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Toyota Supra's fast start drew attention
Toyota Supra reached the podium in five races and secured pole positions and wins in nine races during its first season in Supercars. The brand was compared with new manufacturers...
Toyota Supra achieved notable results in a short time during its first season in Supercars. The brand reached its first podium in just five races; in the ninth race, it secured its first pole position and race win.
All three successes came with young New Zealander Ryan Wood, who raced for Walkinshaw TWG Racing. Wood stood out as the fastest contributor to Toyota's rise in the series.
Comparison with other new manufacturers
The figures Toyota reached were compared with the starting performances of Nissan, Mercedes-AMG, and Volvo, which had previously joined the series. In this comparison, only some of Volvo's statistics approached Toyota's.
Scott McLaughlin, representing Volvo, reached the podium in the second race of the brand's first season in 2014. McLaughlin achieved Volvo's first pole position in the ninth race and its first championship race win in the 14th race.
It was recalled that Nissan and Mercedes-AMG experienced a much longer wait. Nissan secured its first win in the 25th race, while Mercedes-AMG did so in the 44th race; for both brands, the first victory was also their first podium.
A similar gap was noticeable in pole positions. Nissan reached its first pole for a championship race after 61 attempts, while Mercedes-AMG recorded only one pole, achieved before the 72nd start.
What made the difference in manufacturer success?
Toyota's achievement of three race wins in just 15 starts stood out as the most remarkable aspect in the series. In comparison, Volvo reached this number in 33 races, and Nissan in 178 races.
Nissan's third win came in 2018, days after the program's end was announced. Mercedes-AMG could not go beyond two wins.
This table was presented as an important summary of the manufacturer story during the COTF era. Nissan and Mercedes-AMG had a disadvantageous start with the new rule set and could not establish a consistent winning pattern. Volvo, despite arriving a year later, made a rapid rise and was then more tightly balanced with Supercars' technical processes.
It was emphasized that today's environment is different from the past. Balance efforts in the Gen3 era are at a much more advanced level compared to early 2013 and 2023, with control parts making engine and body differences the main technical differentiation areas.
Supercars' motorsport manager Tim Edwards said it would not be correct to attribute Toyota's rapid competitiveness to a single reason. Edwards explained that in the new era, wind tunnel work and similar aerodynamics combined with engine output have narrowed the gap between manufacturers.
Edwards also stated that Toyota entering the system with two teams made an important difference. One of these, Walkinshaw, was the homologation team that won the drivers' championship last season.
It was also added to the comparison that Kelly Racing and Erebus had not won a race the season before introducing Nissan and Mercedes-AMG, and Garry Rogers Motorsport had only two wins in its last season before Volvo. All these data reinforced the view that the Toyota Supra adapted to the series faster than expected.
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