WALKINSHAW Andretti United’s high-profile switch to Ford has not created any extra hurdles heading into the 2023 Repco Supercars Championship, team principal Bruce Stewart insists.
WAU is the only team to have changed its allegiance in the off-season, leaving its Holden history behind to start a new chapter as a factory Ford outfit.
The timing of Gen3 has allowed it do so without opening a knowledge deficiency to rivals, according to Stewart, given that every team is having to get to grips with vastly different equipment.
“I think everyone is going through a learning process, every team across all of these cars,” Stewart told V8 Sleuth following WAU’s Mustang debut last Wednesday at Winton.
“I don’t subscribe to the theory of it being a bigger hurdle to jump. These cars are quite different from the previous.
“Obviously apart from the amazing shape and the beautiful presentation, they have a lot of control parts and equipment that we aren’t used to and don’t have any information on and that’s a learning process.
“The hurdle has been huge, don’t get me wrong, but it has been the same for everyone.”
WAU was the second-last squad to hit the track for Gen3 shakedowns, only ahead of Team 18.
Contrary to many teams talking of an early switch to performance mode, Stewart noted WAU’s patient approach persisted through its opening day of running.
“It’s just a learning exercise for all of the drivers in understanding the capability of the car,” he said.
“We took a very methodical approach led by our technical director Carl Faux that is hopefully going to pay us dividends once we get to the racetrack.
“In that respect, we didn’t really try to set the world on fire for a large part of the day, it was just more ensuring that the Gen3 Mustang for Walkinshaw Andretti United worked as best it can and we can develop it from there.”
WAU again has Chaz Mostert and Nick Percat as its primary drivers, with Lee Holdsworth and Fabian Coulthard locked in as their respective co-drivers.
The next Gen3 track day is an all-in scheduled for this Wednesday at Sydney Motorsport Park.
