Reigning Porsche Paynter Dixon Carrera Cup Australia champion and current Porsche Mobil 1 Supercup driver Harri Jones will return to the Australian one-make championship in October. He will race in familiar colours with a new team.

Jones currently lives and races in Europe. He competes in the Porsche Mobil 1 Supercup with BWT Lechner Racing and in Porsche Carrera Cup Germany with Scherer Sport PHX. He will come home for the Bathurst 1000 and the Gold Coast 500. For the first time, the Queenslander will race under his own banner, Jones Motorsport.

Long-standing partners Hastings Deering and MacKellar Group are backing the new team.

Jones said Bathurst and the Gold Coast were the "two events I always look forward to most" on the Carrera Cup Australia calendar. He said he was excited to return as reigning champion and "to expand our team," and he credited his partners for making it possible.

He said the intensity of the Supercup and Carrera Cup Germany had helped him grow considerably.

"My time in Europe so far has been incredible," he said. He described joining "the best teams in Porsche one-make racing worldwide." Jones said he had "developed so much as a racing driver" and was confident he could put that experience to use back home.

MacKellar Group and Hastings Deering were key to Jones's 2022 championship and have stayed with him through his European debut. Jones thanked both for supporting him through "this next phase of my racing career." This is his fifth year with MacKellar Group and his second with Hastings Deering. He said he was excited to race on home soil in front of "my partners, friends and family."

Jason Smith, Executive General Manager – Resource Industries at Hastings Deering, said: "We are extremely proud to continue our partnership with Harri Jones." He added that Jones "embodies the qualities and values" the company stands for.

MacKellar Group has supported Jones since his Porsche debut in 2019. "As MacKellar Group extends its support to Harri Jones for another exhilarating season," said chairman Duncan MacKellar, "Together, we drive towards excellence."

Jones is classified as a rookie in both European championships. He has taken five rookie podiums and several top-five outright finishes so far.

The Bathurst 1000 runs from 5 to 8 October, followed three weeks later by the Gold Coast 500 from 27 to 29 October.

Sources: jonesmotorsport.com.au