Thomas Randle’s crashed Mustang. Image: InSyde Media
The wet weather race was called off 10 laps early after a heavy crash for Randle left a concrete barrier on the outside of the infamous corner damaged.
The Tickford driver had been running ninth at the time of the crash, his Castrol Mustang aquaplaning into the wall as he looked to fend off Will Brown.
Once back in the paddock Randle made little secret of how devastated he was to have crashed out of the race.
“Physically I feel fine, but mentally, not really,” he told Speedcafe. “I feel like I’ve let everyone down.
“It was getting wetter and I thought I’d backed off enough, but obviously not. I didn’t have anyone in front of me to gauge [the conditions] and I thought it was fine.
“I got into the corner okay and in the middle of the corner I fully aquaplaned. I’m pretty gutted.”
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At the time of the crash Randle was already nursing a 15-second penalty for early contact with Brown that had sent the Triple Eight driver, and Finals contender, into a spin.
Randle, however, is adamant that having a recovering Brown back in his mirrors didn’t contribute to his crash.
“I knew he was behind me, but I also had a 15-second penalty,” he said. “So I wasn’t worried about him.”
Work has now begun on the repair of the #55 Mustang with the extent of the damage not yet entirely clear.
“Normally when there’s visibly less damage it’s worse [underneath],” said Randle.
“At least it moved the concrete wall. But I honestly don’t know [if it is repairable] at this point.”