NEW Zealand motorsport royalty Greg Murphy says Supercars’ Gen3 platform can now be considered a success story.
The new ruleset faced no shortage of scrutiny throughout its first season in 2023, as various teething issues presented in conjunction with a long-running parity saga.
Off-season wind tunnel testing in the United States has put an end to any qualms on the aero front, while Dick Johnson Racing’s takeover of the Ford control engine program has been asserted to further bring the Mustang into play.
While the season-opening Bathurst 500 was a somewhat dour affair, the past two rounds at Albert Park and Taupō have delivered action-packed racing.
“I didn’t hear the word parity getting spoken at all,” Murphy told New Zealand radio show The Platform in the aftermath of the inaugural Taupō Super400.
“I think there has been some work done which calmed all that down.
“And for me, I think Gen3 is working… we’ve had some great races.
“The races at the Australian Grand Prix four weeks ago were some of the best dices and battles that we’ve seen in a while and it still is throwing up a mixed bag when it comes to qualifying and race results.
“That’s what we want. We don’t want to see complete dominance, although in saying that, I just told you that Red Bull seem to have a slight advantage.
“But it’s so quick to change with this formula at the moment, so we’ll wait and see. It’s very early in the season.
“So far we have had some great races and a fair number of different winners as well from all through the field. That’s what we need in a championship.”
He had earlier said in reference to Triple Eight, which took a Sunday one-two in Taupō and hold the same positions in the overall standings: “They have been very consistent so far.
“Red Bull are just an absolute exceptional operation and it did highlight in the dry how good they are at ticking all of the boxes.
“Their overall car speed and the engineering of their cars is clearly a little bit better than everybody else and then the two drivers drove accordingly to maximise it.
“So there’s a slight advantage in a straight street fight and good conditions without a Safety Car…
“It’s not going to stay that way all the way through but I think in a straight street fight situation, if they qualify well, the two of them have the slight advantage right now.”
Will Brown leads the championship, 71 points clear of teammate Broc Feeney. Walkinshaw Andretti United’s Chaz Mostert is third, 196 points adrift of Brown.
