very happy with the progress the pair made in only their second event with the team.
'Steven and Jordan had a strong weekend,' Oon said. 'They adapted quickly to tricky conditions on Friday and built a solid foundation early on. By Sunday, they found their rhythm, delivering consistent pace and growing confidence in the car. Car 77's progress is great, and it's exciting to see the development.'
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But he bizarrely fell well off the pace in his final stint, getting overtaken by George Russell, who snuck onto the podium behind race winner Lando Norris, who benefited from a one-stop strategy to beat Oscar Piastri. 'This is so incredibly frustrating,' Leclerc raged in a lengthy team radio message to Ferrari you can watch above. 'We have lost all competitiveness. 'You just had to listen to me, I would have found a different way of managing those issues. 'Now it's just undrivable. Undrivable. It's a miracle if we finish on the podium.' He did walk back his comments after the race, saying his dramatic drop off in pace in his final stint was due to a chassis issue with his car. 'First of all, I need to take back the words I've said on the radio,' Leclerc said post-race. 'Because I thought that it was coming from one thing but then I got a lot more details since I got out the car, and it was actually an issue coming from the chassis, and nothing that we could have done differently. It was a tough day at the office for Charles Leclerc. (Photo by) Leclerc's pace dropped off dramatically in the second half of the race. (AP Photo/Denes Erdos) 'I started to feel the issue in Lap 40, or something like that, and it got worse lap after lap after lap. Towards the end, we were two seconds off the pace and the car was just undrivable. 'I repeat myself, but this was an issue, and it's an outlier. It shouldn't ever happen again. I'm still very disappointed we had one opportunity this year to win a race, which I think was this weekend. 'The first stint was perfect. The first laps of the second stint were really good as well, and I think we were in pace to try and win that race. 'The last stint was a disaster when I started to have that issue.' Theory Ferrari tried to avoid DQ George Russell, who overtook Leclerc late in the race, floated the theory Ferrari were using a specific engine mode and raising tyre pressure to look after the plank underneath Leclerc's car, slowing him down to avoid a potential disqualification. 'I saw how close he was, something was not right,' Russell explained. 'The only think we can think is that they were running the car too close to the ground and they had to increase the tyre pressure for the last stint, because they were using an engine mode which makes the engine slower at the end of the straight, which is where you have the most amount of plank wear.' Both Leclerc and Lewis Hamilton were disqualified from the Chinese Grand Prix for excessive plank wear — an issue Ferrari have had to manage throughout the season. If the 10mm plank wears down more than 1mm during a race, the car is disqualified. Sky Sports analyst Anthony Davidson noticed sparks flying from underneath Leclerc's car at the start of the race. 'It's really hard for all the teams to get right,' Davidson said. Did Ferrari make Charles Leclerc's car slower he didn't get disqualified? (Photo by) 'You want it for qualifying but then you dump a load of fuel, around 100kg, go into it heavier with colder tyres. You can do a lot of damage to plank wear. 'When you come to the final pit stop and they're worried about the car being too low, therefore the plank wear being too high … 'He comes in. The next set of tyres going on, if they're boosted pressures, it plays havoc with grip. It's a good case study from George. It's funny how the teams analyse each other. 'They've got all the data and they knew exactly what was going on with Leclerc's straight-line speed. 'I was in the pitlane and I said it would be hard for Leclerc to be overtaken because he's been quick all weekend down the straight. But he was like a sitting duck which was a real surprise to me. 'The other teams have seen the data. They have seen the straight line speed drop throughout the race. At maximum speed you are doing most downforce and the biggest damage to the plank. Charles Leclerc started on pole position but missed the podium. (Photo by Attila KISBENEDEK / AFP) 'The set of tyres which went on might have had unwanted pressure, they overheat quicker, and there goes your grip.' 'It was a preventative measure,' Bernie Collins said on Sky Sports. 'Raising tyre pressure raises the ride height, that's why you get less plank wear. 'It's very small but with these cars millimetres make a difference. 'That is a preventive measure, it's a way of preventing the plank hitting so much. They can see how much the plank is contacting on the earlier stints. They can take the pace for the earlier stints but maybe not the whole race. 'George mentioned maybe they turned down the engines so the car is not so fast. If the car is not so fast on the straight, you take off downforce, and the rear of the car will lift up. 'Both methods will prevent the plank being in contact with the ground. Leclerc appeared to hint at the plank wear issue on radio late in the race, saying: 'I can feel what we discussed before the race. We need to discuss those things, before doing those. 'We are going to lose this race with these things. We are losing so much time.' Leclerc ultimately missed the podium and finished fourth — he has 27 career pole positions but has only converted those into a race wins five times. Leclerc and Hamilton have repeatedly clashed with their race engineers over team radio, disagreeing about strategy decisions, tyre choices or being frustrated about being spoken to during key parts of the race. Ferrari team principal Fred Vasseur signed a multi-year contract extension with the team last week. Lewis Hamilton sounds like a broken man Fans were also concerned for Lewis Hamilton after his own dejected message to his Ferrari colleagues. Hamilton had a nightmare Hungarian Grand Prix today, finishing in a disappointing 12th. The seven-time world champion failed to pick up any points and sounded like a broken man over the team radio post-race. Hamilton said: 'Really sorry about this weekend guys, for losing you points.' He also reportedly sat in his car for some time after parking it up. BUDAPEST, HUNGARY - AUGUST 03: Twelfth placed Lewis Hamilton after the Hungarian Grand Prix. (Photo by) It comes after the Brit's woeful qualifying session yesterday that saw him exit in Q2 while teammate Leclerc secured a shock pole. Hamilton again sounded crestfallen over the team radio, saying: 'It's me every time. I'm useless, absolutely useless. 'The team have no problem. You've seen the car's on pole so we probably need to change driver.' Told by a member of the Ferrari team that his assessment was wrong, Hamilton replied: 'It clearly is. I just drove terribly. It is what it is.' Fans were left shocked by Hamilton's comments over the weekend, with one saying: 'Champions apologise even when they don't have to. That's why he's different.' Hamilton is yet to finish on the podium since making the move from Mercedes this season, while Leclerc has five podiums this year but is still chasing his first win of the season. — With The Sun Originally published as Conspiracy theory twist after Charles Leclerc's radio blow-up at Ferrari
