TRUCK ASSIST TEKNO RACING QLD RACEWAY PREVIEW

PRESS RELEASE/Tekno Racing – Photo: Velocity magazine (Darin Mandy)

• Queensland Raceway has been a happy hunting ground for Jack Le Brocq in his formative years, with an Australian Formula Ford Championship race win in 2011, followed by further podium results in 2012, and Super2 podiums in 2015.
• Le Brocq drove from 12^th on grid of the Sunday race last year to finish in tenth.
• This is Le Brocq’s third visit to the Willowbank circuit in the Supercars Championship, following a wild card entry in 2017.
• The Truck Assist TEKNO Racing Holden Commodore comes into the weekend following a season best result in Townsville, where Le Brocq placed 14^th on Sunday.
• TEKNO have a pair of fourth placings to its credit on the 3.12km circuit through Shane Van Gisbergen in 2014 and ’15.

Q: What’s the key to a quick lap at Queensland Raceway?
 
“While it might not be the most exciting track from the driver’s seat, it is one of the most difficult to get right,” said Le Brocq.
 
“Everyone knows the circuit so well, it doesn’t take long in practice to tune yourself in.
 
“Car setup is a bit of a compromise, because there are two high speed corners at one end, and two hairpins at the other.
 
“If you can carry the speed through turn two, but then also be able to stop the car, rotate and drive off the tight corners, you should be in a good place.
 
“Overall, it’s a solid challenge.”
 
Q: How much of a factor are the bumps?
 
“They’ve been there forever, even resurfacing the track didn’t change them!
 
“Every year you come back they are getting bigger and bigger, especially at turn one, it’s a quick part of the track at around 160km/h.
 
“To try and get the car balanced there is a task, but it adds some character to the track, and forces people into mistakes, which spices up the racing.”
 
Q: Qualifying at QR can often have some interesting results…
 
“It’s a tough one, because there are only six turns, you have to get them all precisely right to get a quick lap time.
 
“If you drop a tenth on one corner, it’s going to be a battle to get the time back elsewhere.
 
“Over the years there have been some guys come from nowhere to qualify near the top, so it’s a real opportunity for everyone in the field to shine.”
 
Q: While it might not be a driver’s track, it makes for top spectating.
 
“It’s a great track to be a spectator at, from anywhere around the circuit you can see pretty much everything.
 
“It’s kind of cool that you don’t need to be glued to the big screen to follow any of the battles.
 
“It’s actually an awesome circuit for racing, long straights leading into hairpins always provides for overtaking and plenty of action, so even if you start down the order, the opportunity is there to move forward.”

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