Paddon wins action-packed Race 1 at Phillip Island
- Radical Cup Australia
- Apr 5
- 3 min read
The battle between East and West is well and truly alive, with Peter Paddon surviving a number of tense moments and a penalty to take the first win of the year in Race 1, ahead of pole-sitter Cooper Cutts in second and Chris Reindler in third.
Elbows were out from the word go, with Paddon and Cutts running side-by-side and Terry Knowles also trying to get a look in as the leaders made their way through Turn One. While the two front-runners made it through unscathed, a number of cars weren’t so lucky — including the #68 Ausnets of Knowles and the #15 Volante Rosso Motorsport RSX driven by Nick Lory — who found themselves off the track and down the order. Paddon held on to the lead as the field completed the first lap and settled in for the first 25-minute race of the weekend.
Knowles, who started from the second row of the grid, recovered impressively, gaining nine positions to finish inside the top 10. Meanwhile, Radical's newcomer and WA karting ace Ruairidh Avern made it through the lap one fray to run a clean race and finish just off the podium in fourth. Likewise, Bradley Russell was the highest-placing AM-class driver, making up several positions over the 14 laps to round out the top five after starting ninth.
Cutts kept the pressure on Paddon throughout the race, setting the fastest lap of the session in the process and twice attempting a pass for the lead. The first time, as the leaders came into lapped traffic midway through, and the second with only moments to go.
On his second attempt, Cutts made a late-race move for the lead coming into Turn One but ran wide after light contact with Paddon as the pair entered Turn Two. After a trip through the gravel, Cutts re-entered the track in third behind Reindler, with the pair now 10 seconds off the pace. Paddon received a five-second penalty for the incident.
Mark Cirillo brought the #527 Arise Racing entry home in sixth in what was only his second Radical race, ahead of Adam Naccarata (7th), Knowles (8th), Warwick Morris (9th), and Stephen Champion (10th).
Earlier in the day in qualifying, Radicals were again the pioneers in blustery conditions, with the field taking their time to get tyres up to temperature after 7mm of rain overnight. Paddon was the first to set a representative time of 1:32.1982, which he surpassed twice more before Cutts edged him out with a 1:30.6248 effort. Both then headed into the pits to reset.
Not only did Cutts claim the first pole position of the year, but he also secured the first Gary’s Motorsport Tyres Pole Award, a new-for-2025 $250 cheque that will be awarded at each round.
With around two minutes to go, a red flag was flown for two cars that found themselves off the track, cutting the session short and leaving Paddon unable to finish his attempt to reclaim the top spot.
It was incredibly tight at the top of the pack, with just 0.0184s separating the two front-runners, and Knowles only another three-tenths behind Paddon.
Knowles wrapped up last season on a high, finishing third overall in the championship and topping an impressive field of AM drivers to grab third on the starting grid and a new PB in the process. Jim Hernandez — competing in a new XXR this year — and Russell also both set new PBs during the 30-minute outing.
Josh Hunt spent a brief time in the purple to qualify the #15 Volante Rosso Motorsport entry he’s sharing with Lory in fourth, and Bryce Moore brought the #28 Lance East Exotics SR3 XX home fifth fastest ahead of Race 1.
Round 1 of the 2025 First Focus Radical Cup Australia concludes tomorrow, Sunday 6 April, with Race 2 at 9:50 AM AEST, ahead of the 50-minute endurance Race 3 at 3:00 PM AEST.
You can watch Race 2 on 7plus, while Race 3 will be broadcast live on 7mate and 7plus as part of the Shannons SpeedSeries GT Festival at Phillip Island.
