Blanchard 'pretty sore' after unique weekend

Tim Blanchard was “pretty sore” after a unique weekend of double duties in Townsville.

The absence of race engineer Mirko De Rosa forced a staff reshuffle at CoolDrive Racing.

Team Manager Brendan Hogan substituted for De Rosa and skippered Tim Slade for the weekend.

Team owner Blanchard shifted to car controller as Hogan led Slade from the garage.

It came on a weekend Blanchard also got behind the wheel in Super2.

Blanchard raced Eggleston Motorsport’s #54 Commodore vacated by Matt McLean.

He returned finishes of seventh and ninth in his cameo, a far cry from his 2021 podium in Townsville.

“It was a very busy weekend,” Blanchard told Supercars.com.

“I did Super2 and the main game; we were short-staffed.

“I had to get on the pit stops as well, I was doing a lot.

“My feet are pretty sore.”

De Rosa was absent due to looming back surgery.

Slade made it count, the veteran bringing home eighth-place finishes on both days.

It was welcome reward after difficult rounds at Winton and Darwin, where Slade missed the top 10 altogether.

It helped Slade retain 10th in the championship, albeit by 66 points.

When asked about his weekend highlight, Blanchard was clear: “Super2 was a disaster, so definitely Sladey getting two top 10s.”

Slade and Blanchard will share the #3 CoolDrive Mustang at October's Repco Bathurst 1000.

The 2022 season will resume at the OTR SuperSprint on July 30-31. Purchase your tickets now.