Season 5 Preview

With the off-season behind us and excitement nearing fever-pitch as we close in on next weekends season opener at Bathurst, let us take a look at what to expect for the FRL’s fifth season of racing.

The announcement in May of the World Touring Cars being selected for season 5 was met with resounding approval from nearly all of the FRL community. Testing for many teams began almost immediately, and most found early on that the cars were going to be very well matched no matter which manufacturer was run. That said, picking a favorite has been a tough process. Pro’s and con’s for nearly all the cars are extensive and almost always offsetting.

Early moves in the off-season led to MBR and DNR racing garages forming an alliance to co-develop a car, the Audi S3. As development continued, discussions led to the merging of the two teams into one, Razorback Motorsport. While two of their drivers sit near the top of the rivals score boards, others have not been as enthused with certain aspects of tuning. Paul Maestri announced he would be leaving the team in favor of running a similar car and would share tuning information with RZM, but would run an independent entry allowing him flexibility in tuning to suit his driving style. Expect to see Ethan Maestri and Bryan Dean, both coming off top 3 finishes in the recent FEC Championship, make a run for the top of the order in this coming season. Paul Maestri may well benefit as a privateer entry, expect him to have an impact near the top of the order as well.

As much as RZM hopes to run at the front of the field, perhaps no team has the pressure to perform put on them as much as the newly formed Apex Racing. Announcing their team at the Toyobaru Challenge in ninja-like fashion, and revealing their BMW 125i’s in a later press release, the team has posted top laps at Bathurst and is poised to dominate the top 5 all season long. However, as with RZM, unity in driving style has led to some differences in vehicle choice. While not separating from the team, driver Travis Billingsley has turned to using the Volvo, instead of the BMW of his compatriots, for his registered entry in S5. Lead driver Andrew Steppat is already showing his prowess at the top of the order again. He is the solid favorite to win the S5 campaign. Travis Billingsley has become a top-flight driver and a major threat in this series as well, if he isn’t racing for the championship, you can bet he will at least be contending for runner-up. Tony Tyree has been making the most from his short time with Apex and has shown marked improvement as well. He could very well be a major factor in shaping the top 5 of the order.

The off-season also saw the rise of Rocket Boys Racing, both as an independent race league and as a team of “young guns” in the FRL as well. This maverick group of young drivers, led by Drew Dilbeck, promises to become a greater challenge in the FRL as this season progresses. Boasting 5 members of their team, and 4 different manufacturers represented, they will have quite the challenge of getting all of their entries tuned and into the top half of the running order for each event. However, with the improvement that this talented group of drivers has made, they could well be a dark-horse threat in the top 5 of the series points race. Drew Dilbeck has won two championship points races in the RBL and has been a growing threat in the FRL look for him to make further improvement, perhaps even looking for a podium finish or two in his Toyota Avensis. Carter Merkling has been around the FRL for two seasons now, he’ll be looking to make a bigger splash in his Chevy Cruze. Tom and Owen Henderson join the FRL for their rookie seasons after the Bathurst race. They will be looking to make a good impression for themselves with Toyota and Mercedes. Chris Dilbeck joins the group again in Season 5 with a BMW entry.

Matthew Smith joined in the latter half of the FEC season. Which for him had been the near equivalent of not knowing how to swim and then jumping into the 12ft. end of the pool. But he has selected the solid Mercedes A-Class for his entry and looks to make further tuning and driving improvements. This could be a breakout season for this privateer entry.

Another rookie joins the field for Season 5. Nicholas Hargrove, in his #5 Honda Civic, will make his debut as well. A relative unknown for the series, he had a troubled race at the Scorpions at Monza One-Off Challenge, but will look to find a rhythm in the FRL during Season 5.

There is still time to register for those on the fence about joining in. But time is short. Qualifying for the Race of Australia begins Thursday night at 8:45 PM. We look forward to another season of FRL racing!