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The absence of Chaz Mostert combined with Prodrive’s recent decision to allow Davis Reynolds off the leash are probably the biggest threats to Mark Winterbottom’s championship aspirations.
Since Mostert’s season-ending crash at Bathurst, there has been a serious lack of speed from the Prodrive Falcons. Admittedly, new recruit Cameron Waters is taking time to adjust to the pressure cooker of the ‘main game’, but is this having a flow-on affect to Winterbottom’s side of the garage?
Frosty himself admits that Prodrive’s diagnosis and resolution of issues is taking a protracted amount of time.
“It was down a bit all weekend and we got on top of it for the last race but by then I was last and coming back through the field,” Winterbottom said at the most recent round at Pukekohe.
“It took us three days to get on top of it which is way too long, we need to be quick straight away and stamp our position to the others” he added. “At the moment they’re on top of the game, the other contenders, and we need to come out and have a good dominant run and have our car speed because speed is still going to win it.”
If there’s one guy who knew how to find speed, Chaz Mostert was that guy. Speaking with Chaz during the mid-season break last year, he was as fidgety as a bubble dancer with a slow leak, itching to get back in the car and find more speed.
I’m not suggesting for a second that Winterbottom isn’t doing his due diligence, but the team is certainly missing Mostert’s insatiable desire for development.
Contrary to popular belief it’s much easier to run two cars than one, as data crossover helps both engineers and drivers to fill in the gaps to increase performance. The reality is that Cameron Waters, despite being highly rated, simply isn’t cutting the mustard in what is – to use Fox Sports’ vernacular – “crunch-time” in the championship.
Waters had an impressive pedigree in the V8 development series, but his advantage owed as much to his Prodrive prepared Falcon as it did to driving talent. With the V8 Supercar Championship measured in thousandths of a second, the breathing space he enjoyed in the feeder series might be starting to bite him.
Which makes PRA’s decision to let David Reynolds go all the more bizarre given his Bottle ‘O stable-mate sits just 239 points behind Winterbottom and one point clear of Craig Lowndes. While Frosty needs 300 points to secure the title, it’s Reynolds who’s the in-form driver who now has nothing to lose and highly unlikely to respond favourably to any suggestions of team orders.
That it was Waters who tipped Winterbottom into a spin on lap three in New Zealand is an irony that could leave a bitter taste for PRA should Frosty fail to secure a championship he’s been chasing since 2006.
“In the past we have come close but we have never been in this position, this is by far the best opportunity and chance we’ve ever had to win it,” admits Winterbottom.
“It doesn’t affect you when you’re in the car, but there’s so much chat about it, it does create pressure, there’s no doubt.”
Sorry to add to the pressure Frosty. Get well soon Chaz!
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