29 cars are entered for the inaugural Shelley 300 at One Raceway this weekend, the final round of the 2026 MRA season and the last of MRA’s three 300-kilometre enduros for the year.
The Wakefield 300 in March and Sydney 300 in June produced different winning crews, while August’s Winton 300 added another combination to the season’s winners; Sydney 300 winner David Calabria and Winton 300 winner Aaron Giuntini are both on the Shelley entry list.
Same track, opposite direction
The Shelley 300 runs on Shelley Circuit: the same 2.35-kilometre, 13-turn strip of tarmac outside Goulburn that hosts the Wakefield 300, but driven anti-clockwise.
The reverse layout first hosted racing in early 2025, with circuit owner Steve Shelley leading the opening laps in a Porsche GT3 Cup car on the track that carries his name.
The corners are the same, but they come at you differently in reverse. Braking points, corner approaches and sight lines change completely, giving teams another challenge alongside the usual endurance demands of traffic, pit work and reliability.
Three races, three winning crews
The Wakefield, Sydney and Winton 300s each produced a different winning car and crew:
Wakefield 300, 1 March: Harrison Cooper and Jackson Copeman won in their Mazda MX-5 NB, ahead of Alex Holzl’s BMW 1M and the Porsche 944 S2 of Chris Stannard and Chris Polis.
Sydney 300, 13 June: David Calabria and Alex Michalsky won in the Powertek Mitsubishi Evolution, ahead of Tomislav Vucicevic and Bob Pupovac’s Honda Civic EG and Grant and Harry Inwood’s BMW 1M.
Winton 300, 30 August: Aaron and Matthew Giuntini won in their Honda Civic EG, ahead of Drew Russell and Peter Lawrence’s BMW M3 and David Krusza and Marcus Rummler’s Toyota 86.
At Wakefield, Cooper and Copeman came from 25th on the grid to win, after problems in qualifying. They completed 128 laps in two hours, 40 minutes and 35 seconds, winning by two laps and setting the race’s fastest lap of 1:03.065.
In Sydney’s night race, Cooper and Copeman finished eighth after a two-lap penalty for a fuel spill, while Calabria and Michalsky claimed victory by 24.509 seconds. Vucicevic and Pupovac were second, with Grant and Harry Inwood completing the podium. Steve and Jake Shelley finished fourth in their One Raceway / Deputy Evo X, also on the lead lap.
At Winton, the Giuntini brothers finally got their win, after a heartbreaking run in previous 300s. Their success followed the disappointment of the 2025 Wakefield 300, when a front hub failure stopped their leading Civic six laps from home. Starting third at Winton, they won by just over 91 seconds.
Setting the pace
Benny Tran has been one of the season’s standout qualifiers. He took pole for the Sydney 300 in the Integra and secured second on the Winton grid following the Top 10 Shootout.
Tran now shares the #81 Integra with Time Attack veteran Damon Ashton, giving the Shelley field a combination with strong outright credentials. The biggest question over the Tran Honda is reliability, because it has proven somewhat fragile in the past.
Who can win it?
Steve/Jake Shelley, #7 Mitsubishi Evo X - Jake has three Wakefield 300 victories, in 2012, 2013 and 2015, the last shared with his father. After fourth in Sydney, the pair will be looking to turn home familiarity into another endurance win. Greg and Matthew Shelley add a second family entry in the #118 BMW 135i.
David/James Calabria, #88 Mitsubishi Evolution - the reigning Sydney 300 winner returns in his Mitsubishi, this time joined by brother James. The car qualified second at Wakefield before winning in Sydney, making Calabria a clear contender. Nathan Blackmore and Mario Calabria bring another Mitsubishi Evo in the #199 entry.
Joshua Robertson/Aaron Giuntini, #3 Honda Integra - fresh from winning at Winton alongside his brother Matthew, Giuntini joins Robertson in the A & M Racing Integra. Robertson shared the car with Myles Jones on the way to seventh in Sydney.
Benny Tran/Damon Ashton, #81 Honda Integra - Tran’s qualifying performances underline his speed, and the entry is a contender for the outright win based on raw pace.
Alex Holzl, #180 BMW 1M - Holzl finished second outright at Wakefield as a solo driver, just 2.798 seconds ahead of the Stannard/Polis Porsche. His BMW is a proven podium contender at the venue.
Todd/Jett Herring, #79 Mazda MX-5 - Todd won the 2021 Wakefield 300 and Sydney 300 and shared the 2024 Winton 300 victory with Andrew Boydell. Jett topped both Group 1 practice sessions in Sydney before finishing sixth outright.
Through the field
Chris Stannard’s #44 Porsche 944 S2 has started all three of this year’s completed 300s, with highlights including third at Wakefield and fifth in Sydney. Stannard steps out of the driving line-up for the Shelley 300, with Matthew Bolton and Chris Polis sharing the car.
Tim Weston and Josh Anderson reunite in the #61 Ford Fiesta ST after finishing fourth together at Wakefield. Weston drove solo to tenth in Sydney, with Anderson returning to partner him after wrapping up the inaugural Ford Mustang Cup title at Sandown last weekend.
Wakefield 300 veteran Parry Anastakis again joins John Taylor in the #144 Nissan Pulsar N14 after their 11th-place finish at Wakefield. Greg Boyle, the 2019 Wakefield 300 winner, returns in his #76 Mazda SP23 after finishing 12th at Wakefield this year. Craig Barney’s #151 MX-5 is another entry to watch following his solo drive to sixth in that race.
No less than six Mazda RX8s are entered for the enduro, with RX8 Cup also on the weekend’s programme. Paul and Jordan Spiteri share #11, alongside entries for Stephen Doorey/Ben Shaw(#13), Stephen Borness/Ric Shaw (#38), Garry Lougher (#66), Maisie Place/Ashton Cattach (#80), and Matthew Clift/Brendon Flaxman (#95).
Gerry and Leigh Burges bring their #33 Mitsubishi Evo 9, while Kiara Zabetakis returns in the #21 MX-5 after sharing sixth at Winton with Jackson Rice.
The field also includes Jake Hextall/Ghassan Fatayerji (#35 MX-5), Tony Prior/Daniel Flanagan(#55 Toyota 86), Craig Thornton/Luke King (#71 Toyota 86), Nicholas Agar/Jason Walsh (#787 Hyundai i30 N sedan), Jackson Selwood/Dean Alessi(#161 Mazda 3), and Dean Chapman with Christoph Heiniger in the #551 Subaru BRZ.
What to watch
Tran and Ashton bring the one-lap speed of the BYP Integra, Calabria is chasing a second 300 victory this season, and Giuntini is after another victory in a different car. The big question: can Steve and Jake Shelley win on the circuit bearing their family name?
The event will be live streamed on Blend Line TV Premium.
