Avoiding Chaos at AusGP 🏎️

G’day guys,

The Australian Grand Prix is always one of the wildest events on the calendar and this year at Albert Park definitely delivered. Huge crowds, short races, plenty of chaos and a lot of learning for us with the Mobil 1 Optus Supra across the weekend.

We actually started the weekend on a really positive note in Race 4. The car felt pretty strong straight away and we were able to stay out of trouble, bringing the Mobil 1 Optus Racing Supra home in P5. It was a solid way to kick things off and a good sign that the pace was there early.

Race 5 started even better. I launched well off the line and settled into P4 early with Woody just ahead in third. We were working together nicely in those opening laps and it genuinely felt like we were right in the fight to help deliver Toyota its first Supercars podium.

Unfortunately things changed pretty quickly. I had contact from the same car twice, then from that point on the car had some damage and it was a tough run to the finish.

Even though it wasn’t our day on that side of the garage, it was a really cool moment for the team seeing Woody bring home Toyota’s first Supercars podium. A huge amount of work has gone into this program behind the scenes so that was a pretty special milestone for everyone involved.

Friday started early with qualifying and we showed good speed again, putting the car fourth on the grid for Race 6. The race itself was pretty chaotic with plenty of action around us. I was in a tight pack early battling for fourth and fifth before settling into a rhythm.

Tyre wear became a bit of a challenge midway through the race and we dropped back to sixth, but we were able to fight back late and make a move in the closing laps to grab a top five finish. Considering how much carnage there was around us, I can’t really complain with that.

Heading into the final race we started P12 and straight away it was absolute carnage into Turn 1. I had the best seat in the house watching it unfold and somehow managed to avoid the spinning cars ahead by millimetres.

Once the race settled down after the safety car, the goal was just to keep moving forward. We made a few solid passes and by the time the chequered flag came out we’d worked our way up to P8, which felt like a good recovery drive from where we started.

Although the results probably don’t show the full picture, I’m actually really happy with the improvements we made to the race car across the weekend. There were a few pretty hairy moments out there but the main thing is everyone walked away okay.

Now it’s full focus on the double header in New Zealand next month. The cars will head across the ditch soon and I’m really looking forward to racing in Christchurch for the first time.

Does that make me a rookie for that round?

Cheers,

Chaz