Kody Garland managed to bounce back in race three of Supercheap Auto TCR Australia at Winton, with the most places gained, after being on the receiving end of lap one contact in race’s one and two.
The Valvoline and Motor Traders’ Association of New South Wales driver started from 11th in race one, quick reactions off the line saw Garland challenging for seventh into the opening corner. Contact in the braking zone and again entering the turn forced Garland off the circuit, damaging the splitter and limiting his pace for the remainder of the race, going on to finish in 12th place.
Race two was eerily similar, a strong start vaulting Garland inside the top 10 before contact from a diving car at turn three bent the steering of the #41 Garry Rogers Motorsport Peugeot. Garland again would be limited to a 12th place result.
The final race of the weekend showcased the speed that had been masked by damage so far through the round, as Garland prepared to charge from 14th on the grid. Despite being held up as cars spun in front, Garland quickly set about making up for lost time as he leapfrogged his teammates amidst an expert display of race-craft. By the fall of the chequered flag Garland had risen up seven spots, more than anyone else in the race, to finish in seventh place.
The impressive race three drive allowed Garland to salvage a ninth-place result for the round and hang on to 10th in the championship standings.
Quotes:
Kody Garland
“It’s disappointing that we couldn’t show off our speed until the end of the weekend, but I’m happy that we could benefit from a strong finish in race three,” said Garland.
“The GRM crew did a great job with improving the car, it didn’t feel great in practice but then in qualifying we only missed out on the top 10 by the smallest of margins. I’m not sure what our car was like in the first two races, the lap one damage really affected us.
“I got off the line really well in both races, but I had nowhere to go both times and just got really unlucky. You can normally get away with some contact in TCR, but the hit in race one destroyed the splitter and in race two I ended up with some pretty big steering damage.
“We had to come off the back for the last race and got a clean start which allowed me to get the elbows out finally. The Peugeot felt strong, and I was able to pick my way through the battles and get into the mid pack. It would have been nice to see what we could do from a better starting spot, but it was just one of those weekends,” concluded Garland.