'No hiding': Tickford boss makes impassioned statement
Cam Waters fourth, Thomas Randle 13th after five rounds
Waters still 239 points clear of Finals cut-line, despite winless start
Randle 177 points from top 10 heading to Darwin on June 19-21
Tickford Racing CEO Simon Brookhouse insists his team is "digging deeper than ever" to take the next step after a winless start to the 2026 Supercars season.
Cam Waters and Thomas Randle sit fourth and 13th overall through five rounds, with three podiums between them in 16 races. Waters is comfortably above the Finals cut-line, 239 points ahead of 11th, while Randle is 177 points off the pace.
Waters said pre-season that the team needs to minimise mistakes and have cleaner weekends. That has so far proven to be the case, with the team's current form simply centred on a lack of pace.
That point was made by Brookhouse — who took the reins of the team in 2024 — who issued a letter to his squad's website.
"As we return from Tasmania and have a few weeks off before heading north, it is a good time to step back and take stock of the season so far,” Brookhouse wrote.
"We held the teams’ championship lead and secured podiums for both drivers in the main game before New Zealand, with solid race pace in the car.
"The championship is incredibly close, which is fantastic for the fans and the show these amazing athletes put on each round... but when two tenths in qualifying can mean starting third or 15th, it is incredibly frustrating for our team and drivers with such a fine margin.”
After the consistent start, Tickford Team Manager Matt Roberts said after Melbourne that the team was in a "very good place." Waters — who debuted a new car in Tasmania — was a standout second overall after Round 2.
However, Waters has a finish average of 9.6 across the last nine races. In that same span, his qualifying average is 11.2, the team admitting after New Zealand that qualifying has been the Achilles heel. After New Zealand, Waters insisted the team wasn't frustrated, but admitted they weren't happy with their results.
Brookhouse said both drivers have joined the effort to make sure the team leaves no stone unturned before the season resumes in Darwin on June 19-21.
"The team were feeling positive with the results leading into New Zealand, but we knew that the field was not far behind in matching us and ultimately there needed to be more speed found in the cars,” Brookhouse said.
"There’s no hiding that New Zealand and Tasmania did highlight a small drop in consistency that we showed at the start of the year.
"Unfortunately, we struggled to find the right window for both car 6 and 55 across the three rounds. Like any organisation, when you are chasing improvement, everyone steps up to another level to find solutions that can be implemented.
"It goes without saying our team are digging deeper than ever to look at what can be extracted from both cars, and Waters and Randle have been a close part of the process since Tasmania to turn the form around."
Waters was a winner in Darwin in 2022, claimed a pole in 2023, and finished second in last year's opener. However, he's had his fair share of Top End bad luck, notably retiring from the lead in dramatic fashion with a fire in 2023, before losing a wheel in last year's finale.
Brookhouse maintains Tickford is focused on making Darwin the turning point for the Ford squad's campaign.
"We will always continue to back our own team and the drivers that get behind the wheel each round. The turning point for the season is right around the corner and Darwin is the best opportunity to hit the track to execute that,” Brookhouse said.
"To all our valued partners, members and fans, we thank you for the support you have continued to show us throughout this year.
"Our goal is always continuous improvement as we strive for absolute excellence ensuring we are trying to be better than our last result. As a team we are totally focused and invested in turning around the current form to be back on that top step."
