Will Exton and Jack Johnson’s first season in Monochrome GT4 Australia reached a new level at Hidden Valley Raceway earlier this year as the pair secured a maiden Silver-Cup victory in the series.
The pair joined the series at the start of the season aboard the #114 Team Soutar Motorsport McLaren Artura GT4 and have enjoyed a strong rookie year despite a number of mixed results throughout the first four rounds.
Having already shown their potential with a podium at the season opener at Phillip Island - before a penalty dropped them down to fourth - the pair finally managed to convert their pace into a breakthrough victory during the historic visit to Darwin in July.
The result made Exton and Johnson the sixth different Silver Cup race-winning combination this season and provided a significant boost to their confidence as they look to finish their debut campaign strongly.
“I knew we had the pace to win after getting on the podium at Phillip Island, despite ultimately being classified fourth,” Exton said.
“We knew everything just had to line up, and at Darwin it definitely did. Jack did a great job, the team did a great job and we all got it done.
“It was very rewarding and it has definitely fuelled the fire. We want some more, and another win would be a great way to finish the season.”
For Exton, the victory was also a reward for the work put in by the entire Team Soutar Motorsport operation since the pair made their Monochrome GT4 Australia debut.
“It’s a massive credit to the whole team - the engineers, the mechanics and everyone involved,” Exton added.
“I’m really grateful to Team Soutar Motorsport and all my backers who have helped me get this far.
“Every time we go out, we’re working to get better, and the car keeps getting better as well, so everything is ticking along nicely.”
Johnson shared Exton’s sentiments, with the Darwin victory providing confirmation that the pair’s development throughout their first campaign in the series was heading in the right direction.
“It’s a pretty good feeling to get your first win in a category like GT4,” Johnson said.
“It shows that we’re not in there just for fun we’re there to do a job. We’ve got sponsors that want results and the team obviously wants results as well, so proving that we’re capable of doing that helps our confidence massively.
“It’s a big step for both of our futures and hopefully we can get some more wins in the following races.”
While the pair entered the season knowing that a championship challenge was unlikely to be their immediate focus, their victory has left them with plenty to build on as they look towards the future, with Johnson believing the experience gained throughout 2026 can provide a strong foundation for an even bigger challenge next season.
“We all go in thinking we can win, but the competition is strong,” Johnson explained.
“We knew it was going to be challenging, and maybe a win wasn’t going to come this early, but we were hoping for something in the final few rounds.
“We put ourselves in a good position, qualified well and drove to the best of our ability, so it was great to get it done.”
Sitting seventh on the Silver Cup standings and 56 points off the lead, the Team Soutar Motorsport duo remain an outside chance of challenging for the Silver Cup title with more than 100 points still available across the remaining two rounds.
Monochrome GT4 Australia continues next weekend at the Shannons SpeedSeries’ LIQUI MOLY GT Festival Sydney, which takes place at Sydney Motorsport Park on 18-20 September.
Tickets to the penultimate round of the season can be purchased via speedseries.com.au/tickets