From the Nulon Racing Supercars to the PremiAir Hire Top Fuel Dragster, it was a big year for the PremiAir Racing team, with all signs pointing towards an even more positive 2024.
There is no doubt 2023 brought plenty of progress for the Gold Coast based team, and team boss Peter Xiberras is laser-focused on ensuring there is plenty more to come across the coming 12 months.
“What a year 2023 has been,” Xiberras reflects.
“After the madness of our 2022 debut season in Supercars which began just six weeks before the first event, we headed into 2023 having created a more solid base to work from, but also faced with a whole new challenge along with the rest of the Supercars pitlane with the Gen3 Supercars coming online.
“It is no secret the introduction of Gen3 has been complex, but as the season progressed I was exceptionally proud of how our team rose to the challenge and found a way forward.
“It was far from smooth sailing of course, not just for us but the entire pitlane, but we made a lot of big steps forward across the year as we continued to build our team and our resources in what is being proven time and time again to be an exceptionally competitive and intense championship.
“That progress is clear in the stats alone – in 2022, we enjoyed two Top Ten Shootouts and five top ten race finishes. In 2023, the Nulon Racing Camaros had no less than ten Top Ten Shootouts appearances and brought home 14 Top Ten race finishes.
“But it isn’t just in the stats that you can see our progress. As a working group, our team has lifted the bar time and time again when it comes to their own performance, and their commitment and dedication to what needs to be done both at the track and away from it is unwavering.
“Of course, while we all want more, I couldn’t be more proud of what our team has achieved this year and the work they are already putting in to make sure we can hit the ground running in the best possible way come the start of the new Supercars season in February of 2024.
“With the second year of Gen3, a stable line-up of talented drivers in Tim Slade and Jimmy Golding, a maturing and growing team, and strong leadership, I am confident there is much more success in our future – so watch this space.”
PremiAir Racing has also continued to compete in the national Top Fuel Drag Racing Championship across the year, with Xiberras and the PremiAir Hire Top Fuel Dragster coming oh-so-close to a third consecutive championship in June of this year.
“With a A-Final victory in Sydney in January and an A-Final runner-up in Perth in March, followed by a B-Final victory in Sydney in May, we headed to the 2022/2023 season finale equal second in the championship points and well in the frame to fight for what would have been our third consecutive Top Fuel title,” Xiberras explained.
“We did absolutely everything we could at that final round in Darwin, with the event held consecutively with the Darwin Supercars round, even bringing home the event A-Final victory.
“Unfortunately, with our championship rival Damien Harris being the A-Final runner-up, even with a perfect score at the finale it wasn’t enough to surpass the points buffer he had over us.
“Even so, we knew we had done everything we could – winning any of these events is incredibly difficult, so it is no small feat to come away with the runner-up spot in the title and by such a small margin.
“At the end of the day though, we are racers, and second isn’t enough – we want to win, we want to be number one, and our tilt at that third title is well underway now for the 2023/2024 title chase.”
The new season got off to a good start at the brand-new Dragway at The Bend in October, with more than 35,000 race fans pouring into the venue over its two days and PremiAir Racing bringing home 3rd place with a B-Final win.
“We absolutely cannot wait to pick up the title chase in January in Sydney over the 2024 Australia Day weekend, where hopefully we can back up our victory from the 2023 holding of that event with another big win,” Xiberras said.
Round two of the 2023/2024 NDRC Top Fuel Championship will be held across January 26 and 27 at Sydney Dragway. The Nulon Racing Supercars will then be on-track not long after, hitting Queensland Raceway for the Queensland teams pre-season test on February 5, ahead of the season-opening Bathurst 500 (February 23-25).
“As we get ready for the 2024 season, I want to take this opportunity to not only wish all of our valued partners and supporters a safe and happy holiday season, but also thank you all for your ongoing support and enthusiasm across the year that was 2023. Here is hoping we can bring home some big results for you next year!” Xiberras added.
