Port Macquarie second generation racer George Miedecke has made his Dunlop V8 Supercar series debut in Adelaide last week alongside father, Andrew Miedecke. George produced solid results he plans to build upon in coming rounds.
The 26-year-old has had plenty of experience on the Adelaide circuit, though behind the wheel of a V8 ute.
“While I’ve been there before and won, it’s always a difficult track to make your debut on as the surface changes so much throughout the weekend, as well as the concrete barriers right beside the track,” Miedecke said. “I’ve made friends with them before and in race two they decided to permanently borrow both of my side mirrors!”
Miedecke said he was getting a feel for the car during practice and qualifying races. He finished tenth and eight in the two practice sessions, before running sixth in qualifying.
“All of the cars in front were guys with good experience in “main series’ teams, and I felt that I had done a good job first time out.”
Miedecke said he was nervous about the starts going into race one. “I’d never done one and our practice starts were no good – but it seems I needn’t have worried, as I got a great start and moved straight into fifth,” he said.
“We had an early safety car, but not long after the restarts the engine sounded rough, and immediately I noticed a drop in power as the engine broke a rocker and we were running on seven cylinders.
“I drove as hard as I could for the next ten or so laps, trying to keep momentum up and as a result we finished tenth. I was really happy that we had managed to salvage a result after the engine problems,” he said.
Miedecke was less pleased with race two, despite a better start.
“I’m not sure if I didn’t read the conditions right or if I just drove the car too hard, but I really started to struggle with tyre grip and I guess learning to manage them will come with experience,” he said.
“After that and a drive through penalty for kerb hopping, I really wish I had been able to do a better job.”
Miedecke plans to build on his experiences and come out stronger at the next round in Barbagallo in May. He said he was looking forward to putting in a new engine before then, which should see a noticeable increase in power.
Miedecke wanted to express his thanks to sponsors Sitech, Bob Jane T-Marts and iSeek for their support.
