Moffat: Bathurst crash 'definitely stung for a while'
Supercars
06 Sep
James Moffat using Bathurst crash as motivation in 2024
Moffat crashed out of 2023 Great Race at the Dipper
Waters/Moffat car previously involved in freak Sandown incident
Few drivers have more fire in the belly than James Moffat heading to the enduros, with the veteran keen to atone for a heartbreaking 2023 enduro campaign.
Moffat lines up with Cam Waters for a fourth year, with the duo scoring Bathurst podiums together in 2021 and 2022.
Come 2023, and the Waters/Moffat combination loomed as one to beat, only for their Sandown and Bathurst campaigns to come unstuck in dramatic fashion.
Moffat ran fourth in the early stages at Sandown before an errant wheel from Garth Tander’s Penrite Ford sheared the rear wing clean off the Monster Mustang, ruling it out of contention.
Come Bathurst, and the Monster Ford was in the thick of the lead battle before Moffat crashed at the Dipper, bringing their charge to an abrupt end.
Moffat admitted the crash "definitely stung for a while,” but the second-generation racer says he will use it as fuel in 2024 as he chases more enduro glory.
"The focus is always to help Cam and the team as much as possible,” Moffat told Supercars.com.
“Obviously Sandown was just one of those crazy stupid things that happened that you wouldn't read about, but it did happen. Bathurst was disappointing and definitely stung for a while.
"I guess you just use that as motivation to keep trying to get better year on year. I understand and know what my job is to do and hopefully I'm able to contribute in a positive way across the two races.”
Waters is arguably the form driver in Supercars, winning three of the last nine races and claiming a season-high five pole positions. He is also within reach of the title fight, and has fired a warning shot at the leaders for the enduros.
Moffat, who is also fighting for the Trans Am title, believes Tickford has found form after downscaling from four cars to two, and is desperate to capitalise the team’s strong speed.
“There was definitely plenty of understeer and definitely plenty of oversteer, but that’s not unusual,” Moffat said.
"Cam's had a really strong last few rounds, I'm always excited about the enduros and you know, teaming up with somebody like Cam is obviously very good.
“Clearly the team looks like it has got some good momentum on its side. I's not just Cam that's been performing well, but Thomas [Randle] has really been showing some good pace.
"I think collectively the team has really sort of come together and is working well. The changes in the off-season I think are starting to really show their benefits.
“Having momentum is one thing, but I guess capitalising on it and keeping it going is probably more important. So, there's good opportunity to keep that rolling across Sandown and Bathurst.”
