Hobson coming to grips with Bathurst GT-R

Fanatec GT World Challenge Australia Powered by AWS race winner Brett Hobson is feeling more comfortable with his newly-acquired Nissan GT-R after another test day at Phillip Island.

Hobson last year became the owner of the GT-R which finished second in the 2016 Liqui Moly Bathurst 12 Hour as a factory entry, in the hands of Katsumasa Chiyo, Rick Kelly, and Florian Strauss.

The purchase in fact made for two GT3 Nissans in the Sydney-based driver’s possession, the other being that in which he took an outright victory at The Bend last May, and a second placing in the final race of the season at Bathurst.

Garth Walden Racing (GWR) is also looking after the most recent acquisition, a later model than Hobson’s original and thus subtly different.

While he drove the car at Challenge Bathurst in November last year, the team refined it further at Phillip Island.

“The new car has more mechanical grip, but at the test day we were experiencing a lot of understeer through the high-speed corners, which we gradually dialled out during the day,” explained Hobson.

“There are a few other subtle changes – the seating position, steering wheel and dash configuration are all different, so I’m glad I had the test day to adapt to the car.

“Last year, I don’t think we necessarily had the outright speed of others but we achieved some great results thanks to Garth and the team coming up with brilliant strategies.

“This year, the goal will be to combine the smart strategy calls with a bit more pace, which will hopefully allow us to run at the front of the Trophy Class and score some more strong outright results.”

Hobson will again compete in the Trophy class of GT World Challenge Australia, while GWR will also run the RAM Motorsport Mercedes-AMG GT3 to be driven by Michael Sheargold and Walden himself in the Am class.

They worked through a handling imbalance which they battled with on their way to fourth in the recent Super GT 4 Hour at Sydney Motorsport Park.

“At Phillip Island, our priority was to solve some of the handling issues we had at SMP, and we definitely made some steps in the right direction,” said Walden.

“By the end of the day, Mike and I both felt much more comfortable in the car.”

Round 1 of GT World Challenge Australia takes place as part of the Shannons Motorsport Australia Championships event at Phillip Island on March 18-20.

That event, which is headlined by the Supercheap Auto TCR Australia Series, will enjoy live and ad-free coverage on Stan Sport.