1700 We finally had a chance to chat to the guys to see how their days went, here’s what they said:
Jamie Whincup – Car #1
“I made a mistake, I was pushing hard and I was up on that lap, then I just pushed a little bit too hard on the least forgiving corner. I was too wide and it bit me hard. There is a lot of damage to the car, more damage than I’ve seen in a long time on Car 1. The main priority now is to get it out for tomorrow but I think it’s 50/50 at this stage. We’re just doing an analysis at the moment. The chassis looks okay – if the chassis and the bird cage are both okay then we have a chance but if they’re bent then we are in big trouble so the next half hour is going to tell the story. Prior to that, everything was okay although we’re nowhere near refined at this stage, it’s such a new model car and the refinements aren’t good. I’m struggling in the high speed corners due to the new car. It’s a bit foreign to me but that’s no excuse. I call myself a professional and hitting the wall like that isn’t too professional.”
Shane van Gisbergen – Car #97
“Practice was going good, the car felt nice from the start and we just chased it all day trying to get a good tune up. It felt always fast but we just were just learning what the new aerodynamics required around a track like this. Qualifying went alright; a good session, we were in amongst it the whole time and ended up at the front. It was sad to see our teammate (Jamie Whincup) unfortunately have some issues, but the most important thing is that Jamie is okay. We can go ahead and fix that tonight hopefully.”
1610 Oh dear… 20mins sure is enough time to have both the highs and lows. SVG came out of qualifying in P1 with 1:20.2467 (woohoo) and J-Dub comes out with a not so flash car… But P9 (1:20.2467) so he’s still in the Top Ten Shootout (the silver lining).
Not what we like to see. Time to crack on with a big night ahead ☹️🤭 #VASC #RedBullHolden pic.twitter.com/AFeIAqmq7W
— Red Bull Holden (@redbullholden) March 2, 2018
1550 Time to qualify!
We’re ready to qualify! 👊🏼 #VASC #RedBullHolden pic.twitter.com/V1thkDAsrw
— Red Bull Holden (@redbullholden) March 2, 2018
1450 But first… Say “Cheese!”… 2018 Official Class Photo time
2018 Class Photo 😁 📸 #RedBullHolden #VASC pic.twitter.com/QWwFao642D
— Red Bull Holden (@redbullholden) March 2, 2018
1230 The chequered flag has been waved in Practice 2 and we have come out with some pleasing results; SVG in P2 (1:20.3896) and J-Dub goes P16 (1:21.1977). Next up is Qualy…
1150 Our second practice session and final chance to get everything sorted ahead of our first qualifying session.
1025 Practice 1 complete with some pleasing results. J-Dub comes out on top in P1 (1:20.1622) and SVG not far behind in P4 (1:20.6734).
0953 Car #97 comes in and the crew work on the car quickly.
SVG is currently P1 with a best lap in Practice 1. Into the pits for some quick changes #VASC #RedBullHolden pic.twitter.com/L2Y5jN1Nis
— Red Bull Holden (@redbullholden) March 1, 2018
0945 Practice 1 is underway…
0935 We’re ready to go, let’s do this 2018
0700: Well peeps… Here we are again at the beginning of yet another Supercars Championship season. Can you believe it? This is where we will be on track today…
