2013-12-09 09:17:19.2
Eddie scored his first podium finish in the Premier endurance series at the weekend. Despite being less than impressed with his own performance and making a number of uncharacteristic mistakes, Target Racing remained near the sharp end and benefited from the disqualification of Wolfie to claim the last step on the podium.
Saturday
Kieran McCullogh was drafted in to replace the absent Marc Laukam and he duly delivered pole position. He also took the start for a short 10 minute stint and came in with a 2 second lead. Eddie went out for a long stint but couldn’t match the pace of his new team mate and lost the lead. He then spun at Conways trying to put a move on a slower kart and lost nearly a lap in the process. He compounded this error by sliding on oil in the pit lane and hitting the fuel bowser – being forced to go out and do another lap as a result.
A spin in the pit lane for Chris Bell lost even more time but Kieran put in more stunning laps in his second stint, lapping almost a second quicker than anyone else at one stage.
The team came home in fourth place on the road but Wolfie were found to be 2kg underweight which promoted Target Racing to third and secure Eddie’s and the teams first podium finish at Premier level.
In an interview after the race, Eddie was again very critical of his own performance but later, having reviewed the lap times, was less so.
“Obviously I was really disappointed with myself after the race. I very rarely spin off so that was annoying, especially as we were fighting for the lead. I made so many mistakes. I never miss the pit boards but I did it several times and I didn’t think my pace was very good. Actually, having seen my times compared to the others around me they weren’t all that bad so I feel a bit better. My last stint was really hard because the brake pads had glazed over because they had been ridden so much and I just couldn’t stop.”
Target finished behind Just So Racing and Team Red Steel and Eddie admitted to feeling proud to be sharing the podium with the top drivers.
“Well I’m no stranger to a podium but standing there with the likes of Kieran, Stuart Symonds, Brian Trott, Phil Ingram, Marc Craddock and Jamie Jakins who are amongst the best in Club100 was quite something. I wish I could have enjoyed it more at the time but knowing the mistakes I made possibly cost us the win in hindsight, I’m pretty gutted. Still hopefully it will be the first of many podiums!”
Sunday
Eddie deemed more relaxed going into this race and duly delivered his best qualifying performance for some time with a win, a fourth and a seventh in his heats putting him in a solid sixth on the grid for the A final.
Initially making a good start from the outside line, Eddie then got bumped down to 10th on the opening lap and was lucky not to be punted off at the hairpin. He set about chasing down the drivers in front and made places on almost every lap. Joining the battle for second between Lee Kemp, Sami Seppala and Phil Moreton, Eddie nipped past Seppala on the last lap and only narrowly missed out on a second podium in as many days.
“It was a great race and probably the most enjoyable one for me this year. I got a good run on Lee and Phil but just didn’t have enough time. I think if the race had been another couple of laps I would have been on the podium. Still, fourth is good and I’m happy to get some decent points on the board.”
