THE Blanchard Racing Team will this afternoon feature on the front row of a Supercars Championship grid for the first time since its debut race in the 2021 Mount Panorama 500.
That race ended in tears – a mega crash for Tim Slade – so team boss Tim Blanchard has a simple objective in mind for their long-awaited second chance when Aaron Cameron starts the Saturday Adelaide race alongside pole-sitter Broc Feeney on the front row.
“Very happy. It’s been a tough year but I think the last four or five months we’ve really been progressing quite well; that (James Courtney) podium in Perth really quite sparked a lot within the team,” Blanchard reacted to V8 Sleuth.
“I’m kind of happy that today wasn’t a fluke or a one-off; like we had both cars in the Shootout at Gold Coast and quite a few top 10 results lately, so we’re just progressing and Cammo is getting a lot stronger as the year goes on too.
“At the beginning of the year he was struggling to get out of the 20s, middle of the year he was in the teens, and he’s been in the top 10 more than not in the last three or four events, so he has been progressing the right way.”
So, the goal for the 78-lap race?
“Realistically we need to convert it into a solid result,” said Blanchard.
“If he can get somewhere in the top five, that’s unreal.
“We need to make sure we turn a front-row start into minimum a top 10.”
Pic: Mark Walker
Intriguingly in the bigger picture amid the grand final, BRT’s current technical partner is Walkinshaw Andretti United and its next ally will be Triple Eight – noting those two teams account for each of the top three title contenders.
Blanchard insisted its every man for themselves.
“We just need to put our best foot forward and get a good result for our team,” he said.
“There’s a lot of things happening behind the scenes developing into next year and we just need to get a good result for ourselves.”
Race start is scheduled for 3:15pm local (3:45pm AEDT).