Team CoolDrive Superloop Adelaide 500 Recap
4 Mar, 2019
THE RECAP
It was a harsh debut for Macauley Jones, with the rookie getting a very turbulent start to the 2019 Virgin Australia Supercar Championship at the blistering hot, Superloop Adelaide 500 event.
Macauley has a super solid start to the weekend, continuously improving during practice then qualifying in 17th for his first race. This starting spot was ahead of all 2018 and 2019 rookies combined! On Saturday morning’s final practice session, Macauley made headlines for all the wrong reasons. Going into Turn 9 the brakes failed on the CoolDrive Supercar, sending Macauley into the tyre wall at a super-fast rate.
Macauley was able to walk away from the huge incident but the car would need extensive rear-end repairs to get it race ready. After assessing the damage back in the garage, the team knew Macauley would have to wait another day to get his first race of the season underway. The team burned the midnight oil, finally finishing repairs on the Team CoolDrive Supercar at 3:30 am. It was a mammoth effort by the team to complete the intensive repairs required, which was compared to Nick Percat’s accident at the Melbourne Grand Prix event in 2017.
Fans, teams and drivers alike were excited to see that the Team CoolDrive Supercar would be back on track for the final day of racing, with Macauley starting his first race from 21st. The excitement however, was short-lived when Macauley suffered mechanical issues early in the race, forcing him to pit. The team got him back out after 15 minutes, however he was several laps down so could do nothing but circulate and get to the finish line. An unfortunate start to the rookie's debut Supercar season.
For more on Team CoolDrive, LIKE the CoolDrive Auto Parts Page on Facebook and see photos and videos from the Superloop Adelaide 500 event.
THE RESULTS
Qualifying – Race One
Qualified: 17th // Provisional Pole Position: Scott McLaughlin
Top Ten Shootout - Pole Position: Fabian Coulthard
Race One – 250kms/78 Laps
Finished: DNS // Winner:
Qualifying – Race Two
Qualified: 21st // Provisional Pole Position: Scott McLaughlin
Top Ten Shootout - Pole Position: Scott McLaughlin
Race Two – 250kms/78 Laps
Finished: 23rd // Winner: Scott McLaughlin
CHAMPIONSHIP STANDINGS
1 – Scott McLaughlin - 300
2 – Shane Van Gisbergen - 258
3 – Jamie Whincup - 234
4 – Will Davison - 210
5 – Nick Percat – 207
24 – Macauley Jones – 36
COMING UP
Round 2 of the Virgin Australia Supercars Championship
The Beaurepaires Melbourne 400 (& Australian Formula 1 Grand Prix)
Albert Park Circuit, Melbourne
14-17 March 2019
|
|
