Michael Caruso has outlined the key characteristics of racing a TCR car around Mount Panorama ahead of the season finale for TCR Australia with Ashley Seward Motorsport.
The Auto-Glym backed driver has raced TCR at the Mountain on three previous occasions, earlier this year and twice in 2021. It was last year’s second Bathurst event where Caruso enjoyed one of his best rounds of the year with two podium finishes.
“Bathurst is a unique circuit in any car, but in a TCR machine the way you have to extract that speed is eye opening,” said Caruso.
“The nature of the track demands a lot of front grip and to get that in these cars requires a loose rear. Having a car that is wild and very ecstatic in the rear as you go across the top of the mountain, the place you want to feel most comfortable, is pretty wild.
“I think it’s a good spectacle though, seeing that tail wag over the mountain and feeling it in the car is very exciting.”
It has been an up and down year for Caruso, however momentum is on his side after he earned his first win in over a year with a stunning drive in race three at Sandown. It was the team’s first podium of 2022 as well, and initially it was just a runner up finish for Caruso. Post-race penalties that were issued weeks later, handed Caruso the race win.
“That was a unique way to win a race, but I feel it was thoroughly deserved with the speed we showed. Had we not been taken out earlier in the weekend, we’d have been starting much closer to the front in race three and would have been really challenging for the win on the racetrack.
“It is good to go to Bathurst knowing how competitive we are. It’s a very different circuit of course to Sandown but we were quite strong here earlier this year. We wont have the extra weight in the car that we had back then either, success ballast from qualifying results, which makes me pretty excited to see how we go,” Caruso concluded.
The TCR Australia season will conclude at the Bathurst International from November 11-13, with Ashley Seward Motorsport also fielding Brett Holdsworth in Trans Am and four cars in Porsche Michelin Sprint Challenge.
