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There are signs that the grip effect of recently laid track sealant at Mount Panorama is wearing out, after Practice 3 at the Repco Bathurst 1000.
Practice 1 and Practice 2 were both much quicker than the corresponding sessions of 2021, and while that remained the case again in Practice 3, session pace-setter Will Davison was unable to match the lap time which Garth Tander achieved on the afternoon prior.
The Shell V-Power Racing Team driver still got down to a 2:04.2077s, faster than the 2:04.3691s which saw him top Practice 1, but suggested that the sealant effect which had become a major talking point has now diminished.
“We’re trying some stuff here because we weren’t good enough here last year, so it’s been really interesting,” said the two-time Great Race winner after stepping out of the #17 Ford Mustang.
“I’m glad we’ve got some dry running to get the knowledge we have; we’re sort of outside our normal window, if you like. It’s really enjoyable.
“The track’s definitely not as good as yesterday, so I think with the sealant gone, we’re missing quite a bit of grip that we had yesterday and we were probably all relying on.
“All in all, the track felt worse but I think we’ve made some good ground.”
Tickford Racing’s Cameron Waters, who was next-fastest in the #6 Monster Energy Mustang, had a similar observation.
“I think a little bit of it has gone away; we probably would have gone quicker, I think, if it was still on the track,” said the 2020 pole-sitter.
“Our car wasn’t great yesterday, we were trying some stuff to make it better than what it was the last few years, we learned a bit overnight and the car is a lot better today,” added Waters.
“So, we’re not perfect, but I guess everyone’s got that story.”
While Car #17 has now been quickest in two sessions out of three, there was an awkward moment as Will Davison and bother Alex Davison undertook driver change practice.
“They’ve been going well; something that happened just the other day with your ear plugs, that sort of dangle down,” the former explained.
“So, bit lazy; normally you tape it up during the race so nothing can get caught, but just the ear plugs hanging down, as I sort of loosen the buckle off , I got caught in the buckle as I tried jumping out of the car and it sort of rips the ear plugs out of your ears and destroyed the ear plugs and it was a slow stop.
“So, it’s all good, nothing major, just a bit annoying.”
The rain stayed away again for Practice 3 although whether that remains the case for Practice 4, another hour-long session for all drivers, is uncertain.
That session starts at 13:00 local time/AEDT and should see qualifying simulations before much of the grid is decided late this afternoon.
