Mount Gambier teenage racing sensation Jobe Stewart has come out of the gates firing in his Image Racing debut, winning the first round of the Dunlop Super3 Series season over the weekend at the Thrifty Newcastle 500.

Stewart, 18, won the first race on Saturday and placed second on Sunday putting him first overall for the round and in the lead for the Super3 championship.

“It feels great for my first time racing at that track and in these cars,” Stewart said.

“It was pretty special and there was actually a fair bit of competition there which was good so it’s a great start to the season.

“I was obviously trying my best but it’s just unexpected to do so well.”

The young driver said there was no secret to his debut win.

“I kind of studied a bit of in-car footage from previous years at the track and worked a little bit with the engineers on some data and stuff before I got there,” he said.

“Then when I got there there were two practice sessions on Friday which were both about 40 minutes long so I did a fair bit of laps into those as much as I could.”

The Image Racing driver was runner up to Cameron McLeod in Saturday’s first qualifying race which he said set the pace for the rest of the weekend.

“In that first qualifying session on Saturday I was second, but it was actually a pretty close gap to first so I knew I could race up there and try and get the win,” he said.

“Just try to stay close behind him and try and make a move where I could which worked out well.”

Stewart said he thinks McLeod will be one of his main competitors this season as well as Jett Johnson, Matthew McCutcheon and Ryan Gilroy.

“It’s good in my first season in the category to have a few guys up there in the front that I can race against and learn, because in these cars it’s a lot different racing then what I have previously done,” he said.

“It does [provide a challenge] because the car’s a lot faster to what I have previously driven.

“When you’re in a race you have to kind of position it a bit different if you want to go for an overtake or whatever.

“You kind of have to set it off a little bit different because the Newcastle streets get so tight there’s not really many places you can pass so you really have to think about it and set it up properly before you actually try and make a pass.”

Stewart managed to avoid a few pile ups during the weekend, coming out with no major damage to the car.

“I think the worst one was probably on Sunday just in that tight section there in the middle of the track,” he said.

“There was I think three or four cars that just got in the back of each other and I just managed to see the edge of them coming through the corner and just scraped past on the wall so I felt pretty lucky there.

“There were a few little marks on the car but that’s just to be expected.”

Stewart said he was feeling mixed emotions preceding the first race.

“I think the lead up to the weekend I was just more excited,” he said.

“Once you get there and everything starts happening it gets a bit more real, and the nerves start kicking in, especially ahead of those first practice sessions and the first race.

“When you’re pulling up to the grid on the first race to start that’s probably where the nerves are the highest but then once you start racing and the adrenaline kicks in I think that’s when the fun starts and you just get in the zone.

“There’s still nerves there because you want to do well and stuff but it’s a bit of a confidence booster after that first race.”

The young driver was supported by his dad and his girlfriend who were watching from the stands and his hometown nearly 1500km away.

“It’s actually pretty special because then they can come over after and congratulate me but also because it was on tv I had a fair bit of support as well from home,” he said.

“It was actually pretty great to have the support.

“It’s great when you come in from the track and you have people coming over to congratulate you and a few messages on your phone.

“It makes it a whole lot sweeter.”

Stewart said he will apply the same philosophy to his next race which will be the Perth SuperSprint on April 28-30.

“I’ll have a look at videos of previous years and stuff like that, same as what I did for this round,” he said.

“I think it’s a pretty small track over there so it should not be too difficult, but it’s got some pretty hard corners and stuff like that.

“I’ll just do a bit more studying and some homework for that and when I get there just try my best at practice and see what I can learn.

“Obviously I’ll try and do the best I can and work on myself and the car to make everything better with the team and stuff.

“If I cannot get the win or anything in the next round, I will just try and be as far up as I can to get the most points, that’d be the goal.”v