Sydney Motorsport Park, NSW, October 20 2024 – A pair of second place finishes and the confidence-inspiring debut of a second car was the Ford Mustang story at the latest leg of the GT4 Australia series at Sydney Motorsport Park.

Jason Gomersall rolled his new Mustang GT4 into action for the first time at the tricky Sydney circuit,  and brought third-generation racer Aaron Seton along for the ride.

But it was George Miedecke and Rylan Gray, having their fifth meeting in their fast Ford, who converted for a pair of second place finishes in the Silver Cup across both races of the weekend, and second overall in the first race on Saturday.

Changeable weather and heavy tyre loads meant it was an up-and-down weekend for the two Mustang teams, but both crews were happy and are already looking forward to the season finale at Mount Panorama in early November.

“It’s good to have two cars out there for the first time. I know Jason Gomersall is over the moon with his Mustang,” said Andrew Miedecke, the Australian agent for Multimatic, the Canadian company that builds the Mustang GT4 for Ford. 

"We’ve got another two cars on the water, hoping to land soon, and there is every chance we’ll have up to six Mustangs on the grid in 2025.”

The field at SMP reflected the continuing growth of GT4 racing, with 22 starters and a bunch of European exotics - McLaren, Porsche, Mercedes-AMG - up against Ford's muscle cars.

“This is a great category. It’s everything I expected, and more,” said Gomersall.

“I’ve done a lot of racing and decided to jump into GT4 with the Mustang. I’m glad I did it. It feels like a real racing car.”

The Sydney weekend started with wet weather on Friday evening for qualifying, then cool conditions for Saturday evening’s first race, before bright sunshine for the Sunday afternoon stoush.

Under the GT4 system each driver qualifies, and then starts, one of the twin one-hour races, with roles reversed for the second leg.

“To be honest, we struggled this weekend. This track has the highest tyre degradation in the country, and the Mustang is a bit heavier than most of the opposition,” said Miedecke.

“We always knew we would struggle, but we got the best out of the weekend. Now we’re heading to Bathurst, which should really suit our cars.”

The 2024 Australian GT4 championship concludes at Mount Panorama, Bathurst, from November 8-10.

Top Ford Race Results

Race 1 Qualifying:

Aaron Seton - 8th

George Miedecke - 12th

Race 2 Qualifying:

Rylan Gray- 2nd

Jason Gomersall - 14th

Race 1:

George Miedecke/Rylan Gray - 2nd outright (2nd in class) 

Aaron Seton/Jason Gomersall - 4th outright (2nd in class) 

Race 2:

Rylan Gray/George Miedecke - 5th outright (2nd in class) 

Jason Gomersall/Aaron Seton - 10th outright (6th in class)

Driver Quotes

George Miedecke

• “I think we made the best from a sub-optimal situation. We had the biggest and heaviest car on the track that’s the toughest on tyres in Australia.”
• “For us to get a second overall, and two seconds in the Silver Cup class was the best we could expect.”
• “Starting the first race from 12th and getting to third early in the race was just so much fun. I had a blast. I had a heap of really good battles.”
• “Finishing on Sunday I was going as fast as the tyre would allow. It was really about surviving and scoring good points.”

Rylan Gray

• “It was a solid weekend, but a bit hard against the lighter machinery.”
• “The Mustang is different to anything else I’ve driven at SMP and it was pretty hooked up. But hard on tyres.”
• “We’re definitely on top of the car now, so I’m looking forward to Bathurst. It should suit the Mustang with big, long straights.”

Jason Gomersall

• “We didn’t qualifying well enough. But it was a learning weekend, so not a bad effort overall.”
• “On one lap the Mustang was as quick as anything, but the tyre degradation was tough.”
• “It’s a very cool car to drive. It won’t bite you. I just enjoyed driving around Sydney Motorsport Park in the Mustang.”

Aaron Seton

• “I enjoyed my first weekend back in the Ford family, which tracks back to my granddad in the 1960s, and sharing with Jason.”
• “It was a pretty good weekend. I was happy with the car and it was pretty comfortable to drive.”
• “Finishing fourth on Saturday was a solid result. There is more to come.”

Ford Championship Standings

Teams: 2nd Miedecke Motorsport, 193pts

Drivers: 2nd George Miedecke/Rylan Gray, 192pts 

ENDS