Randle hails long-time engineer after switch

Thomas Randle has paid tribute to former race engineer Raymond Lau after a breakout 2023 amid a late-season shuffle at Tickford Racing.

Lau has been in Randle’s corner since the driver raced a Tickford Mustang in wildcard appearances in 2021.

Randle and Lau combined to secure three podiums from three attempts at The Bend in August, along with a maiden pole for Randle, before it became clear the latter would be on the move for 2024.

Tickford trialled Chris Stuckey — who previously engineered Declan Fraser — on Randle’s car at the Boost Mobile Gold Coast 500, and it delivered immediate results with the #55 Castrol Ford fourth and seventh in the two races.

Randle, who was just 1.692s from a Gold Coast podium in Race 25, was quick to highlight the influence of Lau, who is set to shift to the expanded Blanchard Racing Team in 2024.

“Working with Chris was great, we learned a lot. But I won’t take anything away from what Ray and I have achieved,” Randle told Supercars.com.

"It was a good chance to trial it and see what happens next year, I can understand why the team did it. I enjoyed working with Chris.

“We had a fun weekend [on the Gold Coast] despite getting no laps in Practice 1, so we were behind. We just focused on things that were important, and we ended up fifth on points for the round.

“We nearly got a podium on Saturday, and while we had a problem in Sunday qualifying, we still fought back to seventh. I felt like we had top five car all weekend, we kept nose clean and got good points.

“It’s been coming, Tailem Bend was great for us and the team. We were quick at Sandown but the belt came off the engine, and we were just outside the 10 at Bathurst. Gold Coast was great for the team with Cam taking the win.

“It’s all really promising, and I feel the next podium is not too far away.”

Randle heads to the VAILO Adelaide 500 chasing not only another podium, but a top 10 championship finish. With 300 points remaining, Randle is just 123 points outside the top 10.

The 2020 Super2 champion is full of confidence, given his recent pace and his form in Adelaide last year, where he topped Practice 1 and comfortably held top five pace until a crash in qualifying.

“In ways, Gold Coast and Adelaide are similar,” said Randle, who raced in an SA Hyundai Excel enduro at The Bend last weekend.

“They both have a staircase section — Gold Coast, Turns 11, 12 and 13, and Adelaide Turns 4, 5, 6 and 7 — and they have hairpins as well.

“But then Adelaide's got the infamous Turn 8, which will be the last high speed corner we’ll do for the year. Gold Coast doesn’t really have high speed corners like that.

“The Gold Coast beach chicane's crazy in itself, but it's not super fast like Turn 8. Turn 8 is sixth gear, which will be a test for the aero.

“Not keen to repeat that obviously, but keen to repeat the speed, and because we showed really good speed at Gold Coast.

“Fingers crossed it can transition to Adelaide, because it would be mega to finish the year with a podium or better.”