Tickford Racing caught behind in Darwin

It was a topsy-turvy weekend in the Top End as Tickford Racing struggled for pace at the Darwin Triple Crown.

As Territorians revelled in 31°C heat in Hidden Valley, the Tickford Racing team were caught behind in a hotly contested encounter.

Sunday’s redemption ride by Mark Winterbottom showed what he is capable of, turning a 24th place starting position into a 13th place finish.

Unfortunately for Frosty his disappointing qualifying result meant he was too far behind to trouble the leaders.

The veteran remained upbeat about his chances in the next round of the Supercars Championship in Townsville.

“A tough weekend, I don’t think I’ve ever qualified 24th before, so that was a new stat. It was nice to almost get in the top ten, race forward and race clean, so we’ll keep trying.” Mark said.

Cameron Waters had a promising start to his Darwin campaign.

Qualifying in 12th place, the Victorian was in striking distance of the top 10.

Despite getting off to a great start in Sunday’s Race 16, Cam was a non-finisher after Lap 54, when his Ford failed under the Safety Car conditions.

“A little past halfway the engine started changing note, slowly it got worse, and it just expired under the safety car,” Cam said.

Chaz Mostert led the Tickford Racing team, finishing 12th in Race 16, after qualifying 13th.

The Queenslander was slightly disappointed in the results.

“We didn’t quite get the results I was hoping for this weekend. It was super tight in qualifying. I’m excited to get back to the workshop and break down all the data. No doubt we’ll roll out with a bit more of an aggressive car at Townsville, so we’ll see if we can make some gains by the time we get there,” Chaz said.

The Tickford Racing team will be hoping for improvement at the Townsville 400, which will be held at Reid Park from July 6-8.

DRIVERS' CHAMPIONSHIP

1) Scott McLaughlin - 1775 points

2) Shane van Gisbergen - 1614

3) David Reynolds - 1448

9) Chaz Mostert - 1109

14) Mark Winterbottom - 1001

18) Cameron Waters - 799