The Independent Race Series has launched its brand new 2010-model website today.

The new site aligns with the philosophy of the Independent Race Series of providing accessible, exciting and fun racing. Much hammering, grinding and polishing has gone into making sure the site is accessible, and provides a fun and exciting portal into the series.

It's now easier than ever to access the most popular sections of the site. Every page features links to: enter the next round, subscribe to the mailing list, or interact with iRace through social media like Twitter and Facebook. If these aren't your cup of tea, the site still has plenty to offer, with easy access to photos, videos, results and loads of other information.

Check out the new site now! www.irace.net.au

We're still bedding in the brakes, and running the engine in, so if there are a couple of glitches over the next few days, please bear with us - it will be worth it!

And check back in a couple of days for a short video highlighting many of the easily overlooked features of the new site. This will help even those on their internet P-plates access the best features of the site.

Round 1 of the 2010 Independent Race Series kicks off at Oran Park GP circuit, 15-16 Jan 2010.

Television coverage of last weekends round of the Independent Race Series from Oran Park will screen on SBS Speedweek this Sunday (22 Nov). As always, check your local guides, and settle in for some great iRace action.

The final round of racing for the 2009 Independent Race Series was held at Oran Park on the weekend, with a number of suprise results, and plenty of action-packed racing.

Formula Tasman and LeMans Sports saw a packed field of open-wheelers in a great boost for the category. The racing was top notch, with Chris Farrell setting the early pace in his Swift Formula Atlantic. Farrell took pole, and the opening race. Sam Dale made a good start in the second race, and led the early laps until a safety car intervened. Farrell took the lead at the restart, while Dale suffered brake failure and contacted the wall at the final corner. Hard-charging Robert Choon went on to finish second, with his father David Choon in third. In the final race it was looking like Chris Farrell would win at a canter, until a lap from the end and his car caught fire. Farrell managed to get out unscathed, and the fire was extinguished, allowing Robert Choon through to take the race, and the round win. Farrell ended up second overall, with David Choon in third. Andrew Wlodek took the honour for top Formula 2, after strong runs all weekend. Vince Evans took the Formula R honours in his debut in the category. Robert Choon was top Formula 3 and Michele Guyer took a well earned win in the Formula 4000 group. Rick Otten had a solid performance to finish top LeMans Sports car.

Formula Tasman Outright:
1. Robert Choon
2. Chris Farrell
3. David Choon

LeMans Sports:
1. Rick Otten

In Muscle Division Terry Denovan and Greg Boyle went into the round as the men to beat. Denovan's Commodore and Boyle's Silvia looked to be evenly matched in qualifying, with Denovan narrowly taking pole. The round result proved the unpredictability of the handicap format though as neither man managed to take the top spot. Boyle dominated Race 1, after he upped his pace from qualifying. Denovan was the top Improved Production/Sports Sedan and second outright. Third place went to Adam Tipping, who was also the leading HDT Cup car. In the first of the handicap races (race two), Adam Tipping took the win. Boyle overcame a 2 lap handicap to come through in second, with Troy Harrison in third. In Race Three, another handicap affair, Boyle this time managed to carve through the field and take the win, second was Adam Tipping, and third went to Michael Duff in his howling HSV Maloo Ute. In the final race, Boyle was unable to compete. Steven Cook took the win, with Adam Tipping in second and Todd Betland third after strong drives all weekend. Category winners were: Classic Muscle Car - Ryan Strode; IP/SS - Steven Berry; V8 Ute - Michael Duff. In the HDT Cup Feature Race, Adam Tipping dominated to take the win from Darren Gillis and Jon Worrell.

Muscle Division Outright:
1. Adam Tipping
2. Greg Boyle
3. Todd Betland

HDT Cup:
OUTRIGHT:
1. Adam Tipping
2. Darren Gillis
3. Jon Worrell

Class A Classic - Adam Tipping
Class A Modern - Jon Worrell
Class B Classic - Troy Harrison

In the Touring Car Challenge, Darren Saillard (BA Falcon Supercar) set the pace in qualifying. Saillard also took the honours in the opening scratch race, ahead of Barry Jameson (Jaguar V8 Giant) and Ben Eggleston (Commodore Supercar). In the first of the handicap races (race two) Darren Saillard took the win again, this time ahead of Steve Ingwersen (Commodore Supercar) and Joe McGinnes (XY GT Falcon). In the third race, Jameson took the win, ahead of Ingwersen and Saillard. Saillard was unable to make the start of the final race, leaving Jameson to take the win ahead of Ingwersen and Eggleston. Category winners for the weekend were: Touring Car - Steve Ingwersen; Muscle Car - Norm Stokes; V8 Giant - Mark Telfer; Group A - Matt Veal.

Touring Car Challenge Outright:
1. Steve Ingwersen
2. Darren Saillard
3. Barry Jameson

In the RocketSports, a small but quality field provided some exciting racing with the winner of Race One only taking the lead on the final lap. Graham Smith took race one. Race Two was taken by Adam Dodd. Graham Smith took the win again in race three, and was again victorious in race four. Graham Smith took the round win.

The Production Racing Cars put on some fantastic racing. Since the last round, Anthony Soole had upgraded his Lotus Exige to add a supercharger, with a significant power increase, to take the fight to Frank Donniaux in his WRX. In the opening race, Donniaux used the 4WD to get a better launch and take the lead, but Soole managed to take the lead when Donniaux spun nearing the finish. Daniel Flanagan was close behind, and first Class A. Class B went to the returning Bryan Fitzpatrick and C to John Willmington. In the second race, the results were very similar to the first, despite a reverse grid start - in fact, Donniuax managed to get from the rear of the grid to first place by the second corner! The third race saw the same class winners. The finale was a dramatic affair, with Geoff Kite taking the outright win (and Class A), Richard Mork in second and Anthony Soole in third.

Production Racing Cars Class Winners:
Class X - Anthony Soole
Class A - Daniel Flanagan
Class B - Bryan Fitzpatrick
Class C - John Willmington

The event culminated in the iRace One Hour Enduro. In hot conditions, the key was always going to be consistency and tyre and car conservation. It seems nobody told this to Steve Ingwersen though, as he set a cracking pace right from the start, leading all but the first lap of the race to take a dominant win. Finishing in second, Anthony Soole had read the script, and used a combination of relentless pace, with economy to beat the Eggleston/Lewis V8 Supercar home, the latter requiring an extra pitstop, which relinquished second place to Soole.

iRace Enduro:
1. Steve Ingwersen
2. Anthony Soole
3. Ben Eggleston/Daniel Lewis

Touring Car - Steve Ingwersen
Production Racing Car - Anthony Soole
Muscle Division - S. Berry/G. Boyle

The Independent Race Series returns to Oran Park for the first even in the 2010 season. The series will compete on the GP circuit 15-16 January. The series will also host a combination Family/Christmas/2009 Presentation day at Marulan Driver Training Centre on 12 December. Details on the day will be released soon, as will the 2010 calendar, and a brand new iRace website. So even though the racing for 2009 has finished, stay tuned to www.irace.net.au for all the new developments!

The Independent Race Series will host its final race meeting for 2009 this weekend, at the popular Oran Park South Circuit. The series has enjoyed strong growth throughout 2009, and solid entry lists for the 2009 finale set a solid foundation for 2010.

The largest field for this weekends event will be Muscle Division, incorporating the exciting HDT Cup category, with 27 cars entered for this event. Greg Boyle is expected to give a strong showing in the outright stakes, in his Nissan Silvia. Merrick Malouf always puts on a good show in his V8 Falcon Ute, and with the handicap format, victory could really go to anyone. The HDT Cup is a close fought category, the class honours went to Harrison, Macklyn, Tipping and Lloyd last time out, but there will be plenty looking to tip them from their perch this weekend.

Strong fields are also expected for Production Racing Cars and Formula Tasman & LM Sports, with close to 20 cars entered for each. Anthony Soole will be looking to regain the upper hand in Production Class X, while there are still a number of class championships to be settled. In Formula Tasman, Chris Farrell took the win last round, but Sam Dale was absent. Dale is back this weekend, and the action will be hot, with a number of Formula 2 cars joining the fun.

Look for quality racing in the RocketSports and Touring Car Challenge fields. Darren Saillard will be looking to make amends for a string of DNFs at the last round, but Andy Cantrell will ensure he doesn't have the Touring Car Challenge all his own way. Steve Ingwersen, Norm Stokes and Ben Eggleston will also be spicing things up.

The climax of the event will be the 1 hour iRace enduro, scheduled for Sunday afternoon, with 23 cars entered for the race, which will incorporate a compulsory pitstop. As with all endurance races, strategy plays a big part, and consistency is the key.

Unofficial practice gets underway Friday (13 Nov) morning, with Practice and Qualifying on Saturday (14 Nov) morning. Racing commences Saturday afternoon, with a full day of racing action on Sunday (15 Nov).

Check out the full schedule by clicking here.

Admission for spectators is free!

The Supplementary Regulations and Meeting Schedule for Round 6 are now available.

Click here to access the Regulations

Click here for the Meeting Schedule

See you all at Oran Park!

The Independent Race Series staged a very successful Drive Day at "The Farm" on Sunday, the circuit instantly a favourite with the drivers.

Inclement weather in the lead up to the event held off, and the entrants were blessed with dry running pretty much throughout. What little water was on the circuit in the morning quickly dried off after the initial familiarisation laps around the circuit behind a pace car.

Drivers were let loose on the circuit mid-morning, and then spent the rest of the day learning the nuances and subtleties of the 5.1km, 25-turn circuit, purpose built to be the ultimate challenge.

An excellent roll up of officials made the day possible, and as always, everyone is extremely grateful for the time they give up to allow our events to run safely and smoothly.

Entrants all made the effort to make their cars quieter, to adhere to the 90db limit, and only two cars were required to stop running as they were unable to reduce their noise enough. All the participants really embraced the spirit of the event (and the spirit of iRace in general), and treated the venue with respect, and looked after it like it was their own - everyone made sure they didn't leave rubbish laying around, and left the grounds in as good condition as possible.

Driver behaviour was under the microscope, with 'racing' strictly forbidden. Driver behaviour was excellent, with just the one group of three drivers black flagged and cautioned for getting too serious.

The circuit itself was a magnificent challenge, with just about every type of corner imaginable on offer, making putting together a consistent lap a true feat. The entire venue passed 'evaluation' with flying colours, with only one small mishap in the final session of the day.

Photos from the event are available here.

Finally, a huge thank you to the venue owners for allowing us to use this great facility. We hope to see you again in the not too distant future.

Round 6 entries are now officially open, and we can now reveal that the event will feature two endurance races.

Round 6 will be held on the popular Oran Park South Circuit 13-15 November, and will feature all the favourite iRace categories. In additional to the normal program of races, the meeting will also feature a 1 hour endurance race for MX5 Challenge cars on Saturday afternoon, and another 1 hour endurance race for iRace Sedan cars from Touring Car Challenge, Muscle Division (including HDT Cup) and Production Racing Cars on Sunday afternoon.

Both endurance races will include a compulsory timed pitstop for all cars. A second driver is allowed, but driver changes are not compulsory, the stationary time will be the same whether a driver change takes place or not.

Competitors are encouraged to get their entries in early. All races will be subject to maximum grid density, and we're expecting the enduros in particular to fill up quite quickly.

Entry fee for the normal events at the meeting is $395. Competitors who are entered for the normal meeting can enter one of the enduros for only $100 more. Competing only in one of the enduros is also permitted, the entry fee is $395.

Access the online entry form by clicking here.

Access the printable PDF by clicking here.

We've had a section of the iRace website that has laid dormant since the site was launched last year - the "Features" section. Other things have always seemed to take priority over getting a feature article online.

Not anymore though. We've now published our first feature article, and hopefully these become a more regular occurrence.

The first article is on how to be interviewed, and is mostly aimed at competitors. To check out the Features page, click here, or use the link in the navigation bar on the left.

Due to unprecedented interest, entries are now closed for our special event Drive Day at "The Farm".

Thank you to everyone for their interest, and to those competitors whose entries have been accepted, you will receive further information regarding the event (and instructions on how to get to the secret location) shortly.

Independent Race Series competitors have been invited to preview a fantastic Road Course one hour north of Sydney on Sunday October 4th 2009.

An exclusive "Drive Day" has been secured for Independent Race Series competitors at this 5.1 km, 23 corner road course situated in a beautiful parkland setting. The amazing layout (pictured right) has been described as "Australia's Nurburgring", and by Garry Willmington as the best piece of track he has ever driven. The venue has previously only been available to friends of the owners, but has been secured by iRace for this very special event.

Secure your place early as numbers are limited.

Entry is $295, and includes a BBQ lunch for the entrant. BBQ lunches will be available for $10 for everyone else attending.

Access the online entry form here. Please ensure you select the correct payment option if paying via PayPal.

Access the hardcopy entry form here.

Entries are now open, and close 25 September. Don't miss out!

UPDATE: Entries have now officially closed.