The TA2 Muscle Car Series has welcomed a new partnership for this weekend’s second round of the PROMAXX Performance Exhausts TA2 Northern Series - powered by Atlantic Oils.

Established in 1997, Atlantic Oils is a proudly Australia independently-owned company providing high-quality engine oils and lubricants for the automotive, industrial, agricultural and mining sectors.

With a combined knowledge of over 100 years of technical excellence in the lubricants industry, Atlantic Oils specialises in the production of high-performance latest-specification oils and lubricants, and possess the ability to innovate and meet changing industrial needs with custom products.

Also possessing its own fleet of trucks, Atlantic Oils is able to offer an efficient product delivery system surpassing that of its competitors.

Founded in 2016, the TA2 Muscle Car Series is one of the fastest growing motorsport series in Australia, with grids of V8 Ford Mustang, Chevrolet Camaro and Dodge Challenger muscle cars entertaining race fans across the country.

Catering for club-level racers through to aspiring professionals, the series has attributed its growth and success from a focus on cost control, strict technical regulations, promotion of close competition and driver talent.

The series heads to Queensland Raceway this weekend for the second round of their northern series. Ten cars will hit the track headlined by 16-year old Jett Johnson, the third-generation racer of the famous Johnson motorsport family.

The PROMAXX Performance Exhausts TA2 Muscle Car Northern Series - powered by Atlantic Oil will have four races across two days of action this weekend.

QUOTES

Daniel Saleh, Queensland State Manager - Atlantic Oils

“Atlantic Oils is proud to team up with the TA2 Muscle Car Series. As an Australian-made muscle product supporting a fantastic Muscle Car series, we look forward to continuing to grow with the TA2 Muscle Car Series well into the future.”

Craig Denyer, Manager - TA2 Muscle Car Series

“It’s great to welcome another partner onboard that shares our vision of being the best bang-for-buck motorsport category in Australia, and sees the value of promoting their fantastic product to the motorsport audience.”

“Like TA2, Atlantic Oils is performance driven with a strong customer focus and we are looking forward to growing this partnership over the next few rounds.”

16-year-old Jett Johnson has scored his first circuit racing win of his career from pole position in Race 1 of the PROMAXX Performance Exhausts TA2 Muscle Car Northern Series powered by Atlantic Oils at Queensland Raceway today.

The third-generation of the Johnson racing dynasty scored his first PWR Pole Award earlier in the day by six-thousandths of a second from Russell Wright, with Chris Pappas impressing in third from Murray Kent.

Johnson made a strong start before carnage unfolded behind him. Front-row starter Wright was tagged and spun by Pappas at Turn 1, with Adam Hargraves collecting Wright on the way through.

The race was ‘cancelled’ (Queensland Raceway’s equivalent of a red flag) as teams hurried to patch up the damaged cars of Wright and Pappas before the race was restarted, with Hargraves unable to rejoin the action.

The race was restarted and reduced to ten laps, as Johnson got the jump on Wright again and was never headed from there, setting the fastest lap of the race at a 1:14.0933 on Lap 5.

His grandfather, three-time Bathurst 1000 winner and five-time Touring Car Champion Dick Johnson watched on as Jett took the chequered flag by 1.5 seconds from Wright and Pappas, aided by his Supercars race-winning father Steve Johnson and his Team Johnson squad.

Elsewhere in the pack, Kent slid off the track at Turn 2 and dropped back to seventh, before re-passing Peter Robinson and Karl Begg on his way back to fourth place.

Begg and Anthony Tenkate engaged in a close battle for fifth, before Tenkate experienced a brake issue and spun off at Turn 3 on Lap 8 and brought his race to an end.

Johnson, Wright, Pappas rounded out the podium, followed by Kent and Begg who finished in the top five on debut. Peter Robinson, Warren Wadley and debutant Rob Leonard completed the eight finishers in the field.

QUOTES

Jett Johnson, driver - #117 Full Throttle BBQ Ford Mustang

“I’m stoked to get my first race win today,” said Jett Johnson.

“It felt incredible to take that chequered flag, and to have my Grandpa here and my whole family here watching on the pit wall means so much to me.

“I was a bit nervous at the start when Rusty [Wright] was all over me, but after we restarted it was all good from there.

“I just tried to conserve myself, didn’t burn up the tyres, didn’t burn up the brakes and just tried to save everything for the final three races to come tomorrow.”

The PROMAXX Performance Exhausts TA2 Muscle Car Series will return to Queensland Raceway this weekend for the second round of the Northern Series at this weekend’s Queensland Racing Driver’s Championship (QRDC) event.

After finishing on the podium in his debut event, third-generation racer Jett Johnson returns to the TA2 grid this weekend in the #117 Full Throttle BBQ Mustang for this weekend’s regional event, entirely made up of Queensland-based racers due to the strict border closures between NSW and Victoria now in place.

Two racers will make their competitive TA2 debut this weekend, including production car ace Karl Begg and former rally driver and Heritage Touring Car racer Robert Leonard.

Begg will steer his MotorsportSales.com.au Mustang for the first time in TA2 competition this weekend, after previously handing the car over to 18-year old Nash Morris to race in the TA2 Series.

Morris placed second in the opening round of the season at Sydney Motorsport Park in March, scoring a race win in the final race on his series debut.

Begg won the Queensland Production Car championship and the Willowbank 300 endurance race in 2017, before scoring a class win at the Bathurst 6 Hour in 2018.

He first raced his TA2 Mustang in state Sports Sedan and Tin Top events in 2020 before he’ll make his first competitive start in the TA2 series this weekend.

Leonard comes from a background in rallying in New South Wales in the 70s and 80s, before he started in circuit racing in a Group C Ford Falcon in the Heritage Touring Car category.

Leonard will line up in the #66 Access Linemarking Equipment Chevrolet Camaro this weekend, in a field made up of four Pro entries and six Masters racers.

With Northern Series points leader Nathan Herne not returning for this event, Russell Wright returns as the effective series leader, with 16-year old Johnson hot on his heels only eight points behind.

Elsewhere on the grid, Murray Kent returns to the grid in the #74 Fit Flask Camaro after a strong showing at Round 1 at Sydney Motorsport Park, while Peter Robinson, Adam Hargraves, Anthony Tenkate, Chris Pappas and Warren Wadley complete the ten car grid for this weekend’s regional event.

Series organisers formed the regional series to combat the state border closures due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The QRDC will host the second round of the Northern Series, after it was delayed from the August 6-8 weekend due to the latest lockdown in South-East Queensland.

The PROMAXX Performance Exhausts TA2 Muscle Car Series is targeting its national round at Wakefield Park in New South Wales on October 22-24, with Round 3 now scheduled for Winton Motor Raceway on November 12 -14  and the finale at The Bend Motorsport Park in South Australia December 3-5, all COVID depending.

The event format will see cars first hit the track for general practice on Friday. A single 15-minute official practice session will take place on Saturday morning, followed by a 15 minute Qualifying session and the first 12-lap sprint race in the afternoon. The final three 12-lap races will be held on Sunday.

ENTRY LIST 2021 PROMAXX Performance Exhausts TA2 Muscle Car Series Northern Series, Round 2 - Queensland Raceway, August 21/22

MASTERS, #10 Peter Robinson (QLD), Dodge Challenger - PBR Distributions/Wagner Corp MASTERS, #20 Adam Hargraves (QLD), Chevrolet Camaro - Local Search Racing PRO, #40 Karl Begg (QLD), Ford Mustang - motorsportsales.com.au MASTERS, #55 Russell Wright (QLD), Ford Mustang - Wright Property Developments MASTERS, #66 Robert Leonard (QLD), Chevrolet Camaro - Access Linemarking Equipment MASTERS, #69 Anthony Tenkate (QLD), Ford Mustang - Tenkate Plant Hire PRO, #74 Murray Kent (QLD), Chevrolet Camaro - Fit Flask PRO, #88 Chris Pappas (QLD), Ford Mustang - Wealthrite PRO, #117 Jett Johnson (QLD), Ford Mustang - Full Throttle BBQ MASTERS, #888 Warren Wadley (QLD), Ford Mustang - Wadley Developments

SCHEDULE PROMAXX Performance Exhausts TA2 Muscle Car Series Northern Series, Round 2 - Queensland Raceway, August 21/22

SATURDAY 9:50am - Practice (15 minutes) 12:50pm - Qualifying (15 minutes) 4:05pm - Race 1 (12 laps)

SUNDAY 10:20am - Race 2 (12 laps) 11:50am - Race 3 (12 laps) 1:50pm - Race 4 (12 laps)

QUOTES Jett Johnson, driver - #117 Full Throttle BBQ Ford Mustang

“I had a ball at Queensland Raceway last time, there was a lot of respect between everyone I raced with on track, and it’s been great to chat with all the teams between races, there’s a great atmosphere in the paddock.

We raced at Townsville in the Tin Tops after our last TA2 event, and that required a different style of driving because it was a street circuit and I had to work around the grip level the track had, but It was good to learn and gain experience on another type of track.

“I’m still learning everything it takes to maximise these cars. We sit down after each session and look at whatever I’m doing wrong or whatever is slowing me up, and then trying to improve on those things in the next session.

Steve Johnson, Team Johnson - #117 Full Throttle BBQ Ford Mustang

“We’re Looking forward to getting back on track. We had a good run last time at Ipswich and we’ve had another race meeting at Townsville since then, so it will be good to get Jett back in the car and see if there are any differences in his driving and how quickly he can get to the level he finished his first event at Queensland Raceway.

“Our TA2 experience so far has been amazing, it’s been everything that racing should be in my opinion. There are some great people within the series, and if there are any issues the tech support is there in the background.

“They are cool cars to drive, they are great to setup, great to work on, they look cool, they sound right and most importantly they give Jett or anyone that drives them the opportunity to properly improve their driving technique because of what you’ve got to do with them with regards to braking, downshifting, heel-and-toe and that sort of stuff, I can’t speak any higher of them because they’re just the perfect category for someone who’s interested in racing tin tops.

"Any racing where we can gather enough cars to get a grid is great, especially when we’re limited state-by-state at the moment, this event was delayed by a few weeks so to be able to actually get get back out on track this weekend is fantastic.

“Even tough we’re slightly short compared to the last round I don’t think it’s going to deter anyones spirits, I think everyone is just thankful and grateful to be able to go out and have a run in their car let alone have a race.

“We’re excited to get the Mustang back out and learn more and do something that not a lot of people are able to do at the moment, especially down south.”

18-year old Nathan Herne has clean swept the first event of the 2021 PROMAXX Performance Exhausts TA2 Muscle Northern Series at Queensland Raceway from Russell Wright and Jett Johnson.

Herne lead home Wright in the first two races of the day, before fending off 16-year old TA2 rookie Jett Johnson in the final.

After recovering from a gear-linkage issue in the opening race of the weekend on Saturday, Johnson charged from fifth to third in Race 2, moving past Anthony Tenkate and John McLaughlin.

Mark Crutcher and debutant Adam Hargraves battled hard for sixth position before the two made contact at Turn 3 on the final lap, with Hargraves handed a 30 second penalty for his part in the incident.

Chris Pappas earned the Hyperco Hard Charger Award for passing six cars from the back of the pack to seventh.

Herne blitzed Race 3, as Wright, Johnson and McLaughlin battled hard for the minor placings.

Crutcher, Chris Pappas and Peter Robinson fought early for sixth place before Pappas ended up in the gravel at Turn 3. Moments later, Jason Hassett suffered a braking issue and collided with Warren Wadley at the same corner which brought a 'clampdown' period to recover the cars. Crutcher took sixth ahead of Chris Formosa, Hargraves and debutant John Holinger.

As the final race got underway, Johnson made his intentions clear and moved into second with a move on Russell Wright at Turn 3, before he set his sights on Herne.

Hargraves spun into the gravel at Turn 6 on Lap 10, which put the field under clampdown for three laps, before a four-lap sprint to the flag.

Herne defended Johnson to the flag, as Wright held off an attack from McLaughlin in the closing stages for third.

Wright ended as the Circo Masters Award winner, while Johnson was awarded the Rookie of the Round for his performance on his debut weekend.

Anthony Tenkate won the Bowden’s Own Best Presented Award in the #69 Tenkate Plant Hire Mustang, while John McLaughlin was awarded the Wilwood Big Braker Award in the #17 MyRaceProfile Mustang. Meanwhile, Warren Wadley was awarded the Coolshirt Systems Move of the Moment award for a strong weekend and for welcoming the Johnson family into the series.

The PROMAXX Performance Exhausts TA2 Muscle Car Series moves to Winton Motor Raceway on July 16-18, headlining the Australian Motor Racing Series (AMRS).

QUOTES

Nathan Herne, #29 Dodge Challenger - Valvoline/PBR Distributions

“It was an enjoyable weekend racing in the sunshine here at Queensland Raceway,” said Herne.

“It was an awesome weekend in my previous TA2 car and it was all thanks to Cameron Sendall and Peter Robinson to get me back in the car. I haven’t been in this car for a year so we tried a few things and had good speed in each race.

“Anytime you get back in a race car is great and it was a low-pressure weekend where we got out there and had great battles on track and came back and had a plenty of laughs in the pits.”

18-year old Nathan Herne has scored a lights-to-flag win in the opening race of the PROMAXX Performance Exhausts TA2 Muscle Car Series at the 2 Days of Thunder at Queensland Raceway.

Herne dipped into the 1:12s for the first time at the Ipswich, QLD circuit to earn his second career PWR Pole Award, four tenths shy of the outright qualifying lap record set by Aaron Seton in 2019.

On his TA2 debut, 16-year old rookie Jett Johnson topped the official practice session that kicked off the day, before he qualified second fastest to line up alongside Herne on the front row for Race 1.

Inaugural series champion Russell Wright qualified third from John McLaughlin and Chris Pappas.

Johnson suffered a gear-linkage issue on the rolling start which saw him drop back through the field to second last, before he charged back up to finish fifth.

In his first race in a V8 race car, Johnson passed Adam Hargraves into the Turn 3 hairpin on the second lap, and pulled the same move on Chris Formosa on the next lap.

He caught up to fourth-placed Anthony Tenkate by the last couple of laps but wasn’t close enough to make a move before the chequered flag.

At the front, Herne took a convincing win from a fast-finishing Wright, who took the fastest lap of the race from Herne on Lap 2 and closed in on Herne in the final stages.

The PROMAXX Performance Exhausts TA2 Muscle Car Series returns for three more races on Sunday at the 2 Days of Thunder.

QUOTES Nathan Herne. driver - #29 Valvoline/PBR Distributions Dodge Challenger

“It was a great race,” said Nathan Herne.

“Racing with Rusty [Wright] was good fun, he gave me a hurry up towards the end there and it kept me honest for the whole race which is what you want as a driver.”

“I’m working on a few driving things this weekend and tuning this setup as well, the nature of these cars is that we learn every time we hop in about how it reacts to different changes or inputs.

“It’s awesome being here racing with TA2 again and I’m looking forward to the three races tomorrow.”