Tickford Racing CEO Tim Edwards has joked that his squad ought to consider developing a forcefield to prevent its cars from getting caught up in on-track mayhem.
On a weekend that promised so much after displaying excellent one-lap pace on the opening day of the Melbourne 400, the Ford squad left Albert Park with little to show.
Having been among the teams to have its Race 6 strategy ruined by tyre blistering, spearhead Cameron Waters was twice set back by penalties in the subsequent days – a drive-through for punting Will Davison in Race 7, and a five-second penalty for an unsafe release in Race 9 that cost him fourth place.
James Courtney meanwhile missed out on a Race 7 podium after a final-corner incident with Chaz Mostert, a nightmare pit stop hampered Thomas Randle’s Sunday when he started on the second row, and Jake Kostecki was on the back foot early after a heavy qualifying crash.
“Our speed was encouraging across all four cars, but we either got run into by too many people or ran into too many people to pull off a good result,” Edwards reflected.
“That’s frustrating for everybody, particularly when you know you have car speed.
“Incidents, in the pit lane or on the track, compromised us in all four races… perhaps we need to develop some kind of force field we can put around our cars to protect them.”
Edwards targeted the end-of-month Bunnings Trade Perth SuperNight as an opportunity for redemption.
Waters leads Tickford’s charge in the drivers’ championship in seventh, while the Campbellfield organisation holds fifth in the teams’ points.