Race formats locked in for S5000 Tasman Series

The formats for the seven races of the S5000 Tasman Series have been locked in ahead of the series debut in Sydney.

The formats for the seven races of the S5000 Tasman Series have been locked in. (S5000)

Drivers will contest three races in Sydney and four races at Bathurst for the $50,000 in prize money.

Qualifying will set the order for the opening race in Sydney, while race two will be a reverse grid of the top 75% finishers from race one.

A points system from qualifying and the first two sessions will set the order for the weekend's feature race.

At Bathurst, qualifying will set the grid for race four.

Race five will be a reverse grid of the top 75% from race four.

Race six will be a reverse grid of the top 50% from race five.

The final race of the series will be set based on a points system from all sessions across the week.

Championship points will be awarded in every session.

Qualifying will see ten points awarded for pole down to one point for tenth.

The first race each weekend is worth 30 points, with reverse grid races worth 20 points.

The winner of each feature race will be rewarded with 60 points.

The driver with the most championship points will receive the Tasman Cup, returning to motorsport for the first time in two decades with the blessing of Motorsport Australia and Motorsport New Zealand.

"The Sporting regulations for the S5000 Tasman Series are based very closely on the successful formats we had in place for the Gold Star championship earlier this year," said Liam Curkpatrick, S5000 Category Administrator.

"The only major change is the addition of an additional race to the program at Bathurst, Race 6, where we will reverse the top half of the grid from Race 5."

"The races where we reversed the top portion of the field were among the best of the season this year, so we wanted to ensure that continued, but we have also tried to minimize the impact on the Tasman Series standings by ensuring those races have less points on offer."

"The big-ticket races are the first of each weekend and then the final race at each round."

"We think the format is the best mixture of offering pure competition, giving competitive cars a chance to run at the front even if they don’t qualify there and offering plenty of entertainment for the many fans who will be watching."

"With the varied race formats, the driver who lifts the Tasman Cup will have absolutely earned it over two important qualifying sessions and seven races."