DEWALT

Racing’s Mark Winterbottom and TRADIE Beer Racing’s David Reynolds finished 17th and 23rd respectively in a tough Race 23 at the VAILO Adelaide 500.

Qualifying saw a shake-up yesterday as the bottom seven drivers, including both Team 18 entries, had their starting positions adjusted based on combined practice times due to a 105% rule following today’s Top 10 Shootout.

This adjustment moved Reynolds to 17th on the grid and Winterbottom to 22nd.

The race started with promise but quickly unraveled for Reynolds. Early contact from another car caused significant damage to the front left corner of the TRADIE Beer Camaro. This necessitated a trip to the garage for repairs, leaving him five laps down.

Despite the setback, Reynolds returned to the track and crossed the line in 23rd position.

Winterbottom had a cleaner start. While he struggled with tyre life late in his first stint, he was making progress through the field when rookie Cooper Murray turned him around at Turn 7, costing him 15 seconds and multiple positions.

Winterbottom recovered to finish 17th in the DEWALT Camaro.

Team 18 now looks ahead to the final race of the 2024 season. It will be an emotional day for the team, marking Winterbottom’s last race as a full-time driver in the Supercars Championship.

The team is back on track on Sunday with Qualifying at 10:20am, followed by the Top 10 Shootout at 12:35pm, and Race 24 at 3:15pm ACDT. Fans can catch all the action live on Channel 7, Fox Sports, and Kayo. Check local guides for further details.

RESULTS & QUOTES

David Reynolds, driver #20 TRADIE Beer Racing Team 18 Chevrolet Camaro ZL1

Practice 3: 9th
Race 23: 23rd

 “Very difficult day. I think we got the one lap pace and then in the race got involved in an incident and the damper fell apart and broke the roll bar at the same time and then we come in and fixed it with seven laps down.

“Everyone deserves a nice rest after what happened over the night. It was always going to be a challenging day on our side regardless, that’s what happens.”

“Tomorrow’s a new day and we’ll be ready to fight back.”

Mark Winterbottom, driver #18 DEWALT Racing Chevrolet Camaro ZL1

Practice 3: 15th
Race 23: 17th

“Just not good in patches of the race and then struggled in other parts. We’ve got some good stuff to work with for tomorrow. We’ll get a good crack at qualifying, and maybe not do an 80 percenter, try and go fast right away and see what happens.

“I think if we start at the front, we can race somewhere there, but I think we’ve got a better quali car than race car, so we’ve got some data to look at and try and finish off on a high.”