Michels and Askews Open SIERDC Season with Levels Victories

ROUND 1 · LEVELS RACEWAY, TIMARU · 19 SEPTEMBER 2026

Levels played host to a pair of One-Hour races for 2026, with each providing close-quarter battles, late-race drama and notable performances from seasoned endurance veterans and newcomers to the SIERDC series alike.

Grant and Cole Askew on their way to victory in the Class 4/5 one-hour race. Photo: Richard Opie

Askews Take Class 4/5 Honours

Grant and Cole Askew claimed victory aboard their VW Golf TCR in the Class 4/5 one-hour race after a hard-fought battle at the front with SIERDC newcomer Zach Ming — also pedalling TCR machinery, in the form of Audi’s RS3 LMS.

Following a debut in the NIERDC series, Ming made his first-ever racing appearance in the South Island, proving a force to be reckoned with. Challenging the Askews for the lead throughout the duration, Ming coming within a couple of car lengths of an overtake on the final lap before brake lock up led to minor contact with the Askew VW.

Both cars continued, with the Askews taking the win and Ming crossing the line second on his series debut.

The Askews’ race wasn’t without its challenges, with a radio issue during their driver change costing valuable pit-lane time. A Safety Car period also compressed the field midway through the race, eroding their lead and setting up a chase to the line.

Conley Webley secured third overall in the BMW Z4, after a consistent drive moving through the field in the closing stages. Ultimately, Webley’s momentum enabled him to take advantage of a late-race issue for Rob Gjaja and his wild little Lotus, who had held third for much of the race.

“I’m absolutely stoked with that. I didn’t think I was going to get it.”
Conley Webley

Warren Walker took the Class 5 win in his Honda Civic after starting from the rear of the grid. Photo: Richard Opie

In Class 5, Warren Walker took the class win in his Honda Civic after starting from the rear of the grid, followed by co-drivers Andrew Bartlett and Andrew Kitching in their similarly specced Honda Integra.

Pos	Driver(s)	Car
1	Grant & Cole Askew	VW Golf TCR
2	Zach Ming	Audi RS3 LMS
3	Conley Webley	BMW Z4

One Hour, Class 4 & 5 — overall. Class 5: 1st Warren Walker (Honda Civic), 2nd Andrew Bartlett / Andrew Kitching (Honda Integra).

Michels Starts Title Campaign with Victory

Reigning champion Jordan Michels began his bid for a third consecutive SIERDC championship with victory in the Class 1, 2 and 3 one-hour race.

Starting on the front row alongside pole-sitter Hugh Gardiner, qualifying times promised a tight battle between the two front-runners. Any chance of a contest between the bellowing V8 Mustang and howling Porsche was dashed on the green light run into Turn 1, with Paul Kelly locking up the rears in his Porsche, spinning into Gardiner and putting both cars out of the running.

Michels would build a steady lead throughout the remainder of the One-Hour, leading home the Class 3 McLaren Artura of Wei Zhou and Josh Bethune — the latter taking over from Zhou and showing the skills that have made him a winner in Formula Ford and Toyota GR86 machines with scintillating lap times — while Oliver Gibbons brought his Porsche 992 GT3 Cup car home in third overall.

Michels’ race was far from straightforward, with an engine issue requiring some management in the latter stages.

“It was a bit stressful towards the end. We were down on a lot of power and running like a tractor.”
Jordan Michels

Oliver Gibbons finished third overall in what was his first-ever motor race. Photo: Richard Opie

Gibbons’ third place proved a standout performance of the race. Following a mechanical issue that curtailed his ability to qualify, Gibbons started off the back of the grid in what was his first-ever motor race.

Asked whether starting from the back was enjoyable, Gibbons summed it up: “It was f*****g awesome.”

Barry Moore produced an impressive recovery drive, moving from the back of the grid to finish sixth overall and second in Class 3 — something of a giant-killing performance from the hot-rodded VW Golf TCR.

Class	First	Second	Third
Class 1	Jordan Michels	Oliver Gibbons	Garry Derrick
Class 2	Blake Knowles	Michael Nel / Taylor Bryant	Nick Wright
Class 3	Wei Zhou / Josh Bethune	Barry Moore	Michael Bushell

One Hour, Class 1, 2 & 3 — class results.

Watch Round 1 in Full

Round 1 was streamed live in full by The Pits TV.

NEXT ROUND

Round 2 — Ruapuna

3 October 2026

The series now heads to Ruapuna for Round 2 — and the first three-hour race of the season.

The endurance field will see the return of the GT cars, alongside strong representation from the smaller classes, setting the scene for a very different challenge as teams take on three hours of racing, strategy and pit stops.

Championship standings are kept up to date on the points table.

Photography: Richard Opie