Heimgartner targets 2024 championship bid

Andre Heimgartner is currently sitting on Brad Jones Racing's best championship finish, but wants to fight for more in 2024.

Heimgartner is sitting sixth in the drivers’ championship with just the VAILO Adelaide 500 to come, equal to BJR’s best result by Fabian Coulthard in 2013.

The Kiwi ran fifth at times during the season, but a costly DNF pushed Chaz Mostert back to fifth, with Cam Waters now one point behind Heimgartner.

Heimgartner has recently been undone by poor one-lap pace, with the #8 R&J Batteries Camaro driver’s average start 11.27 for the season, 11th for all drivers.

The 28-year-old has qualified in the top 10 just once in his last six races, and should he get his qualifying speed right, Heimgartner believes he can be a factor for the biggest prize.

“It’s been a great year for us, a lot of ups and downs,” the BJR star said.

“Recently our qualifying has really struggled, and that’s hindered our performance and our consistency. When you go down the back, a lot of stuff happens.

“That’s something we need to work out as a team, and it’s something we’re working through at the moment. But overall, very very happy.

“Adelaide will be about working on those qualifying things and trying to prepare the best we can for next year, we have lots of ideas of what we want to test.

It has nonetheless been a breakout year for Heimgartner, who claimed six podiums in the first 19 races of the season. Race pace has been impressive, with Heimgartner moving forward in 14 of the 26 races so far.

He knows how to get it done in Adelaide, Heimgartner racing from eighth to fifth in the final race last year, the first year of the newly resurfaced circuit.

Heimgartner believes the circuit won’t be as slippery as 2022, but still expects action aplenty in the Adelaide Parklands.

“The track being resurfaced last year was definitely tricky,” he said.

“I remember, even under Safety Car, you had to pick your line and if you got it slightly wrong, you almost end up in the fence at 40km/h.

“It’ll be better now, the roads have been driven on and it’s been cured a lot more, normally that gets rid of that.

“But I don’t think it’s a very high use area, some parts of the track. We still might see some action in those parts, I don't think it will bring up the oils like last year. 

"But there should be plenty of grip and tyre degradation."