Speed and Custom

ANT'S BACK ON THE TRACK!

Hey team!

Back on a plane again, winging it to the GC for this weekend’s V8 Supercar Gold Coast 600 race event. Yeah boy!

How’d my recent 2015 Bathurst event go you ask? Absolutely hopeless unfortunately L I don’t know if you saw but this year’s event will be remembered for several massive, massive accidents which wasn’t good. My mate Chaz Mostert whom you may remember raced with me a couple of times in NZ in the V8 Supertourers had a massive shunt on the Friday which left him in hospital with several broken bones. For me personally, it was such a frustrating event! We showed real good speed but ended up with nothing to show for it disappointingly.

I was on double duties for this year’s Bathurst event racing in round #6 of our V8 Supercar Development Series and also in the big Bathurst 1000 with Super Black Racing. Firstly the Development Series car; we had a pretty disrupted few practice sessions with several car issues but managed to put the car on the second row of the grid in qualifying in 4th position. For our one and only 250km race, I ran strongly in 4th place for most of the race and was challenging for that final podium position before a puncture to our right front tyre coming through the fastest part of the track put us out of the race! Gutted!

In the Super Black car in the main race our prep leading up had been pretty good. Andre managed to qualify the car in 12th position and we ran in the top 15 for the duration of our race. I hoped in the car at about lap 15 and was in the car through until lap 35 until I found the fence thanks to some ol mate behind me. Whilst battling for a pass, a car behind me misjudged his exit out of the first turn and hit my left rear corner of the car. The hit was sufficient enough to spin me out into an awaiting concrete wall for which the damage was too severe to continue.

Two non results in two races at the biggest race weekend of the year! No good!

On a more positive note, I was invited along to the annual Burger Fuel purple awards the Wednesday following Bathurst. It was my first purple awards and definitely ranks as a highlight of my relationship over the years with the big BF. Meeting the folks behind the scenes, the many BF franchisee owners and importantly recognising their own and BF’s success made for an awesome night. Thanks BF.

Looking ahead, pretty pumped for this weekend’s event. The track is through the streets of Surfers and basically runs along the beach – choice. Race and then a surf!? Hopefully our results are more successful than our Bathurst results. I’ll certainly be doing my best! And a trip to the Mermaid Beach Burger Fuel joint!

Thanks for all the support, come say hi if you’re around at the track over the weekend.

Cheers, AP.