Rookie Hill on Gen3 learning curve

Wednesday’s pre-season test in Sydney has helped Cameron Hill continue along his learning curve in the main game aboard his new Gen3 car.

Matt Stone Racing recruit Hill is one of three rookies — along with Penrite Racing’s Matt Payne and Tickford Racing’s Declan Fraser — in the 2023 field.

Fraser was absent sick on Wednesday, while Payne turned 59 laps and set the 17th quickest time.

While Wednesday wasn’t centred on outright pace, it was a chance for drivers and teams to somewhat benchmark themselves against their rivals.

However, scattered showers made for a tricky days, although Hill — who has just one Supercars race to his name — enjoyed valuable track time.

Wednesday also gave Hill another chance to bed in his relationship with new engineer Paul Forgie.

"Good to finish the day where we did in the order and apply a lot of the things we have learnt over the last few weeks,” Hill said.

'I was happy just to get some laps in'

"The wet weather certainly made things interesting, such as when it came to practice starts, but I was happy just to get some laps in.

"Thanks to the Truck Assist Racing team for their hard work — we've got one more test day before things get real in Newcastle."

Le Brocq reiterated the challenges that the weather presented, with rain affecting both sessions.

However, with MSR now having completed three days of track running with Gen3 machinery, Le Brocq said things are “starting to make a bit of sense”.

“Very happy with the day, good to get a few laps in at SMP,” Le Brocq said.

"A few things started to make a bit of sense now we're getting into the stride of testing but we stuck to our program for the day.

“It's a pity the weather didn't play ball but the Truck Assist Racing crew adapted well on the fly and we made the most of it.”

MSR will test at Queensland Raceway for a final time next week.

The 2023 Repco Supercars Championship will commence at the Thrifty Newcastle 500 on March 10-12.

Tickets are on sale on Supercars.com and Ticketek.com.