Following Shane Van Gisbergen’s shock decision to quit V8 Supercars last year, with two pole positions and a race win at the Clipsal 500 – as well as a standout victory at the non-championship Australian Grand Prix – the flying Kiwi has shown he is a force to be reckoned with in 2013.
TEKNO Autosports driver and owner Jonathon Webb posted two top 10 results in Adelaide, so the pair sit within the top 10 in the championship coming into this weekend’s Tasmania Microsoft Office 365 at Symmons Plains.
Both are confident they can build on the Queensland team’s solid start to the season and consistently challenge at the head of the field.
Webb and Van Gisbergen sat down with V8 Supercars to talk about their aspirations for the season, rivals and V8 Supercars overseas.
Is this the breakthrough year for the team?
JW: I hope so, but it’s still a long way ahead. It’s certainly started off well and if we continue the way we’ve started then quite possibly it is.
SVG: I think last year was the breakthrough year for TEKNO. To get a podium at the end of last year, the speed was really coming on and I think last year they really showed they could do it. So for me that was a big thing and this year it was the first win for the team and that was awesome as well. Improvement is always a good thing.
How satisfying was Clipsal for you both and for the team?
SVG: It was awesome. The off-season was a bit of a mixed bag and the few weeks before Clipsal we were really pushing hard with the test days and the preparation. Probably the most satisfying was coming in and seeing most of the guys who really didn’t have a day off over Christmas because they worked so hard getting the new cars going. To see the smiles on their faces and seeing how stoked they were, was a pretty cool feeling because they worked so hard to get the car going. And also we had the pole on Saturday and a DNF (did not finish) so it was a pretty good way to bounce back.
JW: It was a great start to the year. From my point of view it’s much the same. It’s obviously great personally to have the results but from my side it’s the guys who put in the hard work and the long hours and don’t have a Christmas break. To see where their hard work has gone and to pay them as best we can in the results – and for me as a team owner pole position and a race win right off the bat – was just sensational.
What are your expectations for the season?
JW: For me I think we definitely need to be in the top 10 every single race, but pushing on that I would like to see myself personally in the top five on a more-than-not regular basis as well.
SVG: I want to try to keep a bad day as a top five result. You’ve got to try to keep in that area and on your good days challenge for a podium or even better. But consistently scoring points is the way you’re going to win a championship.
Do you think the team is still punching above its weight or are you where you expect to be?
JW: We sort of did our dues last year and brought on the speed. We were sort of punching above our weight at the end of last year but I think now we have earned our spot and we’re just pushing along at where we should be.
SVG: I agree. I think we’re where we should be and now it’s time to start getting the results.
Who do you see as your closest rival on the track this year?
SVG: Red Bull are the ones who are going to keep pushing and improving, but there are probably three main teams – Red Bull, Brad Jones Racing and Garry Rogers Motorsport – who are the top teams at the moment.
JW: I think the same. It’s undoubtedly always going to be Red Bull. They’re always going to push the envelope and continue to push more and more. They’ll obviously be the stiffest competition but by far and away they definitely not going to be the only ones who’ll be pushing hard.
Like Shane said, there are a couple of other guys there. Whether they can do it consistently over the whole season, only time will tell.
Is it a realistic expectation to consistently take on Red Bull?
JW: Yeah. I think we have shown that off the bat we can do it. We’re going to continue to push as a team and evolve as a team – we’re not just going to sit back and be happy to finish second. I know that’s why we’ve built the team, pushed hard and brought Shane on so now it’s time to beat them all.
SVG: I think it is realistic but then again we’ve only really had two races but if we can keep on pushing them I think it will be pretty good. But at the moment we’ve been matching them in qualifying and at races so it’s been a pretty good start.
You have the same equipment as Red Bull so does that put more pressure on you?
JW: No I don’t think so and particularly not the fact they’re all brand new cars. They’re learning just as much as we are and I think if anything it means that we don’t have any excuse – there’s no reason we shouldn’t be beating them. We know we’ve got the same equipment so we’ve just got to do what we do as Tekno and stay in front of them.
SVG: I agree we’re in the same sort of stuff but we’re all learning together I suppose. But for me you’ve just got to keep looking at data and improving as a driver so you can keep pushing and raising your level to the level of Lowndes and Whincup.
With four long distance rounds in Tasmania, New Zealand, Perth and then Austin, Texas coming up how important will these races be to set you up for the remainder of the season?
JW: All the races are massively important, particularly early in the season. As I found last year I had a pretty slow start and all you’re doing is playing catch-up for the rest of the season. So it’s really important just to maximise the points – just to finish clean, stay out of trouble and come home in that top group and keep collecting points because a DNF hurts massively in this category.
SVG: Yeah definitely, you just got to keep scoring points … Consistency is the key and keeping the car straight because there’s not much turnaround between each round. It’s better to keep a straight car so the guys can concentrate on development instead of fixing them.
What are you most looking forward to away from the track when the series heads to the US for the first time next month?
JW: I’ll be spending a couple of weeks in the States so I’ll be looking forward to having a bit of a break and seeing some of the rest of the world while we’re over that way. Generally you’re straight over, four days at the track and turn around and come back. So I’m going to try to enjoy it a little bit more this time and see a bit more of the world as we go.
SVG: I won’t get much of chance because I arrive on the Wednesday and then I’m straight back because I’m racing in New Zealand the weekend after. But I’m looking forward to spending a couple of days in Texas so I’ll buy a cowboy hat and see what happens around there.
Jonathon, will you be checking out any of the American motorsport while you’re there?
JW: Well actually that’s why I’m staying on after. I want to go to one of NASCAR events so there’s Charlotte and also the Indy 500 is on that weekend as well. I don’t know if I’m going to able to get to both of them but I definitely want to get to at least one – I think that will be a highlight of the trip.
Are you a little bit jealous Shane?
SVG: Yeah, I do enjoy my NASCAR so I would have liked to have fit in a round. But that’s alright – there’s always next year.
Would NASCAR ever be an ambition, to race over there like Marcos Ambrose?
SVG: I’ve no ambition to actually go and race there but try to watch all the races I can. I definitely have a go but I don’t think I’d do it as a career.
