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Dylan O’Keeffe targeting Mountain success after Sandown disappointment
It hasn’t been an ideal past two rounds for Dylan O’Keeffe in the Supercheap Auto TCR Australia following another failure to finish at his home event at Sandown.
O’Keeffe recovered strongly to retain seventh in the standings and displayed his prowess in the wet to ensure he returns to the Mountain in a strong form.
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The opening race at Sandown ended in retirement due to an electrical fault while holding down a position in the top 10 as the weather conditions provided a challenge.
“The start of Race 1 was tough – I only just avoided hitting the stalled car off the starting grid, and it was hard following other cars because there was so much spray,” O’Keeffe said.
“I was still in the top 10 and would have been in a good position for the top-10 reverse grid in Race 2, but unfortunately the car stopped with an electrical problem. It turned out to be a very minor issue, so it was easily fixed but very frustrating.”
“The Race 1 issue was obviously a lowlight – without that, we would have been in good shape for the rest of the weekend because our race pace was as good as anyone’s.”
Demonstrating this in the final two races, O’Keeffe charged from the back to be seventh at the end of Race 2 in what were slightly better conditions compared to Saturday’s opening event.
His failure to finish in the first race ensured he started 16th in the final and again O’Keeffe charged through to eighth ensuring he enters Bathurst with great confidence.
Peugeot was the dominant marque at Easter as Garry Rogers Motorsport teammate Aaron Cameron broke the lap record and O’Keeffe was well in contention across the weekend.
It’s this knowledge of pace from earlier in the year, which has O’Keeffe excited for a success end to the season.
“When we raced at Bathurst at Easter, all the Peugeots were fast, which gives me confidence we can finish the TCR season on a high note,” he said.
The Supercheap Auto Bathurst International completes the season on November 11-13.