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Kiwi Chris van der Drift admits he’ll still have plenty to learn when he arrives at Sandown following a brief test outing at Winton today.
The 30-year-old struck a late deal with Erebus Motorsport to make his Supercars debut in this year’s Pirtek Enduro Cup, partnering Shae Davies.
Van der Drift boasts extensive experience in open-wheel and GT machinery, but a test with Brad Jones Racing in late 2014 is his only prior Supercars foray.
His mainly European-based career also means he is yet to turn a wheel at Sandown ahead of opening practice on Friday morning.
Today’s test for Erebus and Lucas Dumbrell Motorsport began in damp conditions before drying up, much to van der Drift’s relief.
“The aim of the day is just to get me comfortable and get the feel for these cars back,” van der Drift told Speedcafe.com.
“The biggest thing coming from GT3 cars to this is that the Supercar is a lot softer and you feel the weight a lot more, but it’s great to have so much power under your foot.
“It’s just about getting used to the different characteristics of the car and how to use them to your advantage.
“Hopefully I can pick it up fairly quickly, but I’m sure that every session (at Sandown) I’ll still be learning something.”
While Sandown will mark just a second career Supercars Championship start for Davies, Erebus’ lead car features two highly experienced campaigners in David Reynolds and Craig Baird.
Van der Drift says the presence of fellow Kiwi Baird is proving particularly beneficial given his recent experience jumping between GT machinery and Supercars.
“I’ve been asking them a lot about what is normal and what is not,” he said.
“I know Craig really well from racing Carrera Cup against him last year.
“He’s a really good base for me to bounce off and learn from in this team.”
Finally securing a co-driver in the Pirtek Enduro Cup after several years of trying, van der Drift makes no secret of the fact that he’d like to be in the category full-time.
He stresses, however, that he must concentrate on getting up to speed at Sandown before thinking too hard about the future.
“At the moment I’m just focussing on doing the best job I can and we’ll see what happens,” he said.
“I’d like to come here (full-time), but I’ve just got to take it as it comes in these races.
“Now that I’ve finally got the chance I want to enjoy it and do the best that I can.”
Van der Drift has competed in only a handful of races this season, starting his year at the Bathurst 12 Hour before making limited appearances in the German and Chinese GT Championships.
He’ll compete at the Malaysian Formula 1 Grand Prix the week before Bathurst in the Carrera Cup Asia, where he is the reigning champion.
The sun is shining and all is well ☀️#VASC #ErebusV8 #PenriteOil #10Tenths #AusOil pic.twitter.com/9nBnqBltAF
— Erebus Motorsport V8 (@ErebusV8) September 13, 2016
