By Sunday afternoon there’s a strong chance Bathurst’s Dylan Gulson could be standing on the championship podium for the Toyota 86 Series.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
Fifth-placed Gulson (648 points) is eyeing off second placed Ben Grice and Liam McAdam (both 704).
With his first ever series race victory under his belt – earned on his home Mount Panorama circuit – Gulson has gained an extra level of confidence for the series finale at Newcastle.
Jimmy Vernon (1014 points) may have an unassailable lead at the top of the standings but Gulson is part of a large group of drivers still in the hunt to fill the minor placings.
It will be an exciting weekend for all drivers as they test themselves against the unknown Newcastle street circuit.
“We’re really looking forward to this round. It should be a tight battle,” Gulson said.
“Jimmy’s sewn up first spot but the rest of the podium is open. I can’t wait for this round because we’ve got a really good shot at finishing in the top three.
“We’ve crept up the standings throughout the year and we’ve exceeded where we were at this time last year. With the top three in sight I’ve got confidence in myself to do the job.”
The Newcastle Street Circuit was added to this year’s Supercars Championship calendar in September 2016.
Gulson has done everything possible to familiarise himself with the track considering there’s so much on the line for him this weekend.
“A new track evens the field out a lot. It shows the ability of those who can learn quickest,” he said.
“I was able to come up here early and walk around the track. I’ve been doing some simulation laps to learn the ideal lines and braking points and that’s helped us out a lot.
“It’s looking like it’s going to be a challenging circuit and it’s probably going to claim a few cars over the weekend because there’s no run off areas.
“It resembles Homebush and Townsville in some ways. It’s got a lot of constant corners and it will definitely test the ability of drivers to accurate position their cars.
“We’ll only get the one practice session before they throw us into qualifying on Friday so that will be a challenge.”
This weekend Supercars co-drivers Steve Owen and Jonathon Webb have been invited by Toyota to participate in the final round of the 86 Series.
Gulson is well positioned to improve on his eighth place result in last year’s Toyota 86 Series championship.
Race one starts 9.55am on Saturday.
