The 2023 Mobil 1 Australian Production Cars season has been a markedly successful one for Sherrin Racing, with the team cleaning up across this year’s championship tilt to bring home not only its fourth outright title, but also a swag of other accolades as well.
When all six rounds of the 2023 championship were run and done at some of Australia’s best race tracks, Sherrin Racing – with Iain Sherrin in the #72 Sherrin Rentals BMW M4 and Grant Sherrin in the #27 Sherrin Rentals BMW M4 – had to make plenty of room in the trophy cabinet, bringing home the following:
- 1 x Outright Championship (Iain)
- 1 x Class X Championship (Iain)
- 1 x Outright Championship Third Place (Grant)
- 1 x Class X Championship Second Place (Grant)
- 1 x Outright Sprint Cup (Grant)
- 1 x Class X Sprint Cup (Grant
- 1 x Class X Enduro Cup (Iain)
- 4 x outright round wins (Phillip Island, SMP, Sandown, Bathurst)
- 5 x class round wins (Phillip Island, SMP, Sandown, The Bend, Bathurst)
- 15 x outright race wins (3 at PI, 4 at SMP, 1 at QR, 4 at Sandown, 3 at Bathurst)
- 21 x class race wins (4 at PI, 4 at SMP, 2 at QR, 4 at Sandown, 4 at The Bend, 3 at Bathurst)
This season marked the first time that brothers Iain and Grant Sherrin have raced against each other since 2008, when they were racing in the Mini Challenge, with Iain taking the championship winning red M4 while Grant steered the brand-new yellow M4 the team completed building in time for the 2023 season.
While sibling rivalry may have been expected by those looking in from the outside, the overall goal of long-term success for the team was always at the forefront for these experienced production car campaigners.
“What a year it has been for Sherrin Racing,” Sherrin Racing Team Principal, Michael Sherrin, said.
“In the cars both Iain and Grant have done a fantastic job all year, and even despite the usual ups and downs of racing, they never gave up and never wavered in their commitment to bringing home the best possible result for the team, as has each and every member of Sherrin Racing.
“Whether in the workshop or at the track, our team members all played a vital role in what we were able to achieve this year with their meticulous preparation, fantastic strategies, and top notch pit work, and my heartfelt thanks goes to Klae, Nathan, Stuart, Jimmy, Dave and Paul for all they do – we race as a team, we win as a team, we lose as a team, and a better bunch of people you will not find.
“We might be biased, but it was clear out there this year that our team is one of the fastest and one of the best in pit lane, and that is something we are very proud of. We can’t wait to bring the challenge up to our fellow APC competitors again in 2024, and hopefully we can have a good crack at adding to our Hi-Tec Oils Bathurst 6 Hour win tally as well!
“We also couldn’t do what we do without the support of our valued sponsors, and so I would like to take a moment now to thank each of them.
“Wirtgen Group, Sherrin Rentals, Hi-Tec Oils, Industrial Protective Coatings Qld, Custom Plastic Fabrication, Action Mechanical Specialists, Symmetry Engineering, Hydraulink Brisbane North, Welding Solutions, Great Whites Lighting, Sherrin Equipment, Construction Equipment Australia, and Brisbane Isuzu have all played an important part in our success, and continuously supported us through the ups and downs of our shared passion for motorsport.
“Without them, we wouldn’t be able to do this, and I hope all of our valued partners feel that they are a part of this victory, because they well and truly are.
“And finally, I want to say a big thank you to our support base – our family and friends, and the fans of the team. Your constant support and cheerleading always brings a smile to our faces, and we hope we can bring more trophies home for you in the future.”
For a round by round recap of the 2023 season, please read on.
The 2023 Mobil 1 Australian Production Cars championship season kicked off with round one at Phillip Island across May 12-14, where the team enjoyed a successful start with 1st and 3rd outright and 1st and 2nd in Class X, with the Sherrin Racing BMW M4s taking three of the four outright APC wins, and all of the Class X victories.
Grant Sherrin claimed first for APC and in Class X, courtesy of two APC outright wins (races two and four), one outright runner-up (race three), three Class X wins (races one, two and four) and one Class X runner-up (race three).
Iain Sherrin claimed second for APC and in Class X, thanks to one APC outright win (race three), one outright runner-up (race four) and one outright third place (race two), alongside one Class X win (race three), two Class X runners-up (races two and four) and one Class X third place (race one).
Sydney Motorsport Park then hosted round two across June 16-18, with Sherrin Racing clean sweeping this event with Grant qualifying on pole for APC outright and Class X before Iain went on to take all four race victories outright and in class.
Grant secured 3rd for the round in Class X, after taking home 4th and 2nd for APC outright in the first two races, and second in class X in race one and race two, before unfortunately being taken out of the rest of the event by a GT4 Australia competitor mid-way through race three, while leading for APC outright and Class X.
Round three at Queensland Raceway was soon upon the team, with the August 11-13 event seeing Sherrin Racing breakthrough for one of the most prestigious race wins on the APC calendar – the lauded Fight in the Night at Queensland Raceway.
After finishing on the podium numerous times for the annual night race, this was the first outright and Class X Fight in the Night victory for the team, with Iain claiming the honours following an exceptional last lap passing manoeuvre to take the lead.
Making that race win even more impressive was the fact that Iain started the race from the rear of the grid alongside Grant, after both Sherrin Racing entries were unable to finish Friday’s opening race one due to fuel pump issues while at the pointy end of the field, after having dominated qualifying to be one-two (Grant and Iain respectively) outright and for Class X.
After finishing 2nd for APC and 1st in Class X in Sunday’s final race three, Iain secured 2nd outright for the round and 3rd for Class X, ensuring he continued to lead the championship chase as the series passed its half way mark.
For Grant in both the Fight and the Night and in race three, it was a case of what could have been. Om Saturday evening, he was forced to the pits for a second stop while leading the APC and Class X standings with 23 minutes to go on Saturday evening due to a decision by officials which was ultimately declared incorrect in a post-race hearing. Then on Sunday, a blown tyre following contact in race three forced an unscheduled stop. Despite the obstacles, he and the team recovered well in both races to finish 6th outright/4th in Class X and 5th outright/3rd for Class X.
Round four at Sandown Raceway was next (September 8-10), with this event seeing the team continuing to dominate in APC, taking out 1st and 2nd outright and in Class X, with both Sherrin Racing cars featuring on the podium across all but one of the weekend’s four 30-minute races.
Sunday’s races three and four proved to be the highlight of the weekend, with 1-2 outright and Class X finishes from Grant and Iain across both races, respectively.
Grant claimed first for APC and in Class X in the #27 across all four races during the weekend, while Iain took out two 2nd, one 3rd, and one 5th outright finishes, alongside four 2nd place Class X finishes in the #72.
Coming into the final two rounds of the season, the clean sweep of points for Grant and multiple podiums for Iain at round four set Sherrin Racing up for a strong championship finish with Iain continuing to lead, and Grant closing the gap to second outright.
There were still some curveballs to come however, with tyre issues threatening to derail the team’s title hopes at the penultimate round of the championship at The Bend Motorsport Park across October 13-15.
Even despite the dramas, which were put down to faulty pressure sensor valves causing damage to the rims, Sherrin Racing stood on the podium come the end of the weekend, with Grant claiming an outright second place and class X first-place finish, while Iain claimed second for Class X in the #72.
In a valiant effort, Grant secured three APC outright podium finishes from the four races, as well as three Class X victories, with Iain taking the remaining win.
Races one and two saw Iain claim second in Class X and seventh outright while battling the tyre issues, before breaking through for the Class X victory and outright second in race three. In race four, he was on track for an outright podium when he suffered damage from tapping the wall in the last stint, persevering to bring the #72 M4 home second in class and 10th outright.
The penultimate round challenges saw the Sherrins slip from the championship lead for the first time all year, seeing Iain head to the season finale at the Bathurst International 33 points shy of new title leaders, Coleby Cowham and Lindsay Kearns, while Grant was in third place, 33 points away from Iain and with a 68 point margin to the lead.
With four x 30-minute races left to go and a maximum of 36 points on offer per race, a total possible points haul of 146 points was on the line (if you were able to win all four races and top qualify, which provides two points) – it was well and truly all to play for at the season finale.
When all was said and done at Mount Panorama, the team was ecstatic to have Iain claim Sherrin Racing’s fourth Mobil 1 Australian Production Cars outright title, clinching the outright championship honours as well as the X Class title trophy with an impressive effort which included three APC outright and class race wins in the #72 Sherrin Rentals BMW M4, and one outright and class race runner-up result. He also won the Enduro Cup for X Class.
Grant meanwhile brought home the APC Sprint Cup both outright and in Class X and claimed third for the outright title and second in the Class X championship.
Grant had secured the first points of the weekend with pole position outright and in class, giving him two points for his tally, before a strong and consistent effort by Iain to win both of Saturday’s outings saw him close the gap to Cowham/Kearns to just three points ahead of the final two outings.
Second outright for APC and in class in race three, the penultimate race of the weekend, then saw Iain launch himself into the title lead with a seven-point margin with just one race to go, while also securing the X class championship. Grant meanwhile had crossed the line 2nd in class and outright for race one, before bringing home a pair of 3rd places both outright and in class across races two and three – at which point Grant had the outright Sprint Cup won and 3rd place in the title locked down.
Come the final race of the weekend, Iain got both hands on the big trophy thanks to another APC outright and Class X race win. He also won the round outright and for class. Grant meanwhile crossed the line in in 3rd outright and in class, which saw him add to his tally by officially winning the Sprint Cup in class X and come home 3rd for the round outright and in class.
It should also be noted that the team was already succeeding in 2023 even before the championship chase started, taking out the outright and class X round wins for the non-championship APC event after clean-sweeping their four x 30-minute races which were held as part of the Hi-Tec Oils Bathurst 6 Hour weekend in April, where they also competed in the Six Hour race itself – running second outright before a broken rear sub frame ended their race prematurely on lap 73 of 112.
Sherrin Racing is already preparing for a busy 2024, where they will both return to the Hi-Tec Oils Bathurst 6 Hour and attempt to defend their titles in the new Australian Production Cars season. Stay tuned for more info on event schedules and details.
Sherrin Racing is supported on-track by Wirtgen Group, Sherrin Rentals, Hi-Tec Oils, Industrial Protective Coatings Qld, Custom Plastic Fabrication, Action Mechanical Specialists, Symmetry Engineering, Hydraulink Brisbane North, Welding Solutions, Great Whites Lighting, Sherrin Equipment, Construction Equipment Australia, and Brisbane Isuzu. For more information, visit www.sherrinracing.com.au
On-track photos thanks to Speed Shots Photography, Presesntation photos thanks to MTR Images