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The Supercars Championship resumes this weekend in Darwin after almost a month off, with half the field using the gap in the calendar to undertake a test day.
Will it be enough for any of them to knock Erebus Motorsport off its perch at Hidden Valley? That is the question we pose to you in this week’s Pirtek Poll.
The Barry Ryan-led squad has certainly established itself as the team to beat in this early stage of the Gen3 era.
Brodie Kostecki and Will Brown sit first and second in the drivers’ standings, the latter with a 79-point margin over Walkinshaw Andretti United’s Chaz Mostert, and, needless to say, Erebus is also on top in the teams’ championship.
In the past fortnight, all four Sunshine State-based operations tested at Queensland Raceway, including Chevrolet homologation team Triple Eight Race Engineering and Ford counterparts Dick Johnson Racing, while Brad Jones Racing did so at Winton.
Erebus was also at Winton, for a Driver Evaluation Day which would have saved them from dipping into what remains of their test day allocation, although damp weather meant they never turned a wheel anyway.
Since then, a number of team members including Kostecki and Brown have headed to the United States to exchange ideas with NASCAR outfit Richard Childress Racing, but they have not tested a Supercar.
Will the benefit of a test day be enough to change the pecking order?
Ryan had good reason to keep a test day up his sleeve for enduro prep, explaining to Speedcafe after the most recent event of the season at Symmons Plains that they now know they have the tools to steer their Camaros in the right direction if they are off the pace when they roll out of the truck.
However, their nearest rival, Triple Eight, is now at least closer to being in the same situation, based on comments from Broc Feeney after his and Shane van Gisbergen’s QR test.
“I’m hoping that I have a bit better [idea] and the team does of what we need when we’re looking for something, so I feel like we’ve got a good understanding of what some things do,” he told Speedcafe.
Then there is DJR, which had been the main thorn in Triple Eight’s side for the past two seasons.
The Ford squad has far more ground to make up, but it finally enjoyed a trouble-free test day at Ipswich, and it should be noted that DJR retains the key engineering personnel which were part of its success in alliance with Team Penske.
It also has form at Hidden Valley in particular, although how much that counts for in the Gen3 era is questionable.
A further question mark is how the Mustangs will perform with what is likely to be another new engine map, and how much more competitive they will be along Hidden Valley’s 1.1km main straight.
Tickford Racing and WAU both abandoned their Winton tests within the two-hour window and therefore will be learning on the run again in the Top End.
Will Cameron Waters have a rifle, or even a pistol, or will it again be a case of a knife in a gunfight for Tickford’s team leader?
Can Camaro driver Andre Heimgartner be a threat for BJR after their belated Winton test, and will Ford squad Grove Racing bounce back from its sluggish Tasmania outing, despite giving up on Matt Payne’s Rookie Test Day due to weather?
So, will Erebus be toppled?
By that, we do not necessarily ask if they will be overtaken in the teams’ or drivers’ title races this weekend. Indeed, only Triple Eight is close enough to have a chance of doing that in the teams’ championship in the Top End.
However, Erebus has won five of the 10 races held across the most recent three events of the season, and fielded the unofficial ‘round winner’ in each (Kostecki at Albert Park and Wanneroo, Brown at Symmons Plains).
Will there be a different round winner in Hidden Valley, and/or will a different team scoop the greatest haul of points in Hidden Valley?
Or, will the Coca-Cola Camaros continue on their merry way?
Cast your vote below in this week’s Pirtek Poll.
