Formula Ford grid set for championship showdown at SMP

This weekend, 22 Formula Ford drivers will fight for the final and decisive round of the 2018 Australian Formula Ford Championship and 2018 Australian FF1600 Championship. Hunter McElrea is currently leading the championship, just 11 points clear of Sonic Motor Racing Services team-mate Hamish Ribarits. McElrea and Ribarits are expected to fight tooth and nail for the coveted Australian Formula Ford title. The winner of the Championship will receive an entry ticket to the 2018 Mazda Road To Indy Shootout, held at Wild Horse Pass Motorsports Park, near Phoenix AZ, in December. McElrea has already won 12 races this year and is eager to re-write history and place his name in the record of most wins in a season, currently held by Chaz Mostert with 14 wins in his 2010 campaign. On the other side of the garage, Hamish Ribarits is in a perfect position to snatch the 2018 Australian title in his debut season at a National level. The Mildura-based Mygale driver, who finished third in the Victorian Formula Ford Championship last year, has been a true threat to McElrea over the course of the year, delivering consistent results, with minimal mistakes. The 2018 Australian FF1600 Championship is still undecided, with four points separating championship leader Dylan Fahey from Tim Hamilton. The pair of Queenslanders are closely followed by New South Welshman Robert Rowe, who is entering the weekend just eight points shy of Hamilton. This weekend, Robert Rowe and Jason Liddell will feel at home at Sydney Motorsport Park, a circuit that they both know well. Fahey and Hamilton will need to bring their A-Game to keep the FF1600 Championship trophy in Queensland, after Mitch Maddren's win in 2017. 61 points are up for grabs in both championships, so we are expecting some action-packed racing in both classes this weekend. The on-track action will start this Friday with three practice sessions, followed by qualifying and race one on Saturday and two races on Sunday. Both Sunday races will be live streamed on the BlendlineTV YouTube channel and Facebook page.

Event Schedule (local time) Friday FP1 - 9:05am FP2 - 12:55pm FP3 - 3:25pm Saturday Qualifying -9:50am Race 1 - 2:35pm Sunday Race 2 - 11:30am Race 3 - 3:15pm

Sydney Motorsport Park - Entry list Formula Ford Class #2 Hunter McElrea - Sonic Motor Racing Services #3 Courtney Prince - Sonic Motor Racing Services #4 Angelo Mouzouris - Sonic Motor Racing Services #5 Hamish Ribarits - Sonic Motor Racing Services #6 Paul Zsidy - Borland Racing Developments #10 Zac Soutar #12 Bart Horsten - Fastlane Racing #14 Lachlan Mineeff - CHE Racing Team #29 Nathan Herne - BF Racing #36 Cody Burcher - Borland Racing Developments #40 Dan Holihan - Traxstar Anglo Motorsport #47 Thomas Sargent - CHE Racing Team #66 Benjamin D'Alia - Borland Racing Developments #88 Harrison Goodman - BF Racing #98 Conor Nicholson FF1600 Class #8 Dylan Fahey #9 Dave Wood #13 Josh Buchan - Listec Race Cars #41 Robert Rowe #80 Jason Liddell #87 Tim Hamilton #94 Joshua Glinn

2018 AFFC STANDINGS (Top 10) Hunter McElrea - 278 pts Hamish Ribarits - 267 pts Zac Soutar - 209 pts Nathan Herne - 186 pts Liam McLellan - 158 pts Lachlan Mineeff - 142 Angelo Mouzouris - 127 pts Cody Donald - 116 pts Cameron Shields - 108 pts Bart Horsten - 101 pts

2018 AFF1600 STANDINGS Dylan Fahey - 92 pts Tim Hamilton - 88 pts Robert Rowe - 80 pts Jason Liddell - 70 pts Jimmy Bailey - 30 pts

2018 AFFC Calendar Round 1 - Winton Motor Raceway - March 9-11 Round 2 - Queensland Raceway - April 20-22* Round 3 - Wakefield Park - May 25-27 Round 4 - Sandown Raceway - July 20-22* Round 5 - The Bend Motorsport Park - August 24-26 Round 6 - Phillip Island Grand Prix Circuit - September 28-30 Round 7 - Sydney Motorsport Park - October 26-28* *rounds of the 2018 Australian Formula Ford 1600 Championship