Harvey wins round on debut, sending title fight to The Bend

ROUND 4 of the 2025 First Focus Radical Cup Australia season proved to be a pivotal point in the fight for the series title, with debutant Mason Harvey racing to his maiden series round win, throwing a curveball in what has been a season-long battle between Cutts and Paddon.

Harvey’s two race wins on Sunday were only the second and third races so far of 2025 that haven’t been won by either of the two front-runners. Sunday’s two race wins and Saturday’s two podiums were more than enough for the newcomer to take first overall for the round.

Cutts’ outright second place sees the Arise Racing pilot slightly extend his series lead, while Paddon’s third place for the weekend ensures that the title fight once again goes down to the final round.

Jim Hernandez secured first place in the Challenge Class, ahead of Stephen Champion in second – a fitting present for the #34 Champion’s Racing/GWR driver on his 60th birthday – while Mark Cirillo and Dave Allan rounded out the class podium in third.

In Race 3, Paddon led the field into Turn 1, with Harvey and Ruari Avern in pursuit, while Cutts ran wide to the outside. Further back, Chris Reindler spun at Turn 2 following contact with Jim Hernandez, triggering a five-second penalty for the #23.

By lap two, Paddon began to stretch a margin over the chasing pack, with Cutts over six seconds behind as a dry line started to emerge on the damp Sandown surface. Clare, Hernandez and Terry Knowles went three wide battling for the AM/Challenge positions, while Brad Russell also made his presence felt. Knowles would go on to find himself stopped facing the wrong way on the track, effectively taking himself out of contention to fight for the class win, which went to Dave Allan in the #527.

Harvey was relentless in his pursuit of Paddon, pushing hard and showing no hesitation over the kerbs. He briefly took the lead before Paddon fought back, the two going side-by-side down the back straight.

A Safety Car bunched the field when Russell made contact with Clare and retired with left-front suspension damage. On the restart, Paddon led the field from Harvey, Avern, Cutts and Reindler – the latter also handed a five-second penalty for his role in the Lap 1 incident.

With one lap to go, Harvey dove down the inside at Turn 4, making slight contact and muscling past Paddon to claim the race win.

Paddon settled for second and valuable championship points, while Avern continued his consistent form, finishing third. Cutts struggled with pace throughout the session, settling for fourth, while Allan rounded out the top five.

In Race 4, Harvey backed up his earlier win, taking victory in challenging wet conditions.

Cutts started Race 4 from pole position, however, it would be Harvey who led the field into Turn 1 as Paddon tried to split the middle between the two.

By lap three, Harvey had pulled a 5-second lead as the two title contenders both found themselves down the order, with Paddon at the very back after an unforced error sent the defending champion into a spin. Cutts, meanwhile, also lost a number of positions on the opening lap, with the Arise Racing/Terry Cutts Racing driver finding himself running in the middle of the pack in P6.

Moore, Knowles, and Clare were beneficiaries of the early trouble for Paddon and Cutts, moving up the order as the Safety Car was called for Mark Cirillo, who was beached at the final chicane.

The title contenders both tried to capitalise on the bunched field at the restart, with Paddon needing to finish in front of Cutts to continue to chip away at the latter’s points lead, while Harvey led with Moore and Avern tucked in behind him. Knowles was also in the mix, splitting the pair and pushing Paddon down into seventh, where he looked to finish the race until a second unforced error saw the #1 spin into the barrier, ultimately limping home in eighth.

Moore went on to hold second to finish the race, while Clare had his best result of the season, finishing third outright and first in the AM/Challenge class. He was followed by Avern and Cutts, rounding out the top five.

Russell and Hernandez both struggled in the tricky conditions, both coming unstuck in separate incidents.

The focus now shifts to the final round of the season, where the title fight will unfold during Round 5 at Shell V-Power Motosport Park at Taliem Bend from 5 to 7 September.