2026 Season
Shakewell Racing — 2026 Gravel Rally Season
2026 is Shakewell Racing's first full season on gravel. After winning the Production 4WD class at Targa New Zealand in 2025, driver Michael Chora and co-driver Rachael Ferrante swapped tarmac trophies for loose stones — contesting rounds of the AMSAG Southern Cross Rally Series, the East Coast Classic Rally Series and the Australian Rally Championship (ARC) across New South Wales, Victoria, South Australia and Queensland in a classic 1995 Subaru Impreza.
The gravel debut came at the Rally of Bathurst in March (26th outright), followed by the Mitta Mountain Rally (16th) and the three-day Rally of the Heartland marathon in South Australia, where the pair finished 8th outright. June brought the AMSAG Bega Valley Rally (15th) and an Australian Rally Championship debut at the Narooma Forest Rally, where they came home 18th outright despite a failing clutch. Two mechanical DNFs — Mt Buller (turbo) and the Great Alpine Rally (engine) — were the low points, either side of a three-week trip to the Nürburgring for the legendary 24 Hour race.
Results so far
| Round | Date | State | Result |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mt Buller Sprint | 13 February | Victoria | Retired — turbo |
| Rally of Bathurst | 14 March | NSW | 26th outright |
| Mitta Mountain Rally | 21 March | Victoria | 16th outright |
| Great Alpine Rally | 28 March | Victoria | Retired — engine |
| Shannons Rally Heartland | 24-26 April | South Australia | 8th outright |
| Bega Valley Rally | 6 June | NSW | 15th outright |
| Narooma Forest Rally | 27 June | NSW | 18th outright |
2026 in pictures
Round by round
Mt Buller Sprint — 13 February, Victoria
Season opener in the alpine. ATR Round 1 — after Betsy dropped an engine days before.
Result: Retired — turbo
Rally of Bathurst — 14 March, NSW
The big one. Our first ever gravel rally.
Result: 26th outright
Mitta Mountain Rally — 21 March, Victoria
Week two on gravel. Building on Bathurst learnings.
Result: 16th outright
Great Alpine Rally — 28 March, Victoria
Back to tarmac after two weeks of gravel. Falls Creek.
Result: Retired — engine
Shannons Rally Heartland — 24-26 April, South Australia
Three-day marathon. 1,000km from home.
Result: 8th outright
Germany Trip — May-June, Nürburgring
Three weeks at the Nürburgring in the lead-up to the legendary 24 Hour race — German Police ride-along and a Ringfreaks collaboration.
Bega Valley Rally — 6 June, NSW
AMSAG Southern Cross round on the far South Coast. One of Australia’s oldest rallies.
Result: 15th outright
Narooma Forest Rally — 27 June, NSW
Our Australian Rally Championship round. Fast South Coast forest gravel.
Result: 18th outright
Still to come
- Rally of the Bay25 July · NSWBatemans Bay. Next up on the gravel calendar.
- Classic Queensland Rally15 August · QueenslandQueensland Rally Championship. Faster, more flowing gravel.
- Ada River Rally22 August · VictoriaNoojee forests. East Coast Classic Rally Series round (rescheduled from May).
- MSS Safety Rally Barossa29 August · South AustraliaBarossa Valley gravel. Back to South Australia.
- Snowy River Sprint12 September · VictoriaBuchan, deep in Gippsland. Most remote event.
- Rosewood Rally19 September · NSWAMSAG round at Rosewood. Short, sharp forest gravel.
- Imbil Rally3-4 October · QueenslandQueensland Rally Championship in the Imbil State Forest.
- Minidulla Rally10 October · NSWAMSAG round at Mogood on the NSW South Coast.
- Great Tarmac Rally23-25 October · VictoriaThe tarmac season finale. Marysville.
- Oberon Rally31 October · NSWAMSAG round at Black Springs, near Oberon.
- Rally of Canberra7 November · ACTGravel round in the ACT.
- Gippsland Rally20-22 November · VictoriaARC finale at Heyfield. The last gravel round of the year.