The move that put Randle on the map

It was in Darwin last year where a wildcard Thomas Randle signalled his future main game intentions.

The scene of the upcoming Merlin Darwin Triple Crown marked Randle’s second wildcard start of 2021.

That 2021 weekend began with the new Tickford Racing had locked in the Victorian for 2022.

It was at the end of the weekend, however, when Randle showed why Tickford signed the dotted line.

Randle made an error while chasing Will Brown with five laps remaining, opening the door to Anton De Pasquale.

Randle and De Pasquale ran line astern down the long pit straight, with the latter holding the inside line.

A determined Randle shifted right to left, rode the inside kerb and reclaimed the position.

It was a bold move, much like the one Shane van Gisbergen pulled on De Pasquale a day earlier.

De Pasquale dives underneath Randle

“That was probably one of my best moves in Supercars,” Randle told Supercars.com.

“I was trying to pressure Brown into a mistake, and I made my own mistake at the last corner.

“Anton slipped up the inside and got a side draft, then I got one back and we were neck and neck.

“I said to myself, ‘You’re not going to make it around the outside’. We had quite similar pace, he hadn’t got past me to that stage.

“I lifted out of the throttle, did a late criss-cross so he couldn't see me.

“He braked super early, which made it easier; I wasn’t on the brakes when he braked.

“I didn’t even lock a wheel! It was a cool moment.”

At the time, Randle compared his move to the exploits of van Gisbergen and Formula 1 star Daniel Ricciardo.

Randle is 19th in the points

A third wildcard appearance in Sydney followed before he made the leap into the big time this season.

It has been a season of peaks and troughs for Randle, who has been the unlucky bystander in a number of first-lap incidents.

Given Darwin will host three sprint races, Randle knows he must qualify better to ensure he can avoid drama.

“It’s a three-day event, so it’ll be good to try and get into a working window sooner,” he said.

“Set-up is so important, but qualifying will be really crucial.

“You really have to nail that flying lap so you can stay out of trouble.

“At least I'm going back to a track that I raced at in the main game.

“We’ll go through everything we learned and what we’ve learned this year as well.

“I need to improve my qualifying anyway, that’s something I need to work on."

The 2022 season will resume in Darwin on June 17-19. Purchase your tickets now.