Davison: We dug ourselves out of some holes

Will Davison says the Shell V-Power Racing Team “dug ourselves out of some holes” in Tasmania, with the team set to test before Darwin.

Davison and Anton De Pasquale scored a top 10 each across the three races at the NED Whisky Tasmania SuperSprint.

Both drivers made spirited charges in the Sunday finale, De Pasquale gaining eight positions, and Davison 11.

Earlier, Davison raced to fifth in Race 11, equalling the team’s best result of the season, and also claimed fastest lap bonus points.

All told, Davison raced from 20th to 11th (Race 10), seventh to fifth (Race 11) and 24th to 13th (Race 12).

De Pasquale, meanwhile, went from 22nd to 13th (Race 10), 19th to 14th (Race 11) and 17th to ninth (Race 12).

“Today was a very up and down day, but certainly we will focus on the positives,” Davison said.

"We’ve had our backs against the wall a few times, but we’ve dug ourselves out of some holes which I’m really proud of everyone for doing.

"To get a fifth this morning was a small little bit of reward for the hard work, we’re certainly seeing rewards in the pits, for all the hard work that the guys have been doing."

Sunday wasn’t without its hiccups; both Shell Mustangs tripped up with Ford rival Cam Waters in Sunday qualifying.

However, both cars demonstrated impressive pace in the races, De Pasquale and Davison both moving forward nine positions in Saturday’s race.

De Pasquale gained 22 positions over the three races, and Davison 22 — a combined haul of 44 positions.

Davison admitted the team is still using the races as “test sessions” to learn more about its new Gen3 Mustangs.

However, the veteran driver was buoyed by the gains made ahead of Darwin, with the team also set to test before the June 16-18 event.

"We never use races at test sessions but at the moment we have to, and between the two cars we threw a huge amount at the cars this weekend,” Davison added.

"Some work, some don’t, but I feel like we learnt a lot and got some really interesting data, some really good direction.

“We’re excited to go testing now and see if we can take a good step forward before we get to Darwin."

Davison and De Pasquale are ninth and 18th in the drivers’ standings respectively, with the team seventh.

The 2023 Repco Supercars Championship will resume at the betr Darwin Triple Crown in June.

Tickets for the event are on sale now.