It was a mixed bag for the team at Tailem Bend, but at the end of the day, SVG claimed the round win and snagged a couple of podiums along the way – you’ve gotta be happy with those results!
Speaking with both drivers following the event there was an emphasis on searching for missing speed that will keep the team busy at Red Bull Ampol HQ heading into Winton.
“We got caught up in traffic for the first qualifying session today but then got it together in the second and gave ourselves an opportunity for a podium, but we just didn’t quite have the pace,” said JDub.
“We weren’t far off; we were third or fourth on pace and ran that sort of position all weekend. We didn’t make any luck, but it also didn’t fall our way.
“The incident on lap one of the first race, I zigged, I should have zagged. I got caught up with Anton (de Pasquale) with his broken engine in the second race which meant Shane was on me so then he got past.
“We just couldn’t take a trick this weekend and unfortunately didn’t get a podium, which is what we’re always aiming for. I’ll pull my finger out for the next one.”
On the other side of the garage, it was much the same feeling for Shane van Gisbergen and the #97 crew.
“It felt like a weird weekend overall, but it’s really good to get a couple of podium results today,” SVG said.
“To come out on top of the points and win the round is awesome, so we have to be happy about that. The last race today was full on.
“We tried something different in our pit stop; we changed our side tyres and Cam (Waters) changed his rears, and even though we had the car speed we just couldn’t get past him, and we had to settle for second.
“We had a really average qualifying again today, particularly the first qualifying session, but the guys have done a good job at trying different things with the cars.
“We’re still quite a way away with our qualifying results, but we’re always tweaking things and hopefully come out of the gates at Winton.”
The Winton SuperSprint will consist of another three sprint races, with the event held on 29-30 Mary.