Néstor Girolami takes first TCR Australia win at damp Sandown

Argentinian TCR star Néstor Girolami further asserted his authority over the TCR Australia series competitors after the WTCR and WTCC front-runner took a controlling race win to open the weekend at Sandown Raceway.

The Wall Racing driver led from pole in his Honda Civic Type R TCR, not looking back and taking a lights-to-flag victory, taking a gamble along with a majority of the field to fit a mix of wet and dry tyres on a changeable circuit.

An hour before the race start, heavy showers hit the Sandown circuit and although the sun came out before the race, a damp track saw all cars bar Russell Ingall in 13th on the grid start on a mix of wet and dry tyres, the Melbourne Performance Centre driver looking to benefit from a drying track in his Audi RS 3 LMS with slicks on all corners.

Girolami converted pole to the lead on the run to Turn One, being followed by the HMO Customer Racing Hyundai i30 N TCR of Will Brown who got a fast start from fourth on the grid. Girolami’s team-mate in John Martin applied the pressure to Brown on the opening lap, sticking with the Hyundai before making a move for second at Dandenong Road on the second lap.

Ingall’s gamble to bolt on the slick Michelin tyres didn’t pay off in the opening laps, dropping 30 seconds away from the leader only five laps into the race and almost ten seconds back from the next car in front of him.

Andre Heimgartner’s bad luck for the season continued, slowing down on the fifth lap after dropping off the road between Turn 3 and 4, damaging the Holden Astra TCR’s suspension and dropping from second on the grid to last place for Kelly Racing.

As Girolami controlled the field, both Martin and Brown started to get closer in the fight for second, being joined by the Garry Rogers Motorsport Alfa Romeo Giulietta TCR of Jordan Cox in fourth who passed Brown for third. From eleventh on the grid, Garth Tander got into the top five and closed up to the battle pack as Cox and Brown continued to swap positions.

Brown worked his way to second past Martin as the lead pack started to struggle on the drying track with the mixed bag of slicks and wet tyres, the championship leader starting to whittle away at Girolami’s lead. Martin lost two spots in as many laps as he went wide at Turn 1, letting Cox move to third as Tander looked to take away fourth, battling down the back straight and then getting the move done at the same spot as Cox on the lap prior.

Martin had to fight to hold on to fifth as the #97 MPC Audi of Liam Mcadam and the #34 GRM Renault entry driven by Moffat ranged up on the Wall Racing driver going into the final lap. He was able to hold off the challengers, coming home in fifth some three seconds behind Tander who kept the pressure on Cox until the end.

Despite a valiant charge from Brown in the closing laps, Girolami took the chequered flag by just over two seconds over the championship leader who notched up his twelfth podium visit for the season. Cox’s third place gave the GRM driver his first appearance on the TCR Australia podium, finishing well ahead of his Alfa Romeo counterpart and championship contender in Dylan O’Keeffe, finishing eighth.

Aaron Cameron finished a close ninth behind O’Keeffe, finishing as the highest Volkswagen Golf GTI TCR driver in the Matt Stone Racing prepared entry as daylight separated he and the second HMO Customer Racing entry of Nathan Morcom.

Races two and three will get underway at 12:15 and 13:10 respectively tomorrow as Brown has the opportunity to seal the title with one round to run.