V8 Touring Car National Series
| Category | Touring car racing |
|---|---|
| Country | Australia |
| Inaugural season | 2008 |
| Drivers | 20 |
| Teams | 18 |
| Constructors |
Ford Holden |
| Tyre suppliers | Kumho Tyres |
| Drivers' champion | Liam McAdam |
| Official website | V8 Touring Cars National Series |
 Current season | |
The V8 Touring Car National Series is an Australian motor racing competition for touring cars. It is effectively a third tier series for V8 Supercars competitors. While the vehicles and the series itself is not officially associated with V8 Supercars and its teams and series, the cars must be deregistered cars from official V8 Supercar teams and series. This is mainly as a preventative measure against a team building a brand new car to suit the regulations. The series is currently know by the commercial identity of the Kumho Tyres V8 Touring Car Series.
The series came into existence as an acknowledgement that there are a lot of old V8 Supercars that are no longer eligible or competitive in the second-tier Dunlop V8 Supercar Series and, other than as overweight and uncompetitive Sports Sedans, had nowhere else to race. The series has also attracted competitors from the now defunct Australian Touring Car Challenge which had run on the now collapsed Australian Motor Racing Championships program.
The inaugural series was held in 2008 as a completely new category, running on the Shannons Nationals Motor Racing Championships schedule. The series struggled to find a grid in its opening year, with the low point coming in the second round at Eastern Creek where just three cars were entered. The series has since swollen with the deregistration of the Ford AU Falcon and Holden VX Commodore from the Fujitsu V8 Supercar Series, with a number of fresh cars and teams stepping straight out of the second-tier series.
Chris Smerdon, a former V8 Supercar driver, was the inaugural series champion, dominating the 2008 series in an ex-Stone Brothers Racing Ford AU Falcon. The 2009 series saw former Fujitsu Series drivers Adam Wallis and Terry Wyhoon battle with Smerdon for the crown, with Wallis coming out on top over Wyhoon and Smerdon. Another former Fujitsu Series driver, Tony Evangelou, won the 2010 series, being the only driver to compete in all five rounds. Wyhoon won the series in 2011 after a close battle with Smerdon and Scott Loadsman.
Race weekends consist of three races, the first usually held on Saturday with the final two held on Sunday. Points are also awarded for qualifying and a session called Time Attack. Six tyres are allocated to each car at the first round of the series with an additional four tyres allowed at each subsequent meeting.[1]
Series winners
| Year | Driver | Car | Team |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2008 | Chris Smerdon | Ford AU Falcon | Challenge Motorsport |
| 2009 | Adam Wallis | Holden VX Commodore | Warrin Mining |
| 2010 | Tony Evangelou | Ford BA Falcon | ANT Racing |
| 2011 | Terry Wyhoon | Ford BA Falcon | Image Racing |
| 2012 | Josh Hunter | Ford BA Falcon | Fernandez Motorsport |
| 2013 | Shae Davies | Ford BF Falcon | Fernandez Motorsport |
| 2014 | Justin Ruggier | Holden VZ Commodore | Eggleston Motorsport |
| 2015 | Liam McAdam | Holden VZ Commodore | Eggleston Motorsport |
References
- ↑ "2009 V8 Touring Car Series Sporting & Technical Regulations" (PDF). Confederation of Australian Motor Sport. Archived from the original (PDF) on September 12, 2009. Retrieved 2009-07-03.