Will, you were back on the Gold Coast racing for the first time since 2019 – just how enjoyable was that?
It was magic, just being back on the GC for an iconic race and having people hanging out watching, from their balconies and the grandstands once again. The Sun was out after a few tough months in QLD with wild weather and we got to showcase what people love about living on the Gold Coast. To sleep in your own bed on a race weekend is a real privilege too! It was great for our team as well, we are a Gold Coast based operation so all of our crew got to experience the same after some long and hot days – working hard.
It was a great start to the round topping Practice 1, how did this set the tone for what was to come?
We were just really focused early on about having a good weekend, after a really tough Bathurst – we wanted to get right to it and although we topped practice we were just looking at the little adjustments that could be made to help us in race pace, where it really matters. It is always good for your confidence early though, knowing you are there and abouts with your pace to have a go for the days to come.
Walk us through Saturday, a Shootout and P4 in the first Race…
It is always great getting a chance to have a lap of a track to yourself in a shootout and unfortunately we had tried some things with the brakes/setup and it just didn’t work. Compounded with a small mistake on my part which pushed us back on the starting grid so we had a battle in front of us from there. Being further back in the pack you always take some hits in the early racing which hurt us in the opening laps trying to get track position and some clear air. We had a challenging pitstop with things not quite going to plan but everyone kept fighting back hard and we were able to preserve the tyres well and grab an unlikely P4 from where we had to work our way back from.
Sunday provided a front row start against SVG after a great shootout lap, the fans were riding every bump – what was it like in the car?
Firstly, I was just glad to see everyone was okay after a massive incident in the Sunday Race. You never like to see fire on a race track and the teams and the sportsmanship after a scary incident was a credit to the sport and it’s always a big relief for my fellow drivers knowing everyone was okay in it.
The shootout result was a great one in the end as there was an issue on the out-lap causing some flat spots on the rear tyres after a lockup. I had to work as hard as I could to salvage a good time and it was a strong one in the end getting us to the front row. It was a wild start to the race with all of us fighting for track position, I battled as hard as I could but there was a tyre and pace advantage with the T8 car clearly and as soon as SVG got past he cleared us by a few seconds which we couldn’t respond to. It was nice to finish up with a podium to take something away from the weekend for the crew who all worked hard and to know all the spent calories counted for something!
Adelaide up next, also for the first time since 2019. What are you looking forward to about it?
An Adelaide return is just great for the sport as it is a big fan base down there who love their racing and it is on a track we all love racing on. We want to improve on our recent results and continue to show the pace we have that has won races and gotten pole positions throughout 2022. Everyone at our team is so motivated to try and take the top step once more before the season is out. If you are getting to the track for the event, make sure you check out the Killers on Saturday Night as well – it is really cool to see big, live acts supporting our category. Hope to see you there!
Will’s Wrap is proudly supported by:
imar, Insurance for Tradies: https://www.imar.com.au/
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