Strong cup points haul for Fawcett up north

JOE Fawcett secured valuable Mustang Cup Australia Championship points following another consistent weekend at Queensland Raceway on 13 and 14 May.

Enjoying a consistent season, the 20-year-old from Ballarat finished fourth in both races in his No. 23 Mustang Dark Horse R.

Fawcett branded the effort as ‘extremely competitive’.

He set up a solid weekend by showing impressive pace from the outset in Saturday’s qualifying.

His fastest lap was just one tenth of a second shy of the pole-sitting time in a tightly contested session.

Starting from the front row in race one, Fawcett battled with the championship frontrunners throughout the race.

Despite intense competition and several closely fought battles, he brought the car home in fourth position, narrowly missing the podium.

Sunday’s qualifying saw Fawcett on the top of the time sheets until the last few seconds, when he was again relegated to second by one-tenth of a second.

Race two produced another determined performance.

Running inside the lead group, Fawcett maintained strong race pace and consistency to secure a second fourth-place finish of the weekend.

While podium success remained just out of reach, Fawcett believed the Queensland Raceway round demonstrated the competitiveness of the No. 23 Mustang and reinforced his position among the championship contenders

“It was a positive weekend overall,” he said.

“We had strong pace straight away and qualifying P2, only a tenth off the pole car was great, but we continue to make some small changes.

“Both races were extremely competitive and while we would have liked to come away with a podium, two fourth-place finishes give us solid points and plenty to build on.

“A huge thank you to the team, sponsors and everyone supporting us throughout the season.”

The results keep Fawcett firmly in contention as the Mustang Cup Australia Championship heads into its next round at Darwin in late July.

He sits second on the points table on 237, behind Josh Anderson (270) and a rapidly emerging Jack Perkins (211).

Fawcett leads the junior points series.