News
Melbourne Performance Centre commits to TCR with up to three Audi RS 3s
Melbourne Performance Centre has committed to the Supercheap Auto TCR Australia Series with as many as three Audi entries for the 2023 season.
Audi’s official customer support team has purchased the new-for-2022 RS 3 raced by Jay Hanson to great effect in last year’s series, adding to the team’s other two RS 3 examples.
MPC is currently in negotiations with potential backers to retain inaugural TCR Series champion and Supercars star Will Brown in the team, with a view to entering him the ex-Hanson car.
The team is also fielding interest around its other two RS 3s on its books, including the car Brown took to second place in the series and its spare chassis, last raced by Michael Clemente at the season finale at Bathurst.
While MPC’s continues to lock away its 2023 program, privateer entrant Iain McDougall, who runs his car from MPC’s eastern Melbourne facility, has committed to his second year in the turbo-charged category.
Melbourne Performance Centre has been involved in every TCR Australia Series round since the category’s inception in 2019. The team’s highlight came in 2021 where it helped Chaz Mostert secure the TCR title, driving the Audi that Brown steered to second place this year.
The opening round of the Supercheap Auto TCR Australia Series will be held as part of the AWC Race Tasmania at Symmons Plains Raceway on February 24-26.
The TCR Series will be supported by the Gulf Western Oil Touring Car Masters, Trans Am, S5000s and other local support classes.
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Stan Sport will provide live, uninterrupted and on-demand coverage of all SpeedSeries rounds. AWC Race Tasmania will also feature free-to-air broadcasting on the Nine Network’s digital channels on Saturday afternoon from 2-5pm (February 25).
QUOTES
Troy Russell
Director, Melbourne Performance Centre
“We are really very confident that we are going to have a competitive line-up for the 2023 TCR Australia season,” said Russell.
“We still have a number of elements to lock away, and there are some time pressures, but interest has been positive.
“Locking away Will (Brown) in the new-specification RS 3 is a priority, and we hope to be able to make a firm announcement on that shortly.
“Jay Hanson proved the capabilities of that car, and with Will’s extra experience, we feel that will be a title contender.
“Not that the other two cars are lacking for speed, though. Will showed how good his Audi was, finishing second in the title. That chassis also won the 2021 series. We suspect that chassis is the most successful that we have here in Australia.”