DNSW Sydney Test Day charges on following track inspection

The Destination NSW Sydney Test Day is charging on following an inspection of the newly-paved Turn 8 section at Sydney Motorsport Park.

The week began with the news of urgent capital works being undertaken at the Turn 8 complex, after the track surface was damaged by a rising water table, causing water to seep through the asphalt.

It led to the decision to split the test day into two — a Wednesday session on the short Druitt Circuit, and a Thursday session on the full Gardner Circuit.

Thursday evening’s session was suspended after 30 minutes of running, allowing officials — including contractors, Supercars Chief Motorsport Officer Tim Edwards, and Motorsport Australia Driving Standards Advisor Craig Baird — to inspect the area.

Following a brief stoppage, the session resumed, with Tickford Racing drivers Cam Waters and Thomas Randle leading the way through two and a half hours.

Should the works not be up to the task post-test, the option remains to defer to the Druitt Circuit.

However, after stepping out of the car at the halfway point, Waters displayed confidence in the surface, telling Supercars.com: “It hasn’t broken up at all from what I can tell in the car.

"I was a bit shocked. I thought it was definitely going to break up when we did track walk, but it's obviously cured a bit since then.

“It’s hanging in there, which is great because I thought the short circuit was gonna be bloody terrible. So I'm glad we can do the long circuit, the racing was so good last year here.

“If it starts breaking up, we'd in trouble. If it's not, we're right. And it's obviously not breaking up, which is great.”

Officials, including Baird, are monitoring the corner as the four-hour session wears on should there be any track deterioration.

Running from the transporter to the garage before heading back out on track, Walkinshaw Andretti United driver Ryan Wood was short and sweet, saying: “Yep, it’s pretty good.”

Rookie Jackson Walls preferred a ‘wait and see’ mantra, telling Supercars.com: “We did the track walk and I know it’s perfect because it's brand new, but I'd be really curious to see it after this session.

“It's surely getting a beating tonight, so I'm keen to see what it looks like at 9:31pm."

Team 18 veteran David Reynolds, meanwhile, was also pleased with the new resurfacing at Turn 4, which is a prime overtaking spot on the Gardner Circuit.

“It's pretty grippy,” Reynolds told Supercars.com.

“Anytime there's new surface, there's a lot more grip. The old surface there was pretty bad. So it's a welcome addition to Sydney Motorsport Park, same with Turn 4.

“We can always feel the track break up. You can hear it. You can feel it. But it wasn't doing that, so that's why we're still running on it.

“On the track walk, when it was really hot, it was really soft and everyone had a lot of concern. But it’s fine."