MOTORSPORT: S5000 for AGP

Australia’s newest open-wheeler category, S5000, has joined the supporting cast for the Australian Grand Prix.

The V8-powered single-seaters are set to explode into action at Sandown Park this weekend and are now also confirmed for their first Albert Park appearance in 2020.

The new deal could see up to 20 of the S5000 cars on the grid in March as the category gets up to speed.

Rubens Barrichello, the former Ferrari F1 racer, is in Australia for the Sandown kick-off for the category and is welcoming news of the AGP appearance, although he has not made any commitment to the category beyond his debut this weekend.

He will lead an expected field of 13 cars into a test today at Phillip Island ahead of the Sandown-start-up, with a pair of famous names -- Davison and Brabham -- joining the grid through third-generation racers Alex and Matt.

The AGP deal came together quickly once the S5000 category kicked into gear and marks another success for its promoter, the Australian Racing Group, which has also injected its TCR Australia series into the mix for Albert Park next year.

“There is always such a strong appetite from our fans for exciting on-track activity, so having the exciting S5000 class at our event is the perfect fit,” says the CEO of the Australian Grand Prix Corporation, Andrew Westacott.

“AGPC is always looking to inspire the next generation of drivers and being able to showcase a new Australian motorsport category not just nationally, but globally, is such a fantastic opportunity for all involved.”

The addition of S5000 to the AGP program comes following the collapse of Formula 4, which had been planned as an open-wheeler nursery category in Australia with potential links to series in Europe and Asia. But it never clicked with competitors and there have only been desultory fields for races this year.

The latest confirmed S5000 driver is a young New Zealander, Taylor Cockerton, who will slide into a three-car team from MTEC Motorsport that includes Matt Brabham and Tim Macrow, who has done most of the testing for the new category.

Cockerton is a former NZ Formula Ford champion who has been competing more recently in the Toyota Racing Series.

The driver line-up for the start of S5000 at Sandown, with one starter still to be confirmed, is: Rubens Barrichello, Alex Davison, Michael Gibson, Tom Alexander, Tim Macrow, John Martin, Barton Mawer, Tim Berryman, Will Brown, Matt Brabham, Ricky Capo and Taylor Cockerton.