News
Rising star secures Alfa Romeo drive with new TCR team
May 5, 2019
Dylan O’Keeffe will compete in the 2019 TCR Australia Series, driving for Ashley Seward Motorsport in one of the Garry Rogers Motorsport-owned Alfa Romeo Guilietta Veloces.
O’Keeffe is one of the rising stars of Australian motorsport, having learnt his craft in Porsche racing at both state and national levels.
Last year, O’Keeffe enjoyed a successful stint in Carrera Cup, finishing sixth outright before making the step to the Super2 Supercars Series with GRM this year.
O’Keeffe will continue in Super2, adding his Alfa TCR entry to his busy season schedule.
Ashley Seward Motorsport will run joint program with GRM to run the Alfa Romeo that will see the two organisations supporting each other with technical information, data and logistics.
ASM team owner Ashley Seward has a wealth of experience running open-wheelers, sports and GT cars in both Australian and international events.
O’Keeffe, Seward and the Alfa Romeo will be seen on track at Winton Raceway for the official test day ahead of the opening round of the TCR Australia Series at Sydney Motorsport Park on May 17-19.
Every TCR Australia race across the seven rounds will be broadcast live, free and in HD on SBS. The races will also be live streamed, available to view on the TCR Australia website.
Tickets for the opening event at Sydney Motorsport Park are now on sale via the Shannons Nationals website. CLICK HERE to secure your tickets and see Australian touring car history being made …
QUOTES
Dylan O’Keeffe
Driver, Alfa Romeo Guilietta Veloces TCR
“Ash has played a major part in my racing life since I started in Porsches five years ago, and now I’m obviously aligned with GRM, working for them full-time and racing with them in Super2,” said Dylan O’Keeffe.
“It’s great to see both teams working together and helping each other, and I’m very happy to be a piece of the puzzle.
“I’ve watched some of the TCR races overseas, and they’re always great to watch – the cars are evenly-matched, and they put on close racing with plenty of passing.
“One of the best things about the category is the cars are the same all around the world, so once you’ve learned the right driving technique, you can go and race in other TCR events and know what to expect.
“I’m expecting the driving style to be completely different to anything I’ve raced before.
“Fortunately, we have the pre-season test tomorrow at Winton, which will give me a chance to learn and understand the car.”
Ashley Seward
Team owner, Ashley Seward Motorsport
“I’ve watched TCR cars in overseas races, and when it was announced the series was coming to Australia, I decided it was definitely a category we needed to be involved in,” said Ashley Seward.
“When you look at the younger demographics here in Australia, they’re all driving hot hatches – TCR is about taking these sorts of cars from the road to the racetrack, and enabling them to compete on a level playing field. There’s no doubt it’s going to appeal to competitors and spectators.
“In terms of our own resources, we have everything we need to run a competitive TCR operation, and it’s a category that fits well with our existing programs in categories like Carrera Cup and Porsche GT3 Cup Challenge.
“I’ve known Garry and Barry Rogers since I was very young, and our workshop is only 500 metres away from theirs – it made total sense for us to work together on this program.
“They are running three other TCR cars, and we will both benefit from each other’s resources and technical knowledge. There will be TCR rounds where we will be able to help them with transport and logistics, and they will be able to assist us with technical support at the track.”