Shop
The R&J Batteries Camaro driver took just his second race win, and BJR’s first in almost four years, at Taupo but is currently 12th in the standings.
He is, however, only 105 points away from fourth spot and would likely be sitting somewhere in the top 10 if he was not one of the victims of a wild concertina effect in the most recent race of the season, at Hidden Valley.
VIDEO: The aftermath of Andre Heimgartner’s airborne Darwin crash
However, Heimgartner admits that improvement is needed.
“I think we’re just missing a bit of magic, a bit of speed,” he told Speedcafe.
“We’re not terrible but we’re not great either.
“Like, Perth wasn’t terrible, but obviously we finished 14th or 15th – whatever – mediocre sort of pace but not terrible.
“And then the same [in Darwin] you know? Tenth [on Saturday] and then today…
“It’s so close that it’s not like the car’s terrible but we’re missing a little something.
“So, I think we just need to go to the drawing board and have a look, but obviously everyone’s trying their hardest and who knows when it’ll turn around but they’re trying hard.”
One highlight in Darwin for the BJR quartet was rookie Jaxon Evans’ best dry weather result to date.
The SCT Camaro driver finished 10th in the rain in Taupo and almost matched that with an 11th on the Sunday at Hidden Valley.
“There’s no hiding from the fact that we weren’t happy with Saturday’s results. Obviously, not only in qualifying, but the way the race panned out,” said Evans after finishing 21st, incurring a penalty along the way.
“Even without a penalty, it looked like we were struggling for car speed and maybe on the wrong strategy compared to others.
“Sunday was a good turnaround and we were much happier with our qualifying performance. P16 isn’t where we want to be, but it was a good step forward and we closed the gap with the cars in front.
“We went into the race positive that we had a car underneath us where we could continue to work forward.
“We were on the fringes of the top 10 and it’s frustrating not to be in the top 10, but that’s just part of it.
“I think it was a good step forward and things are trending in the right direction. So a big thanks to the team for the turnaround.”
Evans is back in action this weekend in GT World Challenge Asia at Fuji Speedway.
