Today’s Supercars testing at Winton got off to a rocky start, with wet weather limiting track time and seeing Brad Jones Racing pulling the plug on their day of running before hitting the track.
They were followed shortly after by Tickford, Erebus, Grove Racing and Walkinshaw Andretti United, some of whom cut laps but won’t lose an official day of testing.
Teams are permitted to have four test days per year, with two of those mandated to take place before the season-opening Newcastle 500, one of those being the Sydney pre-season test in February.
That leaves two further tests to be conducted throughout the season, run at Queensland Raceway for Queensland-based teams or Winton for Victorian-based teams.
Rookie drivers are granted an additional three tests, with one permitted at any other Supercars circuit excluding Darwin or Perth.
If a team cancels testing within two hours of beginning or before 11 am, the day will not be counted towards their testing tally.
With BJR abandoning plans to test before even hitting the track, they still have the opportunity to cease testing due to weather later in the season, should they require it.
Tickford and Walkinshaw Andretti United did take to the track but abandoned their testing within the allocated timeframe to ensure they retain an additional day in future.
Erebus Racing was using the test as a driver evaluation day for Jay Hanson and Cooper Murray, while Grove Racing was running a rookie day for Matt Payne, days which they will both also retain.
Two Erebus Super2 entries are also at the track, being those of Aaron Love and Jack Perkins. Love managed to cut laps, but as of the last update, Perkins did not.
A representative of Brad Jones Racing told Australian publishers Speedcafe that they will return to Winton tomorrow with the aim of hitting the track. Wet weather is forecasted again, however, meaning they may have to look for an alternate day later in the year.
All four of BJR’s drivers (Andre Heimgartner, Jack Smith, Bryce Fullwood and Macauley Jones) were set to be joined by three of the four endurance co-drivers (Dale Wood, Dean Fiore and Jordan Boys). New Zealander Jaxon Evans, who will partner with Smith for the Enduros, was not at the circuit in the buildup to his ADAC GT Masters campaign in Germany next weekend.
Tickford also abandoned a rookie test day yesterday for Declan Fraser and Thomas Randle (who is eligible as a second-year driver), cancelling plans within the two-hour window.
Queensland-based teams Red Bull Ampol Racing, Shell V-Power Racing, Matt Stone Racing and the Triple Eight wildcard are all scheduled to run at Queensland Raceway tomorrow.
Header Image: Brad Jones Racing
