Whincup switch not a worry

Red Bull Racing Australia had planned to keep Craig Lowndes out of the car at yesterday’s shakedown, so the Supercars legend could focus on healing from his collarbone injury, according to team boss Mark Dutton. 

Dutton explained switching Jamie Whincup into the TeamVortex car had always been the plan, with Lowndes set to steer during Thursday’s test day.

Lowndes was present at the 60km run at Queensland Raceway yesterday but did not even sit in his new car before it went out on the circuit for a systems check.

“We made the call basically as soon as he was injured … just looking purely at time – no matter how repaired he is, it’s just a shakedown, he’s not a new driver to the team like Gizzy,” Dutton told v8supercars.com.au.

“So his seat – even though it’s a new chassis – you carry over bits like that for the new car, so it’s less likely there will be ergonomic issues.”

Lowndes broke his collarbone dirt bike riding in the off-season and had surgery to help speed up the recovery process. Dutton said there was no need to put undue stress on his body, with a full day of running planned later this week. 

“If it wasn’t two days apart, if we were testing tomorrow we would’ve got him in the car, but because it’s half a week apart, that’s half a week for the recovery,” he said.

“That’s some strain and stress to put on a recovering injury that you don’t need to, so we made that call straight away and he was perfectly ok with it. He was out there today, and he looked fine, but we made a plan and we stuck to it.”

It was important for Lowndes to be on the ground today, given it’s the first time his team worked together at a race track since being selected for the TeamVortex garage.

“Even though we’re so used to it, it’s still a pretty exciting and special thing for a driver and a team [to get a new car] so we try not to be too blasé about these things,” Dutton said. 

“Of course he was keen to be out there with the new team and crews that have been put together, and the new car – his baby was on the track for the first time.”

Both Lowndes’ and van Gisbergen’s cars ran without fault – a welcome relief for the team that suffered with a frustrating vibration when it debuted Whincup’s current chassis.

Given that experience, the team went to the extra expense of hiring the circuit for the day so everyone could take their time and ensure both chassis were 100 per cent for Thursday’s crucial hit-out.

“First and foremost we didn’t have any of the terrible issues we had last time with vibrations and that kind of stuff – so that’s the first thing on your mind when you go into a shakedown.

“We’ve done lots of shakedowns in the past and never had issues, but after last year’s issues you’re a little more reserved … but it all went smoothly and [we had] none of those dramas.”

The pre-season test is always critical for teams – it’s the opportunity to assess the cars without worrying about points, with the Clipsal 500 is less than three weeks away.

Even with a test day scheduled, Dutton says it is imperative to complete a shakedown.

“We spent hours working on the seat insert and things like that – things that if you were spending that time on a test day, heads would roll. But that’s what a shakedown is for, so you don’t lose all that time on a test day,” he explained.

“We spent a fair bit of time with Gizzy trying to work on the ergonomics and get him totally comfortable in the car.

“You do a lot of work at the workshop getting it ready, and this and that, but until you go out in the car it’s not a true test.”

As always, the team has a long list to get through on Thursday.

“Once you’ve got a formula working pretty well, as we did on the run home, you don’t necessarily keep pushing the envelope to develop,” Dutton said.

“There’s still so much you can do on different settings with the car that’s more than enough work to keep you busy.”

The test day will be an opportunity to work with TEKNO Autosports on pit stops, given Lowndes’ and Will Davison’s cars will share a pit boom and require personnel from both teams.

“We’ve organised a time with them and made plans to work with both cars so we drop the least amount of time – but it’s quite difficult sometimes because test days are quite dynamic and sometimes organic things can take their own directions if you have issues or things like that,” Dutton explained.

DJR Team Penske will also test at Queensland Raceway on Thursday, with Victorian teams scheduled for next Monday.