Senna headlines Melbourne GP support.

Bruno Senna, the nephew of three-time Formula One world champion Ayrton, headlines a competitive 25-car Australian F3 field contesting the support races at this weekend's Fosters Australian Grand Prix in Melbourne.

With the 2006 championship series just one round old, a record field has entered for the non-points scoring event at Albert Park with a host of drivers ready to try and impress the F1 elite they hope will be watching from pit-lane. However, current points leader Ben Clucas will step aside for the meeting, allowing Senna to take over the John Deere-supported Team BRM Dallara for a one off appearance 'down under'.

Senna comes to Australia with a season of British F3 under his belt, and should prove a strong benchmark for the local competition before he heads back to Britain for a second campaign with the Raikkonen Robertson Racing team.

A host of local talent will be aiming to unseat the Brazilian driver, however, with a number of drivers taking some home ground advantage into the meeting.

Michael Trimble will be one such contender, the Astuti Motorsport driver one of the key championship protagonists this season with his Melbourne-based team running on 'home' soil this weekend. The 21-year old missed last year?EUR(TM)s AGP event in what was his inaugural F3 season, but will line up in a Renault-powered Dallara this weekend, hoping that the brand's recent F1 form rubs off on the Astuti Motorsport team.

"It wasn't good to miss last year's event, so I'm really looking forward to getting out there this year," Trimble admitted, "We struggled at [round one at] Wakefield Park and, since then, we have changed heaps of things on the car. We had a four-hour debrief after Wakefield with Sam Astuti and my engineer, and we actually learnt a lot and found out some different options we can take with the car. We@ve now got some good momentum heading into the weekend and I'm really looking forward to going well."

Another looking to capitalise on some local support this weekend will be Leanne Tander, who drives for the Melbourne-based Fleetcare Tander Sport outfit that she and husband Garth established throughout the off season. Tander posted a strong performance at the opening championship round in early March, and will be looking to build on the momentum that presently sees her sitting in fifth place in the championship standings.

Fellow Victorian driver Lauren Gray will join Tander on the grand prix grid at the wheel of the Scud Racing-prepared Dallara F396 she drove to a pair of Trophy class victories at Wakefield Park. Gray and Tander's presence means that the F3 field this weekend will be one of the first ?EUR" outside the celebrity challenge - to feature two female drivers at the F1 event.

Tim Macrow will also be out for success at Albert Park, a podium run at Wakefield Park a month ago proving that, despite running an older car, the talented Victorian will be a contender this weekend. Macrow made his Australian F3 debut in his current car at the grand prix last season, and will be looking forward to putting a year's worth of development to the test this weekend. The 22-year old ?EUR" a perennial privateer who has recently struggled for funds ?EUR" has managed to raise the finances to compete at the biggest event of the year and hopes to impress potential sponsors.

"A lot of the sponsors that have come on board for this weekend will be in the stands watching us, so we are very keen to put on a good show," Macrow confirmed, "I really enjoy the circuit and, as last year was the first time that we had the new car and were still learning it, we will go much better this weekend."

Formula Ford racer Laurent Le Page looks set to make his F3 debut at the grand prix, steering a third car for Team BRM. He tested with the team during the off-season and impressed with his pace and general feedback, suggesting that, despite facing a major learning curve, he could be one of the surprises of the weekend.

Joining the BRM trio will be Jason Vince, another to have contested the Wakefield Park opener and looking to continue his development in the class. Vince, who has secured backing from Kings Transport for the event, will also sport the logos of the Shane Warne Foundation at the grand prix in an effort to promote the foundation to the large crowds expected over the four-day weekend.

The rookie ranks will be boosted by Formula Ford driver Wensley Carroll, who recently confirming his participation aboard a Piccola Scuderia entry. The Piccola outfit is a proven championship winning team and should give Carroll the best possible chance of a strong debut.

The 25-car field will again include a number of inter-class battles, with the National and Trophy fields flourishing this season and providing some close racing right throughout the pack.

After squaring off at Wakefield Park, National Class contenders Tim Berryman and Ricky Occhipinti will again go head to head this weekend. Occhipinti, who hails from Geelong, will be hoping that the form showed by local Geelong Cats AFL team in pre-season competition will spur him on during his attempt at grand prix 'premiership' glory.

Reigning Trophy champion Bill Maddocks returns to the fold this weekend, but faces a packed field, including veteran Brian Sampson ?EUR" the 1975 Bathurst 1000 winner ?EUR" who will return for his second shot at F3 action on the streets of Albert Park. The 71-year old raced a Rod Anderson-prepared car last year in what was his 51st anniversary of his first time competing at the famous Albert Park circuit.