News

3 September 2021 |

Family made victory all that more special for Michael Caruso

Michael Caruso’s maiden victory at Sydney Motorsport Park remains one of the most talked about highlights of this year’s Supercheap Auto TCR Australia Series due to his fist pumping celebration whilst crossing the line.

It capped off a strong weekend for the Valvoline-supported Garry Rogers Motorsport driver after a tough start to the season.

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“It was a really solid weekend,” said Caruso.

“After practice I remember saying to my engineer Steve (Todkill) and my mechanic that the car was really good and had strong pace particularly over distance, which was good because we know how bad the tyre degradation can be at Sydney Motorsport Park.

“From then on, we qualified eighth and we progressed our way forward in the opening two races to obviously put ourselves in with a chance in the final event.”

Caruso in the Alfa Romeo Giulietta Veloce TCR achieved his best results of the season in the opening two races, finishing sixth and third.

A perfect launch off the grid in the final race set-up Caruso’s win, but it wasn’t easy as safety car periods meant HMO Customer Racing’s Josh Buchan was a constant presence throughout.

“That lightening start effectively gave me the opportunity to carry on from all those restarts, which was pretty hard considering the pace the Hyundais had, particularly young Josh (Buchan),” Caruso recalled.

“It was good to win at a track where it wasn’t expected an Alfa would win, particularly after the dominance by the Hyundais.

“Now we’re just looking forward to getting back on track and hopefully continuing the success.”

Not only was it a special win being his first in Supercheap Auto TCR Australia, but being Caruso’s home event, many relatives and friends were there to witness it.

“I enjoy winning,” he stated. “But to be honest it was more about having my family there for the first time I had everyone there supporting me, which is pretty unusual in motorsport as it’s hard to get everybody – particularly the ones that are close to you – to come to the event.

“Being the relaxed nature that TCR is, having all of them there including my three kids and my wife was really special for me.”

The next rounds of the Supercheap Auto TCR Australia Series will be held at The Bend Motorsport Park on October 15-17.