IN THE PRINCIPALS OFFICE: ADELAIDE

Adelaide street circuit has always been one of my favourite events on the Supercars calendar. I first went there in 2008 and I’ve always found it produces great racing for spectators.

The circuit has been almost completely resurfaced so that will change some of the bumps and the grip level. We have been competitive on this type of surface and street circuits in general, so we have a solid starting point, but we still will have to tune the car for the surface.

The circuit starts with a tight low speed “staircase” sequence of left and right 90-degree corners, followed by the infamous high-speed Turn 8, then a big stop for the tight hairpin Turn 9.

I’ve always held the engineering philosophy that the car needs to be fast in the low-speed bumpy sections of the circuit, but you can’t ignore Turn 8 which leads into a big braking and passing opportunity at Turn 9. So, if you are weak through Turn 8, you are going to be vulnerable for Turn 9 which is not what you want in race trim.

We’re coming off solid qualifying results at Bathurst and Gold Coast, including a pole and a podium result, which are not easy to come by in this game, and I see no reason why we can’t continue that form at Adelaide.

The approach for us is no different to the first race of the year. We are going out there to win.

I’m looking forward to having our new Technical Director Grant McPherson join us for Adelaide. I know he is going to bring value to our already strong engineering group.

Dave (Reynolds) loves street circuits and I know he is excited about being back at Adelaide.

For Lee it will be business as usual this weekend. I think it won’t be until next year when we go racing and he is not on the grid that it will hit him. He has been great for our team this year, his experience and personality has played a big part in our growth and journey. He is a great guy and will be missed by our team and the Supercars community.

This week we want to put in our best possible performance. Do our best to tune the cars and get the most out of it and send Lee off on a high.

I am very proud of what we have achieved this year and the best bit is we have plenty more to come. Everyone has embraced change and is hungry to continue improving.

As we shift into the Gen3 car era our team is well positioned to continue on our upwards trajectory. I thank everyone for their support, have a safe and enjoyable Christmas.

I can’t wait to go racing with you all again in 2023

Cauchi,