MOTORSPORT
3 MAY, 2019
And what a start to the year it was with our Toyota GAZOO Racing Australia rally team taking a 1-2 win in the opening round of the ARC in a pair of Yaris AP4 rally cars.
The barnstorming Bates brothers dominated the Forest Rally in the south-west of WA with Lewis Bates and co-driver Anthony McLaughlin driving to victory in the opening Friday night super special stage in Busselton.
This put him just 0.1 seconds ahead of team mates Harry Bates and co-driver John McCarthy going into heat 1 on Saturday.
Harry, driving a brand-new car, took up the challenge to his younger brother and finished the weekend with 13 out of a total 18 stage wins to end on top of the driver’s championship leader board with Lewis, in his first competitive outing in the Yaris, winning four stages to finish in second place.
The TGRA team is led by four-time Australian Rally Champion legend Neal Bates and if the Forest Rally was any indication, it looks like his boys could well follow in his rally tracks.
Meanwhile, on the other side of the country, more than 40 aspiring professional drivers and weekend warriors lined up on the grid at Phillip Island for the first round of the Toyota 86 Racing Series delivering plenty of hot racing action at the iconic circuit.
As a grassroots affordable racing series, the T86RS provides the perfect training ground for talented amateurs with all competitors driving identical race-modified rear-drive Toyota 86 coupes that can be had for less than $75,000.
With $150,000 in prize money and the glory of winning the Toyota GAZOO Racing Australia trophy, the T86RS offers huge appeal for passionate motorsport enthusiasts and fans alike.
Run in select rounds of the Supercars Championship, this year sees the cars take to the track in five three-race rounds at Phillip Island, Townsville, Bathurst, Sandown and Newcastle.
With the T86RS running full steam alongside the rally action across the country, Toyota GAZOO Racing Australia has never had greater involvement in local motorsport and for fans and competitors alik that means a very exciting year ahead.
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