Team CoolDrive Ready For UBET Perth Super Sprint30 Apr, 2015 After the longest break yet of the season, the crew at Lucas Dumbrell Motorsport have been working extremely hard to prepare both cars for the UBET Perth SuperSprint this weekend in Western Australia. While CoolDrive #3 Commodore driver Tim Blanchard is only making his second V8 Supercars Championship appearance at Barbagallo Raceway, he has had plenty of experience in the Dunlop Series. Blanchard finished 5th overall in 2012 MW Motorsport, in an ex – FPR FG Falcon. He had much success in his Formula Ford in Perth, placing 2nd in 2007 to James Moffat. Nick Percat is also familiar with Perth’s unforgiving track, where he made his first V8 Supercar start at Barbagallo in 2014 driving the Coates Hire Commodore run by Walkinshaw Performance. He has had success there in the Dunlop Series too, winning a race in 2012. The last round at Symmons Plains proved there is still plenty for LDM to improve on after Nick Percat finished 17th and Tim Blanchard 20th for the round. Driver Quote Board Tim Blanchard #3 – Team CoolDrive “Similar to Symmons Plains, Barbagallo is a very short track meaning the times are always very close. The exit of turn 6 is very crucial to your overall lap time as well as providing a great passing opportunity at turn 7. “Tyre wear is always a major talking point at this event, given the limit on tyres, I think we will see some interesting racing as people struggle for tyre life or try risky tyre strategies. “We have made a few upgrades to the car for this weekend, which we are hoping will provide an improved performance. Unfortunately there is no quick fix but I am confident we are heading in the right direction. “The team have used the break between events very well, as I think we will see a much improved LDM both on track and off track this weekend.”
Nick Percat #222 – Team Repair Management Australia “I have spent a lot of time at the LDM workshop over the long break. The car has had a complete rebuild since the last event in Tasmania and the crew found a long list of issues that needed to be addressed, so they’ve been working on sorting all those out before Perth. “Having said that, I have to give a huge thanks to my team for the work they did just to get me on the grid at Tasmania. They had literally less than a week between receiving a rolling chassis to get it race ready and on the track in Tassie. A massive effort! The good news is I will now stay in that car for the rest of the season. “I am looking forward to getting back in the #222 Repair Management Australia car this weekend at Barbagallo, I’ve certainly had some ups there and downs, including a much publicised stoush with Paul Morris in 2011. “Our aim for this round is a top 15 finish, which I think is definitely achievable. The main challenge will be tyre degradation. You can lose four seconds a lap depending on the condition of your tyres. “You feel like you’re walking on eggshells almost from the first lap trying to protect them. If you don’t get three of the four corners 100 percent right, then you’ll be slow." |
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