Three Nissan Altimas have finished inside the top 10 following the feature race at the WD-40 SuperSprint in Phillip Island, Australia last weekend. A strong qualifying performance from the Nissan squad saw all four cars spend the early part of the race inside the top eight. Todd Kelly went on to greet the checkered flag in fifth just ahead of Rick in sixth, with James Moffat recording a strong eighth-place finish. A pit-stop issue prevented Michael Caruso taking advantage of his qualifying speed, eventually finishing in 22nd.
The result for the #7 carsales Racing Nissan matches Todd Kelly’s strongest performance of the year, equaling the fifth achieved at Winton. The fifth place result left Todd as the highest finishing driver in the Nissan Motorsport quartet. Rick Kelly enjoyed a strong start off the line before being battered and bruised by competitors. A big hit up the rear ensured that Rick was wide awake before he’d even completed one lap of the Phillip Island circuit. Smart racing and effective pitstops kept him in a competitive position crossing the line in sixth.
James Moffat’s eighth place didn’t fairly represent the afternoon he had. The #99 Faresin Industries Altima did briefly lead as the pit-stop strategies shuffled the pack. When Moffat himself pitted, an issue with the rear brakes held him in pit lane and saw him drop down the order. Rejoining outside the top 10, Moffat fought pack to record another top 10 finish. This result backing up the fifth place finish from earlier in the weekend.
The #23 NISMO entry of Michael Caruso spent much of the early part of the race inside the top five. His long first stint allowed him to demonstrate the car pace shown at the previous round in Pukekohe, New Zealand. However, it all came unstuck during his pit stop for tires. A clutch issue caused the wheels to spin during the tire change and resulted in Caruso receiving a drive through penalty. The #23 would then drop down the order and be unable to recover the lost track position, eventually crossing the line in 22nd place.
