‘No one really knows’ Mustang and Camaro differences, says Hill

Truck Assist Racing’s Cam Hill says that any difference between the Gen3 Chevrolet Camaro and Ford Mustang Supercars is difficult to see given the tight set-up window across all competitors in this 2023 championship field.

“I think it’s really hard to say because you know, all the guys who are driving Mustangs haven’t driven Camaros, and all the Camaro drivers haven’t driven Mustangs, so no one really knows what the difference is,” Hill told Speedcafe.

After a breakthrough weekend for Matt Stone Racing at Darwin, where Jack Le Brocq achieved both the team’s first pole position and then converted that into its maiden victory in Race 15, rookie Hill has made considerable improvements that saw him perform strongly at Sydney Motorsport Park.

Having qualified 16th and 17th in Darwin, then 23rd and 16th at Townsville, Hill turned on results of eight and 11th in qualifying at Sydney Motorsport Park.

Hill puts that down to growing confidence both with the Truck Assist Camaros and as he logs more time in the driver’s seat, maximising when the team finds the optimal set-up window.

“It’s super close. And that’s why if you do something that doesn’t quite work, you pay the price.

“Or if you lose two tenths of a second, that’s also 10 spots, and that’s the difference between walking away with your head held high and you’ve had a great day at the racetrack, and then maybe a not-so-great day.

“I think that’s a good thing. And it’ll probably only get closer.”

Multiple competitors across the field have noted the tight window for set-up, with Shell V-Power Racing Team’s Ben Croke noting it at the Sydney round after mixed results in qualifying for the DJR Mustangs.

Yet Hill says that Matt Stone Racing has been through this phase with its Truck Assist Camaros, which conducted a rookie test at Tailem Bend last week ahead of the Supercars round at the South Australian circuit later this month.

“I think we found a similar thing probably at the start of the year,” Hill said.

“We thought ‘far out, you know, this car seems to be quite particular,’ and you could throw lots of things [at it] and didn’t do much and then all of a sudden, you find one thing that worked really well.

“But I think we sort of went through that patch and now we’ve sort of found the good window where, you know, we’re not having to make as big changes, we’re only making sort of fine adjustments.

“So, I don’t know if it’s a Camaro or a Mustang thing, or if it’s just that, once you’re in the window, the window’s easier to stay in.”