The TA2 family is deeply saddened to hear of the recent passing of one of our own racers, Jack Childs.

Jack passed away in his sleep in the early morning on Tuesday March 15, 2022 at 71 years of age, only a couple of weeks before his 72nd birthday. He is survived by his lovely wife Christine and three daughters Letta, Charmaine, Nita and grandson Jaxxon. He also had a son David who previously passed away.

Childs first jumped behind the wheel on the dirt track at 19 years of age in an FJ Holden at Toowoomba’s Echo Valley Raceway.

Concentrating on his career, Jack then moved to Rockhampton in 1972 and managed numerous pubs throughout Gracemere, Innisfail, Townsville and Rockhampton, meeting his lovely wife Christine in Rockhampton six years later.

Childs returned to speedway racing in 1982, competing in the Bomber class regularly at Rockhampton’s Rocky and Bouldercombe Speedway and won the 1983 Queensland Title. Moving into the Modified Production class, Childs visited tracks such as Rocky Speedway, Toowoomba’s Hi-Tec Oils Speedway, Maryborough Speedway, Bundaberg’s Carina Speedway, Cairns International Speedway and Mac’s Speedway in Mackay until the late 1990s, winning two Rocky Speedway Club Championships and scoring several podium finishes.

Moving from Rockhampton to Maroochydore on the Sunshine Coast in 2007, Childs upgraded to a Rocket Super Sedan previously owned by Danny Smith, participating in three National Series and the prestigious Grand National race in Tasmania.

Childs retired from speedway at the end of the 2017-18 season and has always been a huge supporter of the sport through his business Think Money, sponsoring drivers and events, and received a fitting send-off at Gympie’s Mothar Mountain Speedway in May, 2018, bringing to an end what has been a memorable journey.

After a long Speedway career and having always harboured a desire to compete in road racing. Childs made his TA2 Muscle Car Series debut at Winton Motor Raceway in 2019, with eight race starts to his name and a best finish of 23rd position.

Jack’s Mustang was later sold to Garry Rogers Motorsport which was recently campaigned by Owen Kelly and Jason Bargwanna in the National Trans-Am Series.

After a couple of years out of the seat, Jack had been planning a return to TA2 competition at the time of his passing.

TA2 Muscle Car Series founder Peter Robinson paid respect to a “real gentleman” of the motorsport community and while he didn’t finish on the podium in TA2, he was a winner in all aspects of life and a much respected member of the TA2 family.

“It’s funny how things come full circle in life, but I first met Jack Childs over 20 years ago when I used to fix the power steering on his Super Sedan car.“I got a call from Jack one day and he asked ‘is this the same Peter Robinson that used to help me with the power steering on my Super Sedan?’

“He was a passionate Speedway racer but always had a dream to go circuit racing and these TA2 cars were right up his alley, being a user-friendly car to work on that was welcome to drivers at any experience level. He said ‘If you’re a part of this series I want in, I trust you from when you used to work on my cars and I love everything about this series’.

“Jack applied himself to this new form of racing extremely well, attending race driver training classes at Norwell Motorplex through a business acquaintance and fellow TA2 racer Chris Pappas, and he also received tutoring and support from experienced Queenslander racer Rod Dawson.”

“We all loved Jack and Christine and they were truly suited to the TA2 family and their passion and attitude to racing was outstanding.

“Not only a savvy racer he was also a very good businessman and holds the sales record for a second-hand TA2 car at $173,000 which I don’t expect to be broken anytime soon.”

“Although Jack wasn’t a podium finisher in his TA2 career, he was a well-respected competitor and a real gentleman. We are all deeply saddened by his passing and send our thoughts and condolences to Christine and his family.”

Rod Dawson, a successful Queensland race team owner, added that Childs was the “Nicest, kindest soul” that he had the pleasure to work with.

“The greatest thing about Jack was his approach to racing. He had raced in Speedway for over 50 years before he tried this new challenge in road racing and he took everything in his stride and was just happy to be out there giving it his all.”

“One of my best memories of Jack was when we went to Sydney Motorsport Park in 2019 for the TA2 races and I was on the radio the whole session telling him when to brake and change up and down the gears. Well when you’re on top of the pit building you can’t see around Turn 6, so once Jack disappeared around Corporate Hill I had to count the seconds and guess where he would be to call his braking and gear change markers. So when Jack came in he reported that he was going very deep in to the corners around there, only for me to tell him that I couldn’t actually see where he was on track!”

“He had two shoulder operations during the couple of years out of the seat, and only a few weeks ago he had got the clearance from the doctors to go racing again. He was at my workshop last week getting things ready to go racing again, but we will race on inspired by his passion for life and motorsport.

TA2 Racing Australia wishes to extend their condolences to Christine, Letta, Charmaine, Nita, Jaxxon and Jack’s wider family.

18-year old Nash Morris has clean swept the first round of the 2022 PROMAXX Performance Exhausts TA2 Muscle Car Series framed by Hytek at Sydney Motorsport Park in the Supercheap Auto/Norwell Motorplex Ford Mustang.

Morris was largely untouched in all three remaining races on Sunday, taking the Race 2 by three seconds, while Race 3 finished under safety car, before a dominant ten-second win in the final 15-lap race under lights as Jett Johnson claimed runner-up in all three.

A wild incident off the line in Race 2 sent cars spinning everywhere, as Chris Pappas, Dylan Thomas and Zach Loscialpo crossed paths into Turn 1 and a concertina effect sent the pack scrambling, resulting in a five-lap safety car period and damage to multiple cars including Thomas, Adam Hargraves, Karl Begg and Josh Haynes.

Michael Coulter made it through unscathed and climbed from ninth to fourth, while Graham Cheney stormed through from 20th to 5th in the nine lap race.

Russell Wright, Anthony Tenkate, Mark Crutcher and Nick Lange were all hit with a ten-second penalty for a restart infringement.

Morris built a four-second gap out front in Race 3 while Johnson and Loscialpo battled for second. A safety car was called after six laps when Russell Wright suffered a broken ball joint and veered off the outside of the circuit at Turn 3 and into the gravel trap.

TA2 debutant Chris Sutton recovered from a DNF in Race 1 to move into eighth by Race 3 and then into sixth in Race 4.

Morris and Johnson gapped the field out front in Race 4, with Morris taking the chequered flag ten seconds ahead of Johnson before a further 17 seconds back to third-placed Coulter in the Kobelco Mustang.

Coulter had his hands full for the entire race to fend off CXC Racing’s Dylan Thomas to score his first career TA2 podium finish. Rookie Josh Haynes joined the battle late in the race after a storming drive from the back of the grid in 21st.

Haynes, who qualified second at the start of the weekend, endured a host of mechanical dramas over the weekend before putting in his best performance in the final race. The Elvin Group Camaro driver caught and passed Thomas around the outside of Turns 2 and 3 to move into fourth spot and earn the Hyperco Hard Charger Award.

Reigning Southern Series winner Mark Crutcher kicked off his year with a strong performance to take out the Circo Masters Class with finishes of 11th, 16th, 13th and 10th.

Sydneysider Nicholas Bates earned the Racetech Rookie of the Round award for the best-performing first year driver with a consistent weekend in 14th, 17th, 11th and 12th in the four races.

Allgate Racing Dodge driver Chris Formosa earned the Wilwood Big Braker Award, while Paul Hadley’s Illawara Engineering Services team took home the Bowden’s Own Best Presented Team Award.

Morris left Sydney with a maximum 220 points in the bank to lead the series from Johnson (208 points) and Coulter (192 points).

Round 2 of the PROMAXX Performance Exhausts TA2 Muscle Car Series framed by Hytek heads to The Bend Motorsport Park in South Australia on 22-24 April.

QUOTES

Nash Morris, #67 Supercheap Auto Ford Mustang

“It was an awesome weekend here in Sydney in the Supercheap Auto Mustang and a massive thanks to all the crew at Norwell Motorplex for making it happen. Four days ago we weren’t doing this race so they turned the car around so well after Tassie and it’s great to come out on top.

“I’ve done a few laps around Sydney Motorsport Park now. I’ve raced Super3 here and the Trans-Am rounds here, I’ve done a few miles here so I can come straight back and be in to it pretty quick.

“I’ve got a bit on at the moment with fixing Mick Rowell’s car and getting my Super2 car ready for the first round back here in a couple of weeks, so we’re not sure whether we’ll make it to The Bend for Round 2 but never say never!”

18-year-old Nash Morris dominated the first day of competition for the PROMAXX Performance Exhausts TA2 Muscle Car Series framed by Hytek, topping both practice sessions, scoring pole position and taking victory in Race 1 at Sydney Motorsport Park.

The reigning Super3 Supercars champion took out his second-career PWR Pole Award with a margin of six-tenths of a second ahead of rookie Josh Haynes on his V8-racing debut. Formula Vee and Production Car champion Dylan Thomas qualified third in his TA2 Muscle Car debut from last year’s Northern Series champion Jett Johnson and Chris Pappas.

Morris controlled the lead off the start from Haynes, while Thomas jumped to third ahead of Johnson. Haynes showed strong pace on the opening lap before a tailshaft failure resulted in a spin at Turn 4 on Lap 2 and retired out of second place.

The safety car was brought out to recover Haynes’ Camaro, before the field went back racing on Lap 5.

Thomas held off Johnson for third until Lap 7 when the two went side-by-side through Turn 3. Johnson held on around the outside of the Turn 4 right-hander before getting Thomas on the inside line on the switchback at Turn 5.

Chris Pappas and Zach Loscialpo rounded out the top five ahead of a stellar drive from Russell Wright from the rear of the grid in 22nd to sixth after failing to qualify due to a late engine change.

The chequered flag was called after ten laps when Chris Sutton fired off the track at Turn 3 due to a broken tie rod end.

The PROMAXX Performance Exhausts TA2 Muscle Car Series framed by Hytek will conclude tomorrow with Races 2, 3 & 4 kicking off from 2:07pm local time.

QUOTES

Nash Morris, #67 Supercheap Auto Ford Mustang

“It’s gone pretty good so far this weekend, but we still have another day to look forward to especially with the night racing, that should be good fun!”

“The track was pretty greasy out there as the sun was beaming down on the track so it was pretty slippery, I just kind of got a gap at the start and maintained it from there and tried not to wear too much of my tyres out.”

A mix of experienced racers and series debutants make up the 23-car grid for the first round of the 2022 PROMAXX Performance Exhausts TA2 Muscle Car Series framed by Hytek this Friday and Saturday night at Sydney Motorsport Park.

Following a two-year sabbatical of the National TA2 Series due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the national calendar returns this year, with reigning Northern Series champion Jett Johnson and Southern Series winner Mark Crutcher set to hit the track.

Johnson narrowly bested 2017 TA2 champion Russell Wright to the Northern Series last year, as Wright returns for the hunt for his second national title. Nash Morris, who scored three out of four race wins at the final Northern Series event last year, is a late entry for the season opener subbing for Norwell Motorplex Factory Racing teammate Mick Rowell.

This weekend the series is set to welcome no less than five debutants to the grid. Experienced production car and Formula Vee champion Dylan Thomas makes his TA2 Muscle Car debut in the CXC Racing Mustang, while Pulsar Series frontrunner and Bathurst 6 Hour class winner Josh Haynes makes his V8-racing debut in an ex-Loscialpo Chevrolet Camaro.

Haynes, who recently turned 18-years old, is a junior go-karting champion before debuting in tin tops with a successful stint in the one-make Nissan Pulsar Series, has chosen the TA2 formula as the next progression in his motor racing journey for the father-and-son outfit supported by Elvin Group and Rocksolid Concreting.

New South Welshman Nicholas Bates, Lachlan Granger and Chris Sutton are also preparing to make their first TA2 start this weekend.

The competition up front will be red hot, with Queensland guns John McLaughlin, Chris Pappas, Murray Kent, Karl Begg, Adam Hargraves and Nick Lange taking on Sydneysiders Michael Coulter, Zac Loscialpo, Chris Formosa and Graham Cheney.

Anthony Tenkate, Paul Hadley, Rob Leonard and Victorian Jason Hassett complete the grid for the season opener.

The TA2 Muscle Cars will hit the track for four races across the weekend. The first race will be held in twilight conditions on Friday night, kicking off at 6:07pm. Races 2 and 3 will be held on Saturday afternoon before an extended 15-lap finale at 9:25pm.

All of Saturday’s action can be watched live and free courtesy of a live stream hosted by the Australian Motor Racing Series, produced by Fuzzy Media.

The TA2 Muscle Car Series headlines the first round of the 2022 Australian Motor Racing Series, racing alongside the Australian Formula 3 Championship, the Super GT 4 Hour Enduro, the V8 Classic Series and other support categories.

QUOTES

Josh Haynes, #37 Chevrolet Camaro, Elvin Group/Rocksolid Concreting

“It was at the Bathurst 6 Hour we first saw the TA2 cars and that’s where we decided we would look into them as the next series to progress to.”

“As a family we love going our own direction with our racing, we were looking at TCRs and all the other categories you can go to but we saw these and they’re loud, they’re hard to drive, the racing is awesome and really cost-effective too for the car and how professional the series is managed. As a family outfit it’s a big deal for us to be racing in a series as awesome as this so we just can’t wait to get it started.

“We’ll be doing the full TA2 Muscle Car Series season and if we get the opportunity and we can make a few Trans-Am rounds then we’ll give that a go, but we’ll see how we go when we kick the season off in Sydney.

“We’ll be the father and son team plus a few others who come along to help us out, so we’ll turn up with our car trailer and give it a red hot crack.

It’s going go be awesome with the whole new light system, it was exciting to drive in a Pulsar so I can’t imagine how good it’s going to be in the TA2 Muscle Cars.

“We’re not going to put too much pressure on ourselves, a top-ten would be a reasonable goal for our first weekend but there will be so much to learn so we’ll give it our best shot and look to improve from there.

“Sydney Motorsport Park is a track with very-high degradation rate so it’s hard on the tyres by it’s nature, so one of the big things will be me learning to drive to the tyre, learning the car and racing in the pack in a left-hand drive car let alone in the dark, so it’ll be a steep learning curve.”

ENTRY LIST 2021 PROMAXX Performance Exhausts TA2 Muscle Car Series framed by Hytek Round 1 - National Series & Southern Series, Sydney Motorsport Park, 18-19 February

MASTERS, #3 Robert Leonard (QLD), Chevrolet Camaro - Access Linemarking Equipment MASTERS, #4 Mark Crutcher (NSW), Ford Mustang - Crutcher Developments PRO, #8 Chris Pappas (QLD), Ford Mustang - Wealthrite PRO, #11 Michael Coulter (NSW), Ford Mustang - Kobelco/Sydney Truck and Machinery PRO, #17 John McLaughlin (QLD), Ford Mustang - myraceprofile.com PRO, #20 Adam Hargraves (QLD), Chevrolet Camaro - Local Search Racing PRO, #21 Zac Loscialpo (NSW), Chevrolet Camaro - Tempest Solutions/Excelerate Motorsport MASTERS, #24 Nicholas Bates (NSW), Ford Mustang - Nicholas Bates Motorsport MASTERS, #26 Jason Hassett (VIC), Chevrolet Camaro - Hass Pumps PRO, #37 Josh Haynes (NSW), Chevrolet Camaro - Elvin Group/Rocksolid Concreting PRO, #40 Karl Begg (QLD), Ford Mustang - motorsportsales.com.au PRO, #48 Nick Lange (QLD), Chevrolet Camaro - Whitsunday Holiday Rentals PRO, #49 Chris Formosa (NSW), Dodge Challenger - Allgate Motorsport MASTERS, #50 Paul Hadley (NSW), Chevrolet Camaro - Illawarra Engineering Services PRO, #51 Graham Cheney (NSW), Chevrolet Camaro - Illawarra Engineering Services PRO, #67 Nash Morris (QLD), Ford Mustang - Supercheap Auto MASTERS, #55 Russell Wright (QLD), Ford Mustang - Wright Property Developments MASTERS, #68 Dylan Thomas (NSW), Ford Mustang - Sensational Kitchens/CXC Racing MASTERS, #69 Anthony Tenkate (QLD), Ford Mustang - Tenkate Plant Hire PRO, #70 Lachlan Granger (NSW), Ford Mustang - Wild Digital PRO, #74 Murray Kent (QLD), Chevrolet Camaro - Fit Flask PRO, #117 Jett Johnson (QLD), Ford Mustang - Full Throttle BBQ MASTERS, #321 Chris Sutton (NSW), Ford Mustang - Motofit

Format/Schedule: 2022 PROMAXX Performance Exhausts TA2 Muscle Car Series framed by Hytek Round 1: Sydney Motorsport Park (AMRS Round 1) February 18/19, Local time: AEDT

Friday 18 February Practice 1 - 10:18am (20 minutes) Practice 2 - 1:29pm (20 minutes) Qualifying - 3:23pm (20 minutes) Race 1 - 5:07pm - 5:27pm (12 laps - time certain)

Saturday 19 February Race 2 - 2:07pm (10 laps) Race 3 - 4:23pm (10 laps) Race 4 - 9:25pm - 9:50pm (15 laps - time certain)

The 2022 TA2 Muscle Car season kicks off this Friday at Sydney Motorsport Park with a unique two-day, four-race format featuring one twilight race and the finale on Saturday night.

The series returns this year with naming rights support from PROMAXX Performaxx Exhausts as well as increased backing from Hytek Steel Framing, with the competition to be known as the 2022 PROMAXX Performance Exhausts TA2 Muscle Car Series - framed by Hytek.

The TA2 Muscle Cars will hit the track on Friday with two 20-minute practice sessions at 10:18am AEDT and 1:29pm. A 20-minute qualifying session will follow that afternoon at 4:23pm followed by a short turnaround for the first race of the season at 6:07pm, running over 12 laps.

A late start on Saturday will see the final three races held in the afternoon and into the night. Races 2 and 3 will be fought over 10 laps at 2:07pm and 4:23pm respectively, before an extended 15-lap finale at 9:25pm.

Series organisers, who recently celebrated the arrival of the 65th TA2 car in the country, are set to reveal a grid of over 20 cars for this week’s season opener.

Reigning Northern Champion Jett Johnson and Southern Champion Mark Crutcher are expected to join the grid alongside 2017 series champion Russell Wright and series regulars Chris Formosa, Zac Loscialpo, John McLaughlin, Michael Coulter and Murray Kent amongst others. A host of debutants are also set to join the grid for their first race in the TA2 category.

All of Saturday’s action can be watched live and free courtesy of a live stream hosted by the Australian Motor Racing Series, produced by Fuzzy Media.

The TA2 Muscle Car Series headlines the first round of the 2022 Australian Motor Racing Series, racing alongside the Australian Formula 3 Championship, the Super GT 4 Hour Enduro, the V8 Classic Series and other support categories.

Format/Schedule: 2022 PROMAXX Performance Exhausts TA2 Muscle Car Series - framed by Hytek Round 1: Sydney Motorsport Park (AMRS Round 1) February 18/19, Local time: AEDT

Friday 18 February Practice 1 - 10:18am (20 minutes) Practice 2 - 1:29pm (20 minutes) Qualifying - 4:23pm (20 minutes) Race 1 - 6:07pm - 6:27pm (12 laps - time certain)

Saturday 19 February Race 2 - 2:07pm (10 laps) Race 3 - 4:23pm (10 laps) Race 4 - 9:25pm - 9:50pm (15 laps - Time Certain)

QUOTES

Scott Textor, CEO and Director - Hytek Steel Framing

“We are delighted at Hytek Steel Framing to become a co-naming rights partner for the 2022 PROMAXX Performance Exhausts TA2 Muscle Car Series - framed by Hytek.

As one of the foundation drivers in the TA2 series back in 2016, it has been sensational to see the growth of the series to become one of the most exciting racing competitions in the country.

The growth in the popularity and attention towards the series is a real credit to Peter Robinson and the TA2 management group and we look forward to supporting the series on and off the track this year.”

Jett Johnson, #117 Full Throttle BBQ Ford Mustang, 2021 Northern Series Champion

“2021 was a really good year for my first time in the TA2 Series,” said Johnson.

“It was obviously a learning year for us, getting to know the car and the team around me, but the racing was really good and l learnt so much racing in the Northern Series.

“We’ll be attending as many TA2 and Trans-Am events as we can this year. At my age the more seat time I can get, the better. I’m looking forward to learning some new tracks outside of Queensland this year while continuing to develop my race craft and fast track my learning in these rear-wheel drive, high-powered muscle cars.

“I can’t wait to go racing at night in these cars. I haven’t done any night racing outside of go karts, so I expect it will be a great show in these cars and a great way to start the series.

“It will also be my first time driving at Sydney Motorsport Park, it looks like a real driver’s track so there are a couple of new challenges to come this week.

“We haven’t got any expectations yet, but we will get a couple of rounds under our belt and see what the competition is like and build some goals from there, but I hope to be there or thereabouts and see if we can continue our progress from last year.”

Mark Crutcher, #4 Crutcher Developments Ford Mustang, 2022 Southern Series Champion

“It was surreal to win the Southern Series last year. It was a COVID-affected year and there was a lot of drivers that missed out due to not being able to make it to each event, but the last races in Bathurst were outstanding and the most competitive I have driven, so it was a real thrill to win,” said Crutcher.

“Sydney Motorsport Park at night is awesome, you don’t see these cars any better. The conditions are great to drive in because the track is a little bit cooler, the cars look spectacular with the flames blowing out and the glowing brakes.

“We’re probably going into this year better than we ever have because we understand what we’re doing a bit more. I’m feeling a lot more confident but there’s so many quick drivers now, I might be quicker this year but I’ll probably be back in the pack!”

“I’ve been racing for four years now and the TA2 series has got stronger and stronger, there are so many cars in the country now and it’s just a pleasure to be involved in what really is the best bang-for-buck racing going around.

“You’re always racing someone no matter where you are, whether you are up the pointy-end, in the middle or at the back, there’s always someone to battle and it’s good, hard, honest racing and that’s what makes TA2 racing so good.”