It wasn’t long ago that Erebus Motorsport effectively hit the reset button on its Supercars program, but now it has a Bathurst 1000 victory to its name and is a regular front runner.
The operation scored its second race win of the season courtesy of an impressive drive from David Reynolds in Race 16 at the CrownBet Darwin Triple Crown after he took pole position and a third in Race 15.
In fact it was the icing on the cake of what was the Melbourne team’s best weekend outside of its triumph at Mount Panorama last October, when it finished first and fourth in The Great Race.
It arrives just two and half years on from ushering in all new personnel after relocating the team from the Gold Coast to the Victorian capital, in a move that saw the squad switch from Mercedes E63 AMGs to Holden Commodores.
Since then the squad, under the stewardship of Barry Ryan, has steadily progressed its way up the pit lane to the point where it is now regularly contending for race wins and podiums.
Approaching the halfway point of the season Reynolds has emerged as genuine title contender having recorded two race wins and a further four podiums, leaving him third in the standings, 327 points adrift of Scott McLaughlin.
It begs the question, could Reynolds mount a serious title attack?
On Sunday he proved untouchable as the Albury driver and Erebus delivered a perfect performance both on the track and with strategy to score the win.
It was statement to the rest of the paddock that the Reynolds and Erebus intend to be a force in the championship.
Reynolds’ pace was backed up by his rookie team-mate Anton De Pasquale, who once again underlined his prodigious talent.
Ryan believes the operation is now a true two car team following the arrival of the young gun.
The 22-year-old qualified third and 10th for the two races, out-qualifying his more experienced team-mate in the former.
Despite slipping back to 11th and 15th respectively by the chequered flag, De Pasquale proved he could be an ally for Reynolds in a championship battle.
While Erebus has proven they can win races and challenge for podiums, producing consistent pace at all circuits and eliminating mistakes will be key for a title push.
The team has in the past struggled with pit stop procedures and Winton showed that it can go off the boil.
However, they have also shown the ability to bounce back like all good outfits.
What do you think? Can David Reynolds and Erebus mount a serious title challenge?
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