Second in Sunday’s Repco Bathurst 1000 was a “bittersweet” result for Tickford Racing co-driver James Moffat.
For Moffat, it was his second runner-up finish, having finished second behind Mostert in the thrilling 2014 race.
That day, Moffat’s Nissan found the Griffin’s Bend barriers twice. On Sunday, he made poor start and was forced to fight back.
Waters brought the car back into contention, before the two drivers kept the car in the hunt.
Bathurst Podium 🥈
— James Moffat (@J_Moffat) December 6, 2021
We pushed hard and gave it everything we had!
Thanks to @TickfordRacing and Cam for having me along for the ride @MonsterEnergyAU #RepcoSC #Bathurst pic.twitter.com/32NIJbjfeE
"I lost the clutch at the start of the race, and obviously went backwards pretty quickly so that made it pretty hard for us in that first stint, it was pretty scrappy,” said Moffat, who dumped nine spots at the start.
"But fortunately Cam was able to get back track position for us in the second stint, and from there the race was pretty straightforward for us, really.
"The car speed was basically what it was, and nobody was touching the guys in the middle [Mostert and Holdsworth], their car was incredible.”
Moffat has been in the Tickford stable as a co-driver since 2018, and was Mostert’s right-hand man in 2018 and 2019.
He made no secret that the 2021 pairing with Waters was his best chance yet to win the race, but the wait will go on until 2022 at least.
Second in 2014 for Moffat
"I feel like everybody at Tickford did an amazing job, the pit stops were flawless, and my buddy sitting next to me [Waters] drove the absolute wheels off it and didn’t put a wheel wrong,” he continued.
"Second was probably the maximum we could get out of the car, we just couldn’t find that sweet spot with the car the whole weekend, but Cam summed it up pretty well: bittersweet.
"We’ve finished second twice in this bloody race, so it’s good, but not good."
The 13-event 2022 Repco Supercars Championship will commence in Newcastle next year. Tickets for the event are on sale now.
The 13-round draft calendar was released on Sunday.