The 2026 Rubber Craft Australian Championship finished at The Bend Motorsport Park on 21–23 August. Brock Gilchrist takes the Cooper Class title and Andrew Mills the Unlimited Class.
Gilchrist finishes on 178 points to Josh Mills on 166, with Trent Spencer third on 134. Andrew Mills takes Unlimited on 180 from Brayden Larkin on 107 and Gregg Chesterfield on 106.
Cooper: settled on the last lap
Josh Mills came into the round twenty points down. He won the first three Cooper races and set the class fastest lap in each one, cutting the gap to eight points before the final race.
Mills led that race with Gilchrist behind him. On the last lap Gilchrist went down the inside into turn five, took the lead and held it to the flag, winning by 0.363 seconds and taking the fastest lap. Gilchrist only needed third to win the title.
Unlimited: Andrew Mills closes it out
Andrew Mills came in with a big points lead and finished second, third, third and third across the weekend. That was enough to take the title.
Craig Lindsell won three of the four Open races and went from 22 points to 100, finishing fifth overall. James Campbell set the fastest lap of the weekend at 2:06.0769 and won the finale, ending the year fourth on 104.
Queensland is still live
Two rounds of the Rubber Craft Queensland State Championship remain: Queensland Raceway on 19–20 September, then Morgan Park on 6–8 November.
Gilchrist leads the Queensland Cooper Class on 293 from Josh Mills on 240. In Unlimited, Gregg Chesterfield leads on 265 with Anthony Elliott and Brayden Larkin level on 190.
The round ran as part of an eighteen-car combined Mini field, with eight SuperMini Challenge entries alongside South Australian and Victorian competitors.
Congratulations to Brock and Andrew, and thanks to everyone who made the trip to The Bend.