BIG GRIDS, compelling racing an increasingly competitive championship battle are drawing more eyeballs than ever to the Porsche Paynter Dixon Carrera Cup Australia in 2023. 

The championship has seen a significant increase in viewing audiences this year, both on the series’ extensive TV package on Fox Sports, Kayo Sports and the Seven Network, but also on series-owned digital channels as well.

The news comes off the back of a record-breaking Repco Bathurst 1000 weekend which was the most-viewed Carrera Cup round of at least the last five seasons.

The Bathurst round reached more than 4 million people in total across practice, qualifying and three races.

This includes an average national audience of 516,000 people watching Sunday morning’s Repco Bathurst 1000 curtain raiser, peaking at 1.026 million nationally.

An even larger national audience of 544,000 people watched Race two on Fox and the Seven Network around Australia on Saturday, making it the most viewed Carrera Cup race in the last five years.

Six rounds into the championship, broadcast audiences are up 64% on the same point of last season, with two blockbuster rounds at the Boost Mobile Gold Coast 500 and VAILO Adelaide 500 to come – both events featuring coverage on free-to-air and Subscription TV.

Consumption of Porsche Motorsport Australia content has also increased online with a 25% increase in followers and a more than 87% increase in audience reach this year compared to 2022.

On track, the competition has been as competitive as ever with the championship recording six different winners from the six rounds contested this year. 

It’s just the fourth time in series’ history there have been six different winners in six consecutive rounds, while the last time there were seven winners from seven rounds was in 2014. 

The Bathurst event could also turn out to be pivotal in the championship battle with McElrea Racing’s Jackson Walls scything championship leader Callum Hedge, who races for Team Porsche NZ / Earl Bamber Motorsport.

Hedge’s Equity-One Professional class points lead down to just six heading into the final six races while the top five drivers remain in title calculations heading to the Gold Coast at the end of October.

Meanwhile, the SP Tools Pro-Am championship is even more competitive with the top three drivers – Sam Shahin, Adrian Flack and Dean Cook – now covered by just 44 points heading to the Gold Coast.

The Porsche Paynter Dixon Carrera Cup Australia Championship resumes at the Gold Coast 500 on October 27-29, while the Porsche Michelin Sprint Challenge Australia returns to the circuit this weekend at The Bend Motorsport Park in South Australia.

BARRY HAY – Motorsport Manager, Porsche Cars Australia

“We’re surfing a wave at the moment and to get the validation that people are watching and engaging with our championship is such a good thing for our partners, but especially for our teams and drivers,” Hay said.

“Bathurst was an incredible weekend for the championship and we had thousands of people coming through the paddock every day.

“We have a great relationship with the team at Supercars TV who are working really hard on making the on-air product as good as it can be for us, and not just the main game.

“It’s a world class product that is the envy of other one make championships around the world, so we’re thrilled lots of people are watching.

“We’ve also worked hard on our own channels, and with our partners at AirTime Media, to ramp up our video content this year which has been very successful in drawing more people into our product.

“We’re not stopping here – We still have four rounds to go between the two series and it looks like both are going to finish with a bang. We can’t wait.”