Supercheap Auto Bathurst 1000 Wildcard – Test Day #
Craig Lowndes – Car #888
“Today’s test was solely about finalising everything before we arrive at Bathurst. Both Test #1 and Test #2 were all about the ergonomics and getting Declan (Fraser) and I comfortable with everything, as well as getting us to gel and work together in a sense of understanding the setup, the car, what it wants, what it needs and how we read it. Today was all about giving the car a compete run, a systems check and making sure that everything works the way we need it to work. We’re going to be positioned at pit entry this year at Bathurst, so we were making sure our radio communications from the garage to the car are short and sweet, because as drivers we won’t have a lot of time to prepare to get out of the car for a driver change. This test day is the end chapter of the book before we head to Bathurst. The car has been working really well. Roland (Dane, Team Manager) is his usual self, making sure we’re millimetre perfect, whether that’s us pulling up in the pit bay, or whether it’s the brake pad changes or our refuelling pit stops. It’s nice to have him at the helm – he knows what we need to do outside of the car and I know what to do inside of it, so hopefully we come away from today with all of the boxes ticked. I’m also really excited to get to Bathurst to reveal our livery in front of all of our fans. I think it’s a unique way to get people interacting with the team and the event itself. I think Supercheap Auto should be very proud of what they’ve achieved and what we’re going to reveal because it really does encapsulate the fan base and what we stand for.”
Declan Fraser – Car #888
“We’ve been finalising a lot of things at our final test day before we arrive at The Mountain, and it’s been very beneficial. We’ve completed a lot of fuel-saving runs which is something I haven’t worked on before. At the last two test days, we focussed on our driver changes which was another new thing for me to learn, and today as we edge closer to Bathurst, the team decided that now was the right time to practice our fuel saving techniques and what it takes to make sure these cars last the distance. Craig (Lowndes) and Romy (Mayer, Race Engineer) have been super helpful, as well as RD (Roland Dane, Team Manager). We’ve been chipping away at our program all day and overall, it’s been a great day. I’m so excited to finally get to Bathurst. There’s just under a week until we get there to launch our livery in front of a huge amount of fans and Supercheap Auto Club Members, and it’s going to be pretty special to be able to share this with them – it’s going to be a super event.”
