IPRA NSW Round 3: Interstate Battle Under Lights

Round 3 of the NSW IPRA Championship at Sydney Motorsport Park attracted one of the strongest fields seen at state level this season, with 43 entries including a host of interstate competitors and championship winners.

With recent upgrades fitted to the BMW M3, Friday practice was focused on refining the package ahead of qualifying. However, the weekend nearly unravelled when a vibration developed late in practice, forcing the team to diagnose and replace a faulty tailshaft.

After a late-night repair effort and a frantic Saturday morning dash across Sydney, the M3 made it to the dummy grid just minutes before qualifying. The drama proved worthwhile.

Despite heavy traffic making clean laps difficult for most competitors, Joseph delivered a stunning performance to secure pole position with a comfortable margin over the rest of the field.

"Qualifying on pole with that level of competition wasn't something I expected at all. It was a huge reward for all the work that went into getting the car ready."

RACE 1

Race 1 produced a thrilling battle at the front as Joseph and Queenslander Justin Keys traded pace throughout the race. After absorbing sustained pressure from the Commodore, Joseph managed tyre wear effectively and held on to claim victory.

A post-race discussion with officials followed after Joseph completed an extra lap due to not receiving the chequered flag. Following a review of the onboard footage, the result stood, and the win was confirmed.

RACE 2

Another strong start saw Joseph and Keys resume their battle, swapping positions several times in the opening laps before the BMW established a small advantage. Managing traffic became the focus in the closing stages, but a post-race penalty for an incident under starters' orders dropped Joseph from first to second place.

Lachlan McBrien was promoted to victory after an impressive drive through the field.

RACE 3

Race 3 promised another intense contest, with Round 1 winner Ben Algie joining the lead group after recovering from earlier setbacks. Unfortunately, the race lasted only a lap for Joseph, with a split oil line covering the exhaust and brakes in oil and forcing the BMW into retirement.

While the DNF ended the weekend on a disappointing note, pole position, a race win and front-running pace throughout the event highlighted the progress being made with the BMW M3 package.

Congratulations to all of the Round winners. Lachlan McBrien took out the Over 2L field, followed by Justin Keys and Dan Ridley, who now leads the IPRA NSW Championship. Danny Castro continued to dominate the Under 2L field, making it nine wins from nine starts, this time beating home Brad Vereker and Charlie Viola.

Round 4 will see a venue change, with the series heading south to One Raceway in early August for another action-packed one-day race meeting!

JLM Prize Winner

Justin Keys was awarded the JLM Prize pack, who travelled down from QLD in his Laird Motorsport-prepared VR Commodore. It sports an 18-degree Chev, features AP Racing brakes, a Holinger gearbox, and a lot of electrical smarts. Justin placed second at the 2025 Nationals at Philip Island and is a previous State and National Champion. Previously, he successfully campaigned an RX3 coupe with a 13B rotary and turbo BP 4 Cylinder engine.