Cameron Hill has emerged from an action-packed opening Carrera Cup race at the Watpac Townsville 400 with a valuable points haul, courtesy of a top-six race finish.
Hill started seventh on the grid, and encountered a couple of near misses on the tight street circuit.
“The early stages were pretty chaotic, and there were lots of overtaking moves,” Hill said.
“A few laps into the race, there was an incident with a couple of cars in the final corner, which I was not only fortunate to avoid, but I also gained some places.”
After yesterday’s overcast and semi-wet conditions, today’s weather was much clearer. Hill said the increased track temperature had an impact on his car’s late-race performance.
“When the sun came out, the track warmed up a fair bit and our tyre pressures were too high,” he said.
“At that stage, I just needed to stay focused, ensure I didn’t make any mistakes and withstand the pressure from the cars behind, which I was able to do.
“We didn’t quite have the outright speed to compete for the podium today, so it was important to score some good points, especially with some of our rivals having dramas.”
Tomorrow’s action will consist of a longer 28 lap Endurance Cup race, along with a shorter sprint race.
“We’ll need to think carefully about our setup direction for the longer race, and it will be important to find a good rhythm and avoid mistakes,” Hill concluded.
Carrera Cup Race 2 will be held at 9:10am, with Race 3 at 1:05pm; both races will be shown on Fox Sports and Kayo, while Race 3 will also be live on Channel 10.
