Summary
Darwin, NT – Hamish Fitzsimmons Racing wrapped up a demanding Round 3 of Porsche Carrera Cup at Hidden Valley Raceway, with Hamish gaining invaluable experience in his debut at the circuit. Despite a challenging race weekend, Fitzsimmons showed promising pace and a strong learning curve, particularly after a significant 160-minute test day at Queensland Raceway leading into the event. To put that into perspective, 160 minutes is almost a full round's worth of track time, which usually offers 175 minutes of running! With 510 hours of prior experience, Hamish was well-prepared to tackle this new challenge.
Hidden Valley’s unique combination of a 1.1km main straight and a mix of sweeping and technical corners, coupled with typical Darwin heat (around 34°C ambient) and unpredictable winds, proved a tough test for the young driver. Precision, smooth inputs, and a finely balanced car are paramount here, and Hamish tackled the challenge head-on.
“Excited to race at Darwin. First time seeing the track and looking forward to working my way forward in the championship,” said Hamish before the weekend. He also extended a huge thanks to Troy Russell at Melbourne Performance Centre and Paul Ceprnich from Pace Innovations for hosting his crucial test day. “We got plenty of laps under our belt and learnt a lot!”
Friday: Getting Up to Speed
Day 1 saw Hamish familiarizing himself with the Hidden Valley layout. After a 96-day break since the last round, 20 Porsche 992 GT3 Cup cars took to the track. Hamish, along with fellow Porsche Michelin Junior Drivers Oscar Targett, Clay Osborne, and Caleb Sumich, were all making their Darwin debut.
Practice 1 saw Hamish quickly adapt, posting a lap that initially put him in P6 overall and second fastest Michelin Junior. He improved further after a mid-session pit stop, ultimately finishing P7 overall and third fastest among the Michelin Juniors.
Practice 2 presented more challenges with heavy traffic and a red flag disrupting the session. Despite this, Hamish maintained a respectable P9 for both halves of the session, finishing as the fourth fastest Michelin Junior in the final half.
Saturday: Qualifying and Race One
With cooler temperatures (26°C) for qualifying, Hamish was optimistic. “Yesterday was about learning the track and fine tuning the setup. It was good to have the benefit of a green tyre run yesterday in Practice 2, even though I only managed one push lap. Looking forward to qualifying today and seeing how we can put it all together,” he commented.
In Qualifying, Hamish improved significantly in the second half of the session after an early red flag for a grass fire. He ultimately qualified P11 overall, securing the fifth fastest Michelin Junior time.
Race 1 was a true test in the Darwin heat. Hamish got a fantastic start but found himself in traffic at Turn 1. He held his ground and managed a clean, green-flag race from start to finish, crossing the line in P11 and P4 in the Michelin Junior Championship. Post-penalties, he moved up to P10 overall and P3 among the Michelin Juniors – a solid start to the racing action!
“Qualifying first up I struggled to get into a rhythm, managed to improve on my second tyre run. In Race 1, I got a great start but failed to take advantage as I hit traffic as my competitors jostled for position into Turn 1, but I managed to stay on the inside, then I just managed the race from there to finish where I started in P11. Post penalties I moved up one spot to P10, and P3 amongst the Michelin Juniors,” Hamish reflected.
Sunday: Battling Through the Pack
Sunday brought the final two races, with the longer Race 2 setting the progressive grid for Race 3. “Really looking forward to the longer race this morning. I have enjoyed the track so far with its combination of technical parts and long straight, although passing is a lot tougher than expected. Looking forward to another good start today and kicking the day off with a progressive result for this morning’s race to set me up with a more forward starting position for the final race of the round this afternoon,” Hamish stated, eager for the day’s challenges.
Race 2 saw Hamish start from P12. An early incident at Turn 2 pushed him wide and off track, forcing him to rejoin at the rear. He steadily worked his way back to P11 before a locked rear at Turn 1 during a passing attempt sent him to the back again. Despite this, he fought back to finish P15, demonstrating resilience and clocking some decent lap times to build on for the final race.
Race 3 started from P13. Hamish had another great start and navigated the first half-lap cleanly. However, contact from behind forced him off track and to the very back of the field. In a sprint race where time was against him, Hamish clawed his way back to P15 on track before locking an inside front tire while attempting a pass for P14. He ultimately finished P16.
________________________________________Summary of results:
While the results might not fully reflect the pace Hamish showed in practice and moments during the races, the challenging nature of Hidden Valley and the incidents faced were significant learning experiences.
• Qualifying: P11 (Moved to P12 after final results)
• Race 1: Started P11, Finished P11 (Moved to P10 after penalties)
• Race 2: Started P12, Finished P15
• Race 3: Started P13, Finished P16
Overall, for Round 3, Hamish finished P16 in the Pro class and P9 in the Pro Junior class. The team will be reviewing all the data and preparing for the next challenge, carrying forward the valuable lessons learned from his challenging but ultimately character-building Darwin debut in the Porsche Carrera Cup.
