Intense podium battle at Phillip Island in Ferrari Challenge Australasia

Phillip Island, 28 March 2026 - The fight for the podium in Trofeo Pirelli and Coppa Shell headlined Ferrari Challenge Trofeo Pirelli Australasia’s return to the scenic Phillip Island Grand Prix Circuit for Race 1, Round 2 of the championship.

The opening race of the weekend started in perfect conditions, but rain began to fall in the closing laps forcing drivers to adapt to a damp track during the final stages.

Trofeo Pirelli. New Zealander Rick Armstrong (Continental Cars Ferrari) converted pole position into victory in the opening race of Round 2 at Phillip Island.

Armstrong had prevailed to take pole in a wet and treacherous qualifying session in the morning, but the weather cleared for the start of the race. In the dry conditions, the highly experienced Ernst Kirchmayr (Kessel AUTO) in his first race start at The Island attempted to take the lead at Turn 1.

Instead, Kirchmayr went wide and entered an intense fight for the podium that lasted until the fall of the chequered flag.

The battle between Kirchmayr, Antoine Gittany (Ferrari Sydney), Enzo Cheng (Ferrari Sydney) and Jim Pollicina (Ferrari Sydney) for the podium spots allowed Armstrong to build an unassailable advantage to score his second win in a row after taking the Race 2 victory at Bathurst in Round 1.

It was Gittany scoring second and Kirchmayr third ahead of Cheng, while Pollicina spun at Siberia to end his podium challenge on the way to fifth.

Completing the Trofeo Pirelli field were Damien Hamilton (Ferrari Melbourne) and Adnan Sibai (Ferrari Sydney), who impressed in the wet qualifying session achieving the fourth quickest time in only his second event.

Coppa Shell. A dominant performance from Aemel Nordin (Ferrari Adelaide) delivered victory at Phillip Island.

Outlasting an early battle with David Trewern (Ferrari Gold Coast), Nordin was able to build a margin to score the Coppa Shell victory.

Trewern secured second from Japanese driver Masahiro Taguchi (Ferrari Brisbane), who held off his countryman Baby Kei (Cornes Osaka) by six-seconds at the close of the race.

Tony Baildon (Ferrari Brisbane) and New Zealander Michael Walker (Continental Cars Ferrari) rounded out Coppa Shell.

Trofeo Pirelli 488. It was an impressive performance by Ross Tomain (Ferrari Gold Coast) to take his first win in Ferrari Challenge Australasia.

It was a comfortable victory, finishing mid-field overall, and leading New Zealander Rob Steele (Continental Cars Ferrari) and Jason Yu (Ferrari Melbourne) in the category, both putting in strong performances driving the previous generation model.

Schedule. Ferrari Challenge Trofeo Pirelli Australasia action continues at Phillip Island on Sunday, with Qualifying at 9:40am and Race 2 beginning at 3:10pm (all times AEDT). Both sessions will be broadcast live through Kayo Sports and Fox Sports for local viewers, and on the Ferrari YouTube channel for all regions.

28 marzo 2026