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Kelly Racing drivers rue strategy mishap

28 May 2020
‘We had a good laugh about it over the radio’
2 mins by James Pavey
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Kelly Racing teammates Andre Heimgartner and Rick Kelly found out the hard way just how pivotal strategy can be in the world of online racing.

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After incident-filled races left them without a top 10 finish heading into the Round 8 finale at Interlagos, an opportunity presented itself in the longer reverse grid race.

Heimgartner led the field when the Safety Car was deployed following a multi-car accident on the first lap, with Kelly not far behind.

But the pair’s decision to not duck into the line when the pit window opened at the end of lap 2 proved costly, as almost the entire field behind scored essentially a free stop.

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With a team 1-2 at the time, both Mustangs opted for a longer opening stint but would ultimately lose out, with Heimgartner finishing 15th and Kelly 22nd.

“Race three with the reverse grid we were in a really good spot to get a podium and were actually leading the race for a while,” Heimgartner reflected.

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“But staying out and not pitting under the Safety Car wasn’t the right move and pretty much killed any chances of a good result as the whole field pitted.

“Lucky Rick followed me so at least we both made the same mistake!

“We were cracking up over the radio when we saw all the cars behind pitting and we’d screwed up pretty bad. Lesson learnt and won’t be doing that again!”

Kelly equally could laugh about the situation in hindsight, despite seeing a potential podium opportunity slip away.

“We had an amazing start with the reverse grid and were second for a bit until I followed André’s lead in not stopping under the Safety Car!” he said.

“I shouldn’t have tried to copy his strategy because it clearly did not work, but it’s all good fun, we had a good laugh about it over the radio.

“We knew as soon as we went past pitlane and saw everyone else in the rear-view pitting that we’d thrown away any chance of a podium.”

After a strong start to life as a Ford team in Adelaide, the pair are eagerly eyeing the return of the real-life Virgin Australia Supercars Championship next month at Sydney Motorsport Park.

Until then, two rounds remain in the BP Supercars All Stars Eseries.

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