Round 1 - Sydney Motorsport Park (NSW) April 19-20, Round 2 Morgan Park Raceway (QLD) Provisional May 31 - June 2, Round 3 Queensland Raceway (QLD) June 28-30, Round 4 The Bend (SA), August 30-September 1, Round 5 Winton Motor Raceway (VIC) October 4-5, Round 6 TBC.

The 2024 TA2 Muscle Car Series - framed by HYTEK Steel Framing today released details of the 2024 calendar which will include a new multi-year television deal with SBS Free to Air television, simulcast on Fox Sports 506 and Kayo.

A two round Australia Vs New Zealand Trans-Tasman Challenge for TA2 Muscle Cars will kick off the season in February next year at Euromarque Motorsport Park in Christchurch  (Feb 9-11) followed by Tony Quinns Highlands International Motorsport Park circuit at Cromwell, near Queenstown, both in New Zealand’s South Island(Feb 16-18). This will be the first time the TA2 Muscle Cars will race as a stand-alone category on what will be two of New Zealand’s premiere race meetings, with the Highland Park round featuring the New Zealand Grand Prix. Eight Australian competitors will cross the Tasman and join eight New Zealand TA2 competitors for the six-race series. Both events will be televised live by Sky Sports New Zealand and Fox Sports/Kayo Australia.

The Hi-Tec Oils Super Series 2024 season will commence at Sydney Motorsport Park with Round One of the TA2 Muscle Car Series under lights in April and televised live on SBS in prime time.

South-East Queensland will hold Rounds 2 and 3, with Morgan Park Raceway listed provisionally, with a return to the 2 Days of Thunder meeting at Queensland Raceway June 28-30.

The TA2 Muscle Car Series will move to South Australia’s The Bend Motorsport Park for the first time since 2021 and will host Round 4 of the series in August/September then Winton Raceway in Victoria for Round Five over the October long weekend.

Dates and location for the final round in November are still to be confirmed, however likely to be NSW based. 

The Southern and Northern series point score system will return in 2024 with all rounds headlining the Hi-Tec Oils Super Series. Sydney Motorsport Park, Queensland Raceway and Morgan Park will be included in the Northern Series points, while Sydney Motorsport Park, The Bend and Winton Motor Raceway will be included in the Southern Series point scoring. 

A three round TA2 King of the West series will be launched for Western Australian competitors with Tailem Bend featuring as Round 1 (Aug 30-Sept 1, followed by rounds at Carco Wanneroo Raceway (Sept 13-15) and Collie Motorplex. (Sept 21-22)

The media platform will see free to air television coverage expanded to include both days, again simulcast on Fox Sports/Kayo, doubling the free to air television and Fox Sports content time for 2024.

QUOTES

Craig Denyer TA2 National Category Manager

“In many ways, 2023 was TA2’s best year yet, however expanding into New Zealand and doubling our free to air television coverage will give the series a great lead in for 2024 in what will be another exciting year for the TA2 family. The Hi-Tec Oils Super Series fits perfectly with our mandate of making serious racing fun again, while offering TA2 competitors a blend of racetracks and series options that can suit their individual budgets and needs.  They can compete at all rounds for the series championship ring and title, or choose a three round series which can be close to home therefore reducing time away from work and minimizing long distance travel.” 

#22 Brad Gartner, Palm Family Ford Mustang 

“The 2024 calendar is awesome for the teams. It’s great to see The Bend making a return, while tracks like Sydney, Queensland Raceway and Winton produce spectacular racing for our TA2 muscle cars.

"The new multi-year free-to-air broadcast deal with SBS as well as Fox and Kayo across both days of racing is amazing, putting our series in front of greater eyeballs than ever before. The primetime racing under lights in Sydney was fantastic this year and that will definitely be a sensational way to kick off the series in April.

“2023 was phenomenal, the battles on the track were intense and my race craft reached another level, but I reckon 2024 will see the competition step up another notch again."

The 2023 TA2 Muscle Car Series has wrapped up with CXC Ford Mustang driver Dylan Thomas winning the TA2 Muscle Car Series - framed by HYTEK Steel Framing, 18 points ahead of #37 Beaches Seadoo driver Josh Haynes and Jackson Rice also 18 points behind Haynes, in a thrilling Round 6 at the re-birthed Calder Park Raceway. 

All 2023 TA2 championship winners were crowned last Sunday night at a gala presentation evening at the Hyatt Essendon Fields.

Nicholas Bates scored back-to-back Circo Master Class titles from Paul Hadley and Mark Crutcher.

#81MGW/Team RSG Dodge Challenger driver Hayden Jackson scored the Wilwood Encouragement award.  as he was the most improved driver this year compared to last year on series points. The prize included a full set of Wilwood Calipers and Rotors supplied by Wilwood Brakes. 

For the second year in a row IES Motorsport has taken home the Bowden’s Own Best Presented Team, for always showing up to every round with both of their cars looking impeccable. 

The Racetech Rookie of the Year was awarded to the highest point scoring first year TA2 Muscle Car Series Driver winning a Racetech Gaming Simulator Chassis and Seat worth over $2k from Racetech as well as a Hoosier Champions jacket. This was awarded to Gunnedah’s Greg Keam in the #13 Debeers Refinish Ford Mustang. 

The TA2 Geoff Leeds Sportsman Award is for the driver or team that does not necessarily win races or run at the front, but contributes in many ways to the success of the series.  This award, presented by Ben Leeds went to #50 IES Motorsport driver Paul Hadley, giving the IES Team a swag full of gold for the evening as Graham Cheney also wrapped up the TA2 Northern Series title. 

The TA2 Muscle Car Series  was the first national title in ten years of trying for Thomas, and a fitting reward for a year where he played a strategic consistent game and was never headed in the point score from round two on. Thomas claimed the series winning trophy, the $5000 Gold Championship Ring and a refreshed McLaren Engineering Race engine for the 2024 season.

CXC Racing’s Dylan Thomas has claimed the 2023 TA2 Muscle Car Series framed by Hytek after a dramatic season finale at Calder Park Raceway won by rookie AC Delco Mustang driver Jarrod Hughes.

After a fifth place finish in Race 1 on Friday, Thomas placed fifth, seventh and sixth to secure his first national championship win by 18 points over Beaches SeaDoo Mustang driver Josh Haynes.

It wasn’t with our hardship, with the CXC Racing team having to repair Thomas’ Mustang after a brush with the wall on the front straight during a warm up session in the early afternoon to assess driving conditions during the torrential conditions in the morning.

Race 2 saw TFH Hire Services Mustang driver Nash Morris lead the field away after his win in Race 1. Hughes took the lead from Morris on Lap 2, and gapped the field by eight seconds to score his maiden TA2 win in only his second solo start. Baccus Marsh Motorsport Mustang driver Brad Gartner charged from ninth to third, before getting by Morris with two laps to go to finish second, earning the Hyperco Hard Charger Award for his efforts alongside Mark Crutchers’ charge from 18th to 11th.

Hughes went back to back in Race 3 with a lights to flag win over Gartner. Morris held second for the whole race until Gartner dove down the inside of Morris at Turn 6 as the pair negotiated lapped traffic down the back straight.

Race 4 got off to a chaotic start when Lee Stibbs spun at Turn 3 on the opening lap, before he was collected by Russell Wright and Greg Keam. The race was red flagged to recover Wright’s stricken Mustang, before the race restarted with a four lap dash to the flag. Jackson Rice jumped to second off the restart, but later spun out and finished back in tenth, while Hayden Jackson stormed from fifth to third ahead of championship runner-up Josh Haynes who claimed the Wilwood Big Breaker Award.

Hughes also took home the Bowden’s Best Presented Award in the AC Delco Mustang, as well as the Racetech Rookie of the Round.

The championship winners will be officially crowned at the 2023 TA2 Muscle Car Series framed by Hytek and HiTec Oils Super Series Awards Night on Sunday 3 December.

QUOTES

Dylan Thomas, #68 CXC Ford Mustang, 2023 TA2 Muscle Car Series framed by Hytek Champion

"This is definitely pretty special. ever since I put it in the wall this morning in that warm up session in the wet the guts have been pretty tight. 

“We had a pretty cruisy weekend, we didn't have to do a lot so when I put it in the wall it actually brought the intensity up. 

“We put the championship together throughout the whole year and Josh Haynes and Jackson Rice were awesome all year, credit to those guys."

Jarrod Hughes, #118 AC DELCO Ford Mustang 

"We were not expecting any of this at all, I am speechless, it is awesome. I can't thank everyone who has supported me enough. The TA2 team has given me the opportunity to do this, it is very cool. 

“I have to thank Tony Sewell he has been the brains behind it all, I can't thank him enough as well as all the people from AC Delco as well as all my other supporters, this is pretty cool.”

TFH Hire Services Ford Mustang driver Nash Morris scored the first ever TA2 Muscle Car Series framed by Hytek race win at Calder Park Raceway, 22 years after his father Paul won the final Supercars race at the venue.

Morris scored his fourth career PWR Pole Award in the Top 10 Shootout, besting debutant Jarrod Hughes in the AC Delco Ford Mustang by four tenths of a second.

Morris lead Hughes away from the start, before a safety car was called on Lap 5 after Peter Robinson spun and hit the concrete wall on the exit of Turn 5.

The race resumed on Lap 10 with three laps to go, as Morris fended off a fast-finishing Hughes to the finish.

Dream Racing Australia’s Jackson Rice hustled Josh Haynes for the whole race, but it was Haynes who closed the gap to series leader Dylan Thomas with a third place finish, while Thomas finished fifth in the CXC Racing Mustang closely behind Rice.

Nicholas Bates won the Circo Masters Class ahead of Russell Wright and Kubota Racing’s Matt MacKelden.

Haynes closed the gap from 24 points to 20 to Thomas for the championship lead, with Thomas on 1078 points and Haynes 1058, with 180 points up for grabs heading into the final day of the season.

The TA2 Muscle Car Series framed by Hytek returns for Race 2 at 12:45pm AEDT, Race 3 at 4:58pm and Race 4 at 7:22pm at Calder Park Raceway. Saturday’s action can be viewed online with a livestream from 11am - 3:30pm, before it is live and free on SBS from 4pm - 8pm, simulcast on Fox Sports and Kayo.

QUOTES

Nash Morris, #111 TFH Hire Services Ford Mustang

“I treat every race meeting the same, I always want to go out there and do my best. The car feels good, the team and myself are very happy, so we will go out there tomorrow and hopefully win some more races." 

"I had my student Jarrod Hughes from Norwell, I reckon I have taught him so well, he is doing a very good job for his first race in the category so it's good to see him up there with coming in second.”

ACDelco backs Ford Mustang in TA2 Muscle Car Racing Series ACDelco, one of the most recognised names in the automotive parts world, has long been associated with GM and Holden vehicles when, in reality, offers an extensive range of quality parts for most makes and models.
The brand has been promoting this fact in recent years through sponsorship of drivers and their teams in multiple race series, including Toyota TGRA 86 and the 2023 Championship winning Isuzu DMax SuperUte of Aaron Borg.

In a new development, ACDelco has now expanded its most makes messaging by providing support to a TA2 Ford Mustang in this weekend's round of the Muscle Car series at Calder Park.

Young driver and ACDelco ambassador, Jarrod Hughes, (who has just finished two seasons in the Toyota 86 Series, finishing 1st in 2022 and 5th in 2023), will pilot the car in what will be the final round of the season.

TA2 is one of the fastest growing motorsport categories in Australia, with over 120 cars in the country. It’s all about fast, tough and noisy ‘turnkey’ race cars, fully controlled in all aspects on a single chassis/ Chevrolet Performance LS crate engine and gearbox combination with current Mustang, Camaro and Dodge Challenger bodies.

Today’s announcement coincides with news that, for the 2024 season and beyond, the TA2 series will source its powertrain requirements directly from GM’s Chevrolet Performance Parts division.

Jarrod Hughes is eager to get into the ACDelco Ford Mustang TA2 Muscle Car and, after showing good early test results during practice at Calder last week, go head-to-head with the series leaders.

ACDelco Parts Direct is the brand’s new online store, and the extensive catalogue is available for a wide range of automotive parts, including filters, wipers, chemicals, spark plugs, brakes and power tools.

There are items to suit vehicles as diverse as 4x4s, SUVs, passenger cars and even light trucks, with parts available for everyone to purchase regardless of whether a trade or DIY retail customer.

Check out the ACDelco auto parts range available and make an online order at: acdelcopartsdirect.com.au

QUOTES

“ACDelco are a great brand to work with, they are well respected and trusted in the professional auto trade, and one of my jobs to help convey the message that ACDelco is a most makes, most models brand by racing non-GM cars,” said Jarrod.

The new Mustang isn’t the only ACDelco branding trackside this weekend, with an original ACDelco sign from the 90’s still visible at the Calder Park Thunderdome. “ACDelco has been associated with Holden vehicles and racing since the late 1960s” said Chris Payne General Manager Marketing ACDelco.

“Back in the day, ACDelco would never have been associated with Ford, but times have changed and the TA2 Mustang is a great way to communicate the most makes ACDelco message,” he added.