Rookie McLeod leaning on 'big brain' Lacroix
Cameron McLeod completed PremiAir evaluation on Tuesday
Teenager to race with Tim Slade at Sandown and Bathurst
Third-generation racer the youngest driver on enduro grid
The smarts of Ludo Lacroix and experience of Tim Slade are so far proving critical to Cameron McLeod’s progress towards his maiden Supercars races.
McLeod, who turns 20 in December, will partner Slade in the #23 PremiAit Nulon Chevrolet at the Penrite Oil Sandown 500 and Repco Bathurst 1000.
The third-generation driver, who sampled a Gen3 Camaro earlier this year, completed an evaluation day in the #23 on Tuesday with support from key PremiAir staff.
The experienced Lacroix, who joined PremiAir from DJR in the off-season, has been lead engineer on Slade’s car since Perth. The team also recently bolstered its ranks with the addition of sim racer and data engineer Andrew Gilliam.
Slade, Lacroix and Gilliam were all on site at Queensland Raceway as McLeod, complete with his name on the car, put himself to the test in a machine vastly different to his Super2 ZB Commodore.
"The cars are kind of the same to Super2, but they're just as much of a difference. So, when you get in it, you know you're in a different car,” McLeod told Supercars.com.
"You're not going to be driving it like a Super2 car, which is good. It’s what you need. You don't want something too similar where you pick up driving habits from another car.
"Tim's been awesome. I really enjoy hanging out with Tim, and Ludo has got such a big brain on him, you can kind of keep asking him questions and he is always got an answer no matter what."
McLeod will be the youngest driver on the 26-car grid, and one of just two teenagers along with Super2 points leader Kai Allen.
The 19-year-old is one of six full-time Dunlop Series drivers locked in for the enduros, along with Allen (Dick Johnson Racing), Cameron Crick (Matt Stone Racing), Aaron Cameron (Blanchard Racing Team), Cooper Murray (Triple Eight Race Engineering wildcard), Matt Chahda and Brad Vaughan (Matt Chahda Motorsport wildcard).
All are Sandown debutants, with Allen and Chahda the only drivers of the group with previous Great Race experience.
Given minimal testing in Supercars, with McLeod completing the bulk of track time at a recent ride day in Sydney, the teen is determined to get comfortable as quickly as possible before track action begins at Sandown on September 13.
"It's kind of my evaluation day before Sandown and Bathurst which I definitely needed more laps in the car,” McLeod said.
"I'm feeling really good at the moment. Everything's really good. Car's actually on rails. It feels like it's on rails and then Tim gets in and he kind of gives a bit of a tune-up and then it's even better.
"I feel that the drop off of the Softs and the Super Softs is pretty important. I haven't driven on a tyre like that before.”
McLeod will resume his Super2 campaign at Sandown, where the enduro season will commence on September 13-15.
The 2024 Repco Supercars Championship will resume at the NED Whisky Tasmania SuperSprint on August 16-18. Tickets for the event are on sale now.Live coverage can be found on Foxtel, with live streaming available on Kayo. Highlights will be shown on the Seven Network and 7plus. International viewers can follow all the action on Superview.
