Ford teams accused of gamesmanship at Supercars test, Heimgartner fastest

A relative lack pace from the Ford Mustangs at the Supercars test in Sydney today has drawn accusations of gamesmanship from some Chevrolet teams.

MH1_3886.JPG

The entire Supercars field ran its Gen3 cars together for the first time today in a single, crucial all-in test at Sydney Motorsport Park.

The first opportunity to gauge comparative performance came amid an ongoing parity saga with the new cars, as Ford continues to voice concerns over aero and engine performance compared to the Camaro.

Supercars is set to head back to the runway for more homologation testing next week, while tweaks to engine mapping for both the Ford and Chevrolet teams continued today, with sources indicating the Chevrolet shift cut was slowed.

By the end of the day there was a clear trend of dominance from the Chevrolet teams as Brad Jones Racing's Andre Heimgartner edged Erebus driver Will Brown in the afternoon session to secure the top spot. Only one Mustang driver, Todd Hazelwood (Blanchard Racing Team), snuck into the top 10 in ninth.

Brodie Kostecki was third fastest while Macauley Jones, Jack Smith and Bryce Fullwood all banked late laps to make it an all-BJR/Erebus top six.

A number of those laps came during an additional 15 minutes of running added to the cut-off after Nick Percat stopped with a loose wheel on his WAU Ford inside the last 10 of the scheduled minutes.

Chevrolet's dominance of the timesheets has raised eyebrows from leading GM-aligned teams, Erebus Motorsport boss Barry Ryan adamant the Ford teams were purposely not trying for a fast time.

"I know they weren't," he told Autosport. "They may have been trying hard, but they weren't tyres that give you lap time.

Heimgartner set the fastest time in his BJR Camaro

Heimgartner set the fastest time in his BJR Camaro

"I was out there all day watching it because we were all wary of it. And when they're just on hard tyres, and you can tell an old soft tyre because the white is gone off the side, it's ridiculous.

"There will be reports tonight that there's only one Ford in the top 10 – and I don't give a shit. I trust the VCAT system and that's proven itself over the years. We haven't had a parity issue since Ford did the same thing last time."

Triple Eight team manager Mark Dutton added that some gamesmanship from Ford would be normal given the circumstances.

"You'd have to think there's a bit of that going on," he said. "There are some very smart people in those teams that like that gamesmanship.

"But I didn't see what [tyres] they were on when they were on their fastest laps. Because of the weather we weren't mandated to run [new] tyres at the end."

Several Ford teams denied any allegations of sandbagging, including Grove Racing's team principal David Cauchi.

"We were out there on soft tyres at the end of the day," he said. "We were running through our programme. We weren't trying to do a time as such, but we were trying to go fast.

"There was no concerted effort to not go fast, at least not from our team."

Ford teams are adamant that there was no gamesmanship afoot

Ford teams are adamant that there was no gamesmanship afoot

Despite his claims of gamesmanship, Ryan remains confident that the VCAT re-run next week will yield the right outcome.

"It will make everyone at ease," he said. "The biggest thing I saw on the data screen was that the cars were all within a kilometre of an hour of each other. And it was a mixture of cars. It's pretty bloody impressive. Supercars should be proud they've got to that point.

"If the aero is a bit different, and [Ford] chooses to have that balance, well that's fine.

"We'll see. When the chequered flag drops in qualifying in Newcastle, we'll know."

shares
comments

Motorsport Network recognised at Motorsport Australia awards

Supercars confirms additional aero test amid Gen3 parity disputes

Autosport writers' most memorable moments of 2022

Autosport writers' most memorable moments of 2022

Plus
Plus
Formula 1
Autosport Staff

Autosport writers' most memorable moments of 2022 Autosport writers' most memorable moments of 2022

When Nissan ruled Australia with its 'Godzilla' Group A special

When Nissan ruled Australia with its 'Godzilla' Group A special

Plus
Plus
Supercars
Tom Howard

When Nissan ruled Australia with its 'Godzilla' Group A special When Nissan ruled Australia with its 'Godzilla' Group A special

Ranking the top 10 Supercars drivers of 2021

Ranking the top 10 Supercars drivers of 2021

Plus
Plus
Supercars
Andrew van Leeuwen

Ranking the top 10 Supercars drivers of 2021 Ranking the top 10 Supercars drivers of 2021

The well-travelled racer now Supercars' elder statesman

The well-travelled racer now Supercars' elder statesman

Plus
Plus
Supercars
Andrew van Leeuwen

The well-travelled racer now Supercars' elder statesman The well-travelled racer now Supercars' elder statesman

How taming his temper shaped Supercars' slow-burn star

How taming his temper shaped Supercars' slow-burn star

Plus
Plus
Supercars
Andrew van Leeuwen

How taming his temper shaped Supercars' slow-burn star How taming his temper shaped Supercars' slow-burn star

Why replacing Supercars' GOAT with a teenager is worth the risk for T8

Why replacing Supercars' GOAT with a teenager is worth the risk for T8

Plus
Plus
Supercars
Andrew van Leeuwen

Why replacing Supercars' GOAT with a teenager is worth the risk for T8 Why replacing Supercars' GOAT with a teenager is worth the risk for T8

Can DJR still be a Supercars powerhouse after Penske?

Can DJR still be a Supercars powerhouse after Penske?

Plus
Plus
Supercars
Andrew van Leeuwen

Can DJR still be a Supercars powerhouse after Penske? Can DJR still be a Supercars powerhouse after Penske?

Why Whincup's next move is no calculated gamble

Why Whincup's next move is no calculated gamble

Plus
Plus
Supercars
Andrew van Leeuwen

Why Whincup's next move is no calculated gamble Why Whincup's next move is no calculated gamble

Subscribe