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TCR still a learning process for Michael Caruso
For Supercheap Auto TCR Australia rookie Michael Caruso, this season continues to be one of discovery despite taking the win last time out at Sydney Motorsport Park.
Returning to Garry Rogers Motorsport a decade after leaving the team to partner Jordan Cox as part of the team’s Alfa Romeo attack, Caruso had a rough start to the season, which turned around by taking a commanding win at SMP.
Continuing his long working relationship with Steven Todkill, Caruso explained he’s still accustoming himself to the intricacies of front-wheel-drive.
“It’s a learning curve, because I feel I’m constantly learning something about the cars and how to get the most out of them,” said Caruso. “You definitely need to attack a TCR car differently to anything that’s been rear-wheel-drive I’ve driven.”
The challenge and importance of the rapid fire qualifying sessions isn’t one lost on Caruso, although it remains a facet of the Supercheap Auto TCR Australia Series he is still adapting to.
“We’ve seen in the past in TCR, it can be a very mixed field,” emphasised Caruso.
“It doesn’t take much because we know it takes a few laps for the tyres to come on and the car slides around a bit, so you could have somebody out of position simply from the fact they didn’t put their lap together.
“That alone puts pressure on the drivers to get the job done and in only 10-minutes, you’re not going to get much opportunity to get the tyres up to make sure to get it done.”
Sitting 13th in the standings, Caruso is positioned within a close battle for second in the title featuring a majority of drivers in the field. The GRM driver is keen to mount a serious challenge during the closing rounds of the series.
“If I do the best job that I can and we come away with some good results, who knows?” Caruso stated.
“Anyone can have a weekend like I did in Tasmania and it proves that if anything goes wrong your weekend can quickly change particularly with the progressive grid format.
“You don’t just get to go back up to the front, you’ve obviously got to work your way through the field, so it definitely adds to the weekend.”
The next round of the Supercheap Auto TCR Australia Series will be held at Sandown International Raceway on September 17-19.