TA2 Muscle Car Series front runner Brad Gartner and second-generation racer Tabitha Ambrose will team up to contest the Winton 300 racing for a team made up of TAFE students.
As they did in 2023, Motorsport Training Australia is fielding a Hyundai Veloster for students at the Wodonga TAFE who are looking to graduate with a certificate in the field.
The 300km endurance race takes place at Winton Motor Raceway in country Victoria this weekend. Gartner raced the Hyundai Veloster last year and knows the team, while for Hyundai Excel ace Ambrose it will be a new experience.
“Part of the course means that the TAFE students need to take a car to a racetrack and prepare and maintain that vehicle at a race meeting, as well as prepare the car prior,” explained Team Manager Steve McDonald.
“As teachers we’re making sure that they’re doing their assessments correctly.
“We teach them mainly the mechanical technician side of it, we also offer another certificate alongside the first year which is for mechanical engineering, which involves machining, welding, and CAD subjects, because Motorsport is not just about being a mechanic.”
McDonald explained the young driver pairing will be a great fit for the team with not one, but two rising stars behind the wheel.
“Because they’re both young and they’re trying to make a start in their career, the students can relate to them a little bit more as they are they’re all starting out,” he said.
“We can see that they’re good drivers, in the past we’ve had the likes of Jordan Boys race for the team.”
Gartner is looking forward to reuniting with the crew, last year they finished in 10th position outright and fifth in Division E.
His co-driver this year will be Tabitha Ambrose, the daughter of NASCAR Cup Series race winner Marcos Ambrose.
“Awesome opportunity to be back with the Wodonga TAFE, they’re a great bunch and all the organisation is great, little opportunities like this to always stay in a racing car are good,” Gartner said.
“I haven’t met Tabitha, but we’ve been talking via email. I chat to Marcos Ambrose quite a bit, we’ve been chatting on and off for over 12 months since they purchased my old Hyundai Excel, which is how the relationship started.”
Gartner has not driven the Hyundai Veloster since the 300 concluded last year, but he is not concerned.
“I’ve not done a test day or anything, so I can’t wait to jump back in on Friday. Hopefully get some laps under Tabitha’s belt and come Sunday, I’m sure we’ll be ready to go.”
Ambrose explained how the deal all came together from her side, and how a little test at the Wodonga TAFE has her confident of a good weekend.
“The deal came together through Stephen Whyte, I was racing at one of the last club rounds at Winton and I met Stephen at the scrutineering, he just approached my dad, and it went from there,” she said.
“I was fortunate enough to be able to visit the Wodonga TAFE, they’ve got an awesome little track out there, and they were kind enough to give me some laps.
“It went great, they let me have as much seat time as I wanted which was awesome. Seeing all the guys working on the car too, and just meeting everyone before the weekend.
“They seem very well prepared, I reckon they’re going to do a great job. They definitely know what they were talking about and understood what I was wanting out of the car.”
Ambrose will be performing double duty this weekend, aside from racing in the Pitcher Partners Winton 300, she will also be racing in the Hyundai Excel Trophy Series.
She is looking forward to working along side Gartner, but expressed that for the TAFE students it is all about completing the distance.
“The expectation for all is to finish all the laps, and their target is just to get the best result from the weekend, making the best setup changes, having a great driver changes and being able to have a flawless weekend without any faults,” she said.
“I’ve got a pretty awesome teammate in Brad, who I’m really excited to get to drive to drive with.
“I’m on double duty this weekend, so I will be racing the Excel as well. The Excel has just been such a great way to learn and improve the foundations of my skills. Without getting into something too fast too soon.”
The team are sponsored by Hi-Tec Oils, Yokohama, Hyundai, Motorsport Training Australia, Wodonga TAFE and Bowdens Own.
The weekend commences with three practice sessions on Friday, a warm-up before a qualifying session on Saturday, with a further warm-up and the 300km race on Sunday. The race will be streamed live and free on Blend Line TV.
