1998 Australian Super Touring Championship
The 1998 Australian Super Touring Championship was the sixth running of a CAMS sanctioned motor racing series in Australia under the Super Touring Car regulations and the fourth to carry the Australian Super Touring Championship name. It began on 5 April 1998 at Calder Park Raceway and ended on 30 August at Oran Park Raceway after eight rounds. The series was promoted by TOCA Australia as the 1998 BOC Gases Australian Super Touring Championship. As in the British Touring Car Championship the race format changed with each meeting now consisting a shorter "sprint" race and a "feature" race, 25% longer than previous races featuring a mandatory two-tyre stop to be taken between 15 and 75% distance. The one exception was the round at Lakeside Raceway where the pit lane was deemed unsuitable.
The Drivers Championship was won by Brad Jones driving an Audi A4 Quattro, the Manufacturers Championship was awarded to Audi and the Teams Championship was won by Audi Sport Australia.
Entry list
The following teams and drivers competed in the 1998 Australian Super Touring Championship.
| Team | Car | No | Driver |
|---|---|---|---|
| Audi Sport Australia | Audi A4 Quattro | 3 | Cameron McConville |
| 4 | Brad Jones | ||
| 14 | Trevor Sheumack | ||
| TC Motorsport | Peugeot 406 | 10 | Tony Newman |
| Peugeot 405 Mi16 | 38 | Dwayne Bewley | |
| AAP Racing | Toyota Carina | 11 | Milton Leslight |
| Greenfield Mowers Racing | BMW 320i | 12 | Cameron McLean |
| Grid Motorsport | BMW 318i | 13 | Anthony Robson Craig Bradshaw |
| Racing Projects | Honda Accord | 15 | Mark Adderton |
| Nissan Primera | 22 | Adam Kaplan | |
| Bob Holden Motors | BMW 318i | 16 | Bob Holden Trevor Sheumack Justin Mathews Paul Nelson |
| Carlos Rolfo | BMW 318i | 20 | Carlos Rolfo Rod Wilson |
| M-F Racing | Peugeot 405 Mi16 | 21 | Mike Fitzgerald |
| Novacastrian Motorsport | BMW 320i | 30 | Troy Searle |
| Volvo Dealer Racing | Volvo S40 | 40 | Jim Richards |
| Gun Racing | Alfa Romeo 155 TS | 45 | David Auger |
| John Henderson Racing | Opel Vectra | 56 | John Henderson |
| Triple P Racing | Hyundai Elantra | 58 | Claude Elias |
| Knight Racing | Ford Mondeo | 60 | Warren Luff |
| 88 | Peter Hills | ||
| 89 | Paul Pickett Ric Shaw Aaron McGill Kurt Kratzmann Dwayne Bewley Mark Zonneveld | ||
| Graham Dodd | Honda Accord | 69 | Graham Dodd |
| Motorsport Developments | Toyota Carina | 77 | Malcolm Rea |
| Robert Tweedie | Vauxhall Cavalier | 79 | Bob Tweedie |
| Phoenix Motorsport | Toyota Camry | 95 | Ron Searle |
Team and Driver changes
- 1997 championship winners Paul Morris and BMW left the series as BMW scaled back its touring car operation.
- Volvo switched from the 850 to the new S40[1] for Jim Richards.
- Cameron McLean drove the 1997 championship winning BMW[2] switching from the Opel/Holden Vectra he raced in 1997.
- Tony Newman upgraded to an ex British Touring Car Championship Peugeot 406.[3]
- Mark Adderton switched from the Phoenix Motorsport Toyota Camry to a Honda Accord.[4]
Race calendar
The 1998 Australian Super Touring Championship was contested over eight rounds with two races per round.
| Rd. | Race | Race title | Circuit | Location / state | Date | Winner | Team | Car |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| NC | 1 | Australian Grand Prix support | Albert Park Circuit | Melbourne, Victoria | 6–7 Mar | Cameron McConville | Audi Sport Australia | Audi A4 Quattro |
| 2 | Australian Grand Prix support | Albert Park Circuit | Melbourne, Victoria | 6–7 Mar | Cameron McConville | Audi Sport Australia | Audi A4 Quattro | |
| 1 | 1 | Calder Park | Calder Park Raceway | Melbourne, Victoria | 4–5 Apr | Cameron McConville | Audi Sport Australia | Audi A4 Quattro |
| 2 | Calder Park | Calder Park Raceway | Melbourne, Victoria | 4–5 Apr | Cameron McConville | Audi Sport Australia | Audi A4 Quattro | |
| 2 | 1 | Oran Park | Oran Park Raceway South Circuit | Sydney, New South Wales | 26–27 Apr | Brad Jones | Audi Sport Australia | Audi A4 Quattro |
| 2 | Oran Park | Oran Park Raceway South Circuit | Sydney, New South Wales | 26–27 Apr | Brad Jones | Audi Sport Australia | Audi A4 Quattro | |
| 3 | 1 | Phillip Island | Phillip Island Grand Prix Circuit | Phillip Island, Victoria | 16–17 May | Cameron McConville | Audi Sport Australia | Audi A4 Quattro |
| 2 | Phillip Island | Phillip Island Grand Prix Circuit | Phillip Island, Victoria | 16–17 May | Jim Richards | Volvo Dealer Racing | Volvo S40 | |
| 4 | 1 | Eastern Creek | Eastern Creek Raceway | Sydney, New South Wales | 6–7 Jun | Jim Richards | Volvo Dealer Racing | Volvo S40 |
| 2 | Eastern Creek | Eastern Creek Raceway | Sydney, New South Wales | 6–7 Jun | Brad Jones | Audi Sport Australia | Audi A4 Quattro | |
| 5 | 1 | Lakeside | Lakeside International Raceway | Brisbane, Queensland | 27–28 Jun | Brad Jones | Audi Sport Australia | Audi A4 Quattro |
| 2 | Lakeside | Lakeside International Raceway | Brisbane, Queensland | 27–28 Jun | Brad Jones | Audi Sport Australia | Audi A4 Quattro | |
| 6 | 1 | Mallala | Mallala Motor Sport Park | Mallala, South Australia | 18–19 Jul | Brad Jones | Audi Sport Australia | Audi A4 Quattro |
| 2 | Mallala | Mallala Motor Sport Park | Mallala, South Australia | 18–19 Jul | Cameron McConville | Audi Sport Australia | Audi A4 Quattro | |
| 7 | 1 | Winton | Winton Motor Raceway | Benalla, Victoria | 8–9 Aug | Cameron McConville | Audi Sport Australia | Audi A4 Quattro |
| 2 | Winton | Winton Motor Raceway | Benalla, Victoria | 8–9 Aug | Cameron McConville | Audi Sport Australia | Audi A4 Quattro | |
| 8 | 1 | Oran Park | Oran Park Raceway | Sydney, New South Wales | 29–30 Aug | Cameron McConville | Audi Sport Australia | Audi A4 Quattro |
| 2 | Oran Park | Oran Park Raceway | Sydney, New South Wales | 29–30 Aug | Brad Jones | Audi Sport Australia | Audi A4 Quattro | |
| NC | 1 | AMP Bathurst 1000 | Mount Panorama Circuit | Bathurst, New South Wales | 4 Oct | Rickard Rydell & Jim Richards | Volvo S40 Racing | Volvo S40 |
Championship standings
Drivers Championship
Points were awarded 15-12-10-8-6-5-4-3-2-1 based on the top ten race positions in each race. There was a bonus point allocated for pole position.
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Manufacturers Championship
| Position[5] | Manufacturer[5] | Points[5] |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Audi | 234 |
| 2 | Volvo | 186 |
Teams Championship
| Position[5] | Team[5] | Points[5] |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Audi Sport Australia | 204 |
| 2 | Knight Racing | 136 |
TOCA Challenge - Independents Cup
Independents Cup points were awarded on a 15-12-10-8-6-5-4-3-2-1 basis for relative positions achieved by drivers in entries nominated as Independents at each race.
The TOCA Challenge - Independents Cup was won by Cameron McLean in his Greenfield Mowers Racing-entered BMW 320i, scoring 205 points. Second was Mark Adderton on 151 points, and third was Peter Hills on 136 points.[5]
References
- ^ "Volvo S40 (R7-004)". Super Touring Register. Retrieved 8 December 2017.
- ^ "BMW 3 Series (E36) (E36 STC 96/006)". Super Touring Register. Retrieved 8 December 2017.
- ^ "Peugeot 406". Super Touring Register. Retrieved 8 December 2017.
- ^ "Honda Accord (HR003)". Super Touring Register. Retrieved 8 December 2017.
- ^ a b c d e f g TOCA Australia, 1998 Results, as at Round 8 Oran Park, 09/08 '98