|
Young
16 year old New Zealand driver Nic Jordan, driving the AMS Group
Team BRM Dallara 398 Spiess, had an outstanding debut at the very
technical Oran Park circuit west of Sydney.
"Jordan
came over to Australia a week ago to test at the track and spent
the following week working with his team personnel at the U-Drive
Formula Ford racing school. This was a great opportunity for Nic
to experience life in Aussie and to work with the team" said
Nic's Engineer Craig Rundle.
Official
practises saw Nic getting off to a controversial start to the meeting
when most of his race gear was declared illegal by the CAMS scrutineers,
this was despite Jordan having used the same gear in NZ for several
years.
Team owner Bronte Rundle expressed surprise at the apparent poor
scrutineering of apparel by NZ motor sport officials.. "Safety
is paramount for any driver and we were concerned that Nic's gear
had not been looked at in NZ ." said Rundle. A race suit and
other gear was obtained and the diminutive and quietly spoken Kiwi
was out on the track. His times immediately tumbled to below test
day times which was a good sign for the rest of the weekend said
engineer Craig Rundle.
Saturday
Qualifying 1 with new tyres fitted soon had Nic's times tumbling
toward those of the Championship teams. A lap of 1.6.7 was good
enough for pole in the trophy race and 8th outright.
Qualifying
2 once again had Jordan comfortably leading the Trophy class
field although times were not as quick as the morning session. Late
in the session the notorious Flip Flop corner caught Nic out and
he spun to the kitty litter.
2 pole positions was a great way to start his season. Nic then learned
the teams rule " you get it dirty you clean it"
The
car's data was assessed by our Data assessor Andrew South, then
Craig and Nic combined to review this to look at strengths and weaknesses.
" It is a lot different to my Formula First" said Nic.
" my driving style will need to change more to adapt to the
higher corner speeds and the amount of grip the F3 generates. Craig
thankfully has driven F3 cars in particular my car and is able to
compare his data to mine. This will help me adapt a lot quicker.
I am sure it is unique in the world to have your engineer actually
also having driven and worked in your car" said Jordan.
Race
One:
Jordan got an excellent start and drove a very sensible race with
the direction of his engineer who had introduced Nic to the use
of two-way radio for the first time in a racecar.
The race was unfortunately finished under the safety car due to
an on track incident.
Nevertheless Nic showed the rest of the competitors in his class
that he will be a force to be reckoned with this year.
Race
Two was a torrid affair with the front championship contenders
drawing a large "crash and bash fest" at lap one which
as Nic said on the two way radio he arrived at turn 2 and all he
could see was bits of racing car going everywhere
He managed to avoid the carnage and drove a steady race to win his
class but also to finish 5th outright.
A phenomenal effort according to team owner Bronte Rundle.
"I
am on record as saying this young man must get corporate backing
from New Zealand as he is an undeniable talent and has a great future
in motor sport. He has fitted into the team well and drove the Oran
Park circuit for his first time with great maturity. He still has
a lot to learn but the undeniable raw talent is there", said
Craig Rundle.
The
next round is at Sandown Park, Victoria on the 14th, 15th and 16th
of May.
|
