Randle explains Gen3's mental demands

The Tickford Racing driver spent Monday and Tuesday behind the wheel of his brand new Castrol-backed Mustang with a shakedown followed by a proper test.

He logged over 200 laps of the Winton circuit in the #55 entry including a longer race run on the second day.

While acknowledging that there was a physical element to the long run, given the more lively dynamics of the Gen3 car, Randle said it was the mental demands that caught his attention.

That's exacerbated by the lack of in-car anti-roll bar adjusters in the cars in their current spec.

"I feel like you're very alert in this car," Randle told Motorsport.com.

"I'm not saying we weren't in the old car, but I feel like you could get into a rhythm easier in the old car on a race run.

"With this car, there's a lot more going on. And you don't have front and rear roll bars to tune on the fly. How you start the stint, that's what you've got at the end apart from less fuel.

"The rest is on you and how you use the pedals and the steering wheel."

Randle added that the lack of rear grip, a symptom of an overall reduction in downforce, was notable at Winton – and could set up a fascinating Newcastle event when it comes to tyre life.

"The [old] cars would get loaded up off Turn 2 and you'd be nearly full throttle by the apex," he explained.

"With these cars you're hanging on for dear life, in a way. They really like to power slide out of Turn 2 and up in the hill. And in the sweeper you're really working the wheel a lot more.

"That's what they were going for and from a fan's perspective the cars are going to have a lot more body language about them. I'm sure for someone watching in the stands, that what they want to see.

"I think the biggest thing will be looking after the rear tyres. Because the car moves around so much more the rears are going to be going off sooner.

"You'll be driving to a number and the number will be slower. We'll be driving around at a slower pace to try and conserve these tyres and make them last.

"Who knows what they will like when we get to Newcastle. We might have to do an extra stop for tyres. Everyone might just be running around trying to hang on.

"It's exciting, in a way, to see who can manage their tyres the best."

Tickford continued its Gen3 testing programme today at Winton, with James Courtney and new signing Declan Fraser shaking down their new Mustangs.

With two days of running under his belt, Randle's next time out in the car will be the all-in test at Sydney Motorsport Park next Wednesday.

He'll then go straight into practice for the Newcastle 500 on March 10.