OSCAR TARGETT is the Porsche Michelin Sprint Challenge Australia Series champion, sealing his maiden national racing title in style today at Sydney Motorsport Park.

At 18 years 10 months, the Queenslander is the second youngest ever one-make Porsche champion in Australia, trailing only Jordan Love – who won the 2017 Sprint Challenge title aged 18 years, 4 months.

Targett’s title came as the Sprint Challenge season was concluded at Sydney Motorsport Park today, the Grove Racing Junior also claiming the prestigious Jim Richards Endurance Trophy – decided across the longer, 45-minute enduro races held at each round of the championship.

Targett won the final round narrowly over Clay Osborne – who won the final race – and Ryan Suhle. 

Ramu Farrell claimed the Pro-Am win over Lachy Harburg and Jacque Jarjo, while Daniel Quimby won Class B in Sydney. 

Harburg claimed his second Porsche title, adding the Pro-Am class win to his 2022 Class B Sprint Challenge championship.

Harburg’s success ensured Earl Bamber Motorsport claimed both the Pro and Pro-Am titles, a feat they achieved in Porsche Paynter Dixon Carrera Cup Australia last year but had yet to achieve in Sprint Challenge.

Jacque Jarjo had already claimed the Class B championship and stepped up to Pro-Am for the first time this weekend.

Driving for Earl Bamber Motorsport and backed by the Grove Racing junior program, Targett’s accomplishment is the next step on a meteoric rise since his debut in Round 2 of the 2023 championship.

His lengthy karting career saw him race professionally overseas in the FIA Karting Championship before returning to Australia, aged just 16, to commence his circuit racing career.

His maiden year of racing saw him split circuit racing campaigns between one-make Toyota GR Cup and Porsche competition as he earned his racing stripes, racing under the tutelage of Grove Racing’s experts.

His initial Porsche campaign had a setback from the outset as he missed the opening round of last year’s title on account of having open heart surgery earlier in the year – however rebounded superbly to claim third in the championship, winning two races.

That set up a second-year attack where he arguably entered the year as a title favorite, however had to work hard for his early success in a highly competitive field of young Porsche Michelin Juniors.

He opened his 2024 account by winning the series opener at Phillip Island, before the flat-out series of races to opener the year where five different drivers claimed victories.

Perhaps his most emphatic statement of title intent, however, came in the final race at Shell V-Power Motorsport Park at The Bend, where he charged to victory in a chaotic third race from 14th position on the starting grid.

That drive through the field to victory set up a dominant mid-season stanza where he claimed two of the three races in Townsville, all three races at Queensland Raceway and two of the three in Tasmania to claim all three rounds and entrench himself at the top of the standings.

The only driver remaining in contact with Targett heading into the series finale was Brock Gilchrist, who followed him home in Sydney Motorsport Park’s opener on Friday night to take the title battle into the final day – even if his hopes were more mathematical than anything else.

Targett then wrapped up the title with victory in the opening race of the final day, clinching the championship with one race to spare.

Brock Gilchrist capped off a successful debut season in Australia as the Team Porsche New Zealand-backed driver finished second overall, ensuring an EBM 1-2 in the championship.

Clay Osborne’s rookie season delivered him third overall for McElrea Racing in a promising season that included his maiden one-make Porsche victory.

Harburg’s Pro-Am title came via extreme consistency, the only driver in the class to finish every race he started.

In his rookie season, Andrew Georgiadis finished second while Ramu Farrell won the most races, and claimed third for the season.

All Porsche Michelin Sprint Challenge Australia Series awards will be presented on Saturday night in the series’ awards night in Sydney.