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18 September 2019 | News

Kiwi hotshot set for S5000 debut at Sandown

New Zealand rising star Taylor Cockerton has secured one of the final places on the S5000 grid ahead of the historic opening event at the suburban Melbourne circuit.

Cockerton, 21, will be run by MTEC Motorsport – the team now expanding to run three S5000 entries along with Matthew Brabham and Tim Macrow.

Born and raised in Pukekohe, New Zealand, Cockerton is a wings and slicks specialist. He won the 2014/15 New Zealand Formula Ford Championship before spending three years in the competitive Toyota Racing Series in New Zealand, driving for the MTEC team, as well as driving in the 2017 Asian Masters Series.

Cockerton will get his first taste of their S5000 cars at Phillip Island today in a private test session for all 12 confirmed cars, ahead of a jam-packed weekend of action at Sandown.

A 13th and final entry will be at the Island tomorrow, and the driver/team combination will be announced in due course.

The field is headlined by former Formula 1 race winner Rubens Barrichello and Australian international Matthew Brabham, with a field full of young guns and established stars keen to etch their name into history as the inaugural S5000 race winners.

Practice kicks off on Friday, September 20, followed by qualifying and racing on Saturday and Sunday.

Tickets can be pre-purchased or bought at the gate, and for those unable to make it to Sandown for the historic first event, the races will be broadcast live, free and in HD on SBS, or via the Shannons Nationals live stream.

S5000 SANDOWN GRID

Car No. Driver Team Sponsor(s)

8.  Alex Davison, Team BRM
11.  Michael Gibson, Australian Racing Enterprises
22.  Tom Alexander, AGi Sport
23.  Tim Macrow, MTEC Motorsport
24.  John Martin, AGi Sport
27.  Barton Mawer, Milldun Motorsport
33.  Tim Berryman, Team BRM
38.  Will Brown, Eggleston Motorsport
83.  Matt Brabham, MTEC Motorsport
92.  Ricky Capo, Modena Engineering
97.  Taylor Cockerton, MTEC Motorsport
111.  Rubens Barrichello, Team BRM
TBA TBA TBA

QUOTES

Taylor Cockerton

“Having the Phillip Island test today is going to be a big help. That will get me and the rest of the field into the groove for Sandown,” said Taylor Cockerton.

“It’s great to be with MTEC. I know how Bruin (Beasley) and his team operates, so while I’m learning the new car, at least I won’t need to learn the team or they way they go about their business.

“I’m not setting any expectations for myself. I’d like to be at the pointy end. I’ve got some good team-mates in Matt and Tim, so hopefully I’m getting into a rhythm early and move forward.

“The last race car that I drove was a Formula 4 car at the Grand Prix in March, so this is a massive step up in terms of performance. Hopefully by the end of the weekend, we can be challenging for the lead.

“I have to pay a huge thank you to MTEC Motorsport and Pinnacle Event Logistics – these guys are the ones that have made it happen for me and I’m very grateful.”