The Tables Turn in Trans Am at Phillip Island

Although James Moffat had swept the opening round of the 2024 Trans-Am championship, Jordan Boys and James Golding would claw points back with two wins apiece at Symmons Plains.  As they arrived at Phillip Island for round 3, Moffat lead the standings by only 5 points ahead of Jordan Boys and 17 points ahead of teammate James Golding.

2021 Trans-Am champion Nathan Herne had returned at Symmons Plains in his championship winning Dodge in his new self-run team, after competing over in the U.S last year.  Mark Bailey also joined the Trans-Am field at Symmons Plains for Ash Seward Motorsport in the beautiful Jax Tyre & Auto Camaro. 

It would be a wet first outing on the newly repaved Phillip Island circuit for the drivers, with James Moffat setting the fastest time (1:42.027) followed closely by James Golding (1:42.121) and Edan Thornburrow, (1:42.606) half a second behind in third.

Times would tumble with a dried-out track in the second practice session, and James Golding (1:32.348) separated himself from James Moffat (1:33.130) by seven tenths.  Jordan Boys (1:33.534) would slot into third, a second off from Golding as Tim Slade had a trip to the gravel at Lukey Heights.

Golding would continue his strong form during the afternoon qualifying, breaking the Trans Am lap record around Phillip Island with a 1:31.380, as James Moffat (1:31.765) and Jordan Boys (1:31.850) would find themselves in second and third once again.

Ben Grice suffered oil pump issues during both practice sessions, making him unable to participate in qualifying.  The All American Drive Line & Auto Parts Mustang would be sent to Melbourne overnight where they would complete an engine change, but they would also miss out on the first race.

Grice wasn’t the only one suffering from issues all weekend.  The new asphalt wasn’t taking the Hoosier rubber, and as these cars slid around corners, the heat would build up in the tyres, causing blistering.

Nathan Herne suffered the worst of the tyre wear, although he jumped up to third place by the end of lap one after starting eighth, he fell down the pack due to tyre blistering in the first race.  Further up front, James Moffat snatched the lead away from Golding at the start as the GRM pair pulled away. However, Golding set a new race lap record for Trans Am at the Island on his way to second place, as Elliot Cleary finished third.

In Race 2, Nash Morris would come from fifth on the grid to lead by the end of lap one as polesitter James Moffat dropped to third.  Tom Davies would be turned around as he, Ben Grice and Mark Bailey went three wide with Bailey receiving a ten second penalty for the contact.

Elliot Cleary locked up during an attempted overtake for the lead in Turn 4, leading to him and Moffat trading places for second.  Unfortunately, Cleary would go off the road at Turn 9 ending his race when he had to come to pitlane.  No one had anything for Nash Morris who took victory, followed by the usual suspects of James Moffat and James Golding.

At the start of the final race, the top three went three abreast into Turn 1, with James Golding shooting to the lead and Moffat finding a way back past Morris in the same lap.  Tim Slade would make contact with Jordan Boys on lap two at Turn 4, sending him backwards, as Nathan Herne spun at the same corner a lap later.

Todd Hazelwood climbed through the field, muscling past Nash Morris for third.  Third would become second as James Moffat suffered a power steering failure late in the race as Nash Morris defended from Elliot Barbour and Jordan Boys to keep third place.

After setting the pace all weekend, James Golding would finally see the top step of the podium, whilst also taking the lead in the championship standings, ahead of teammate James Moffat by 22 points.  Next up, the Trans Am series will head to The Bend in South Australia for the first time as they reach the halfway point in the 2024 season.

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