Dylan o’keeffe

Ecstatic O’Keeffe Clinches Carrera Cup Title

An elated Dylan O’Keeffe has taken out the 2025 Porsche Paynter Dixon Carrera Cup Australia Championship, with a consistent run to fifth overall in the season finale at the BP Adelaide 500.

Qualifying did not go to plan for O’Keeffe, who landed the Dexion Porsche eighth on the grid for Races 1 and 2.

However, some shrewd strategic work from O’Keeffe’s GWR Australia team saw him pitting for wet tyres at the end of the formation lap for Race 1, just as it started to rain, and he subsequently improved to fifth place before the race was red-flagged due to a multi-car incident at Turn 8. Critically, O’Keeffe finished ahead of his main series rival, Harri Jones, to extend his points lead.

In Race 2, O’Keeffe profited from some first lap shenanigans to move up to fourth place before the Safety Car was called; again, the race was ultimately red-flagged and O’Keeffe was once more ahead of Jones, extending his advantage to a sizeable 55 points.

Thus, O’Keeffe only needed to be classified as a finisher in Race 3 to wrap up the championship, which he achieved with a conservative drive to seventh place.

“Qualifying didn’t go according to plan, but with the unpredictable nature of this year’s series, I knew anything could happen and we were still well and truly in the game – and sure enough, that’s how it played out,” O’Keeffe said.

“It wasn’t ideal having Races 1 and 2 shortened, but as it turned out, it worked to our advantage.

“In Race 3, I was running third in the early laps, but there was some pressure from behind and I decided to drop a few places and prioritise wrapping up the title, rather than risking contact with another driver.”

The championship victory gives O’Keeffe a long-awaited national motor-racing title, something he has pursued in multiple categories, and he said it’s satisfying to achieve it with the GWR Australia/RAM Motorsport squad.

“Not only is it my first national title, it’s also the first Carrera Cup title for GWR Australia – Garth and his team have won lots of titles in other categories, but this is one they’ve been chasing for a long time,” he said.

“Also, Mike Sheargold from RAM Motorsport had his own personal battle with bowel cancer a couple of years ago – for him to overcome that and now be a big part of this success is such a heart-warming story.

“Since I joined the team in 2022, we’ve worked together to improve the car, improve our race weekend processes and move closer and closer to the front of the pack; it’s a journey that’s taken four years, so to finally put together an entire season and bring home a championship is a huge reward to everyone.

“My partners, including Dexion, National Make Good Solutions, Tempur and ID Land have been generous with their support and an integral part of this championship, so a massive thank you to them as well.

“Finally, I have to recognise the unwavering support from my family – my Mum and Dad have been with me all the way, and have never stopped believing in me. This championship belongs to them as much as anyone,” O’Keeffe concluded.