Ben Barnicoat’s accident in the first qualifying session this morning has proved to have caused significant damage to the #59 Tekno McLaren 650S GT3.
The car requires a replacement rear chassis member and whilst there is one spare part in country it is at Tony Quinn’s team HQ on the Gold Coast.
That part is no, we understand, en route, with a flight to Sydney followed by a chopper to the circuit after which the job can begin. It is a very tight call though as to whether the car will make the race tomorrow with the early morning start not helping matters.
Meanwhile, with the #59 missing the second qualifying session it loses out an opportunity to be in the top ten shootout (which it would have missed in any case due to the damage!).
That allows the sister #1 car in, but that car too is currently in trouble, the team currently chasing a cooling system issue to allow the car to make it out on track.
In other paddock news the #18 ProSport Class C Cayman PRO4, involved in a Qualifying session shunt, is in the process of having its right rear corner rebuilt, Joe Foster confirming that the team has the required parts but that the engine had been moved by the impact. “We’re just finding out right now by how much before determining whether it can be fixed.”
As the DSC Ed left the garage the final words heard from the team were “OK, get the sledgehammer”. That’s never a good sign!
