Peter Xiberras, PremiAir Racing Team Owner, gives us a preview of the 2025 ITM Taupo Super 440:
“It is that time of year again, when we head across ‘the ditch’ to compete in the land of the long white cloud, New Zealand!
This will be the championship’s second visit to Taupo International Motorsport Park after making its debut there last year after having previously raced at Pukekohe Park.
For us last year at Taupo, we had very strong race pace, with Jimmy Golding bringing home race results of 7th and 5th with us in what was his third race event in NZ, while Richie Stanaway finished P6 and P13 in what was his first Supercars race in his home country.
While the race results were strong, the qualifying results were not – with Jimmy’s starting the two races from 22nd and 16th on the grid while Richie found himself in the 23rd and 14th grid spots.
It is no secret that qualifying has been a bit of a bug bear for us of late – while we have had plenty of highlights including numerous shoot outs, starting positions in the top ten and top five, and even a pole position, we have also often found ourselves struggling for that one lap pace.
With how competitive this game is, starting down the grid is a real quick way to hold yourself back, so it is of course something we are really focusing heavily on and that will be especially true this weekend for the Taupo Super440.
Doing so will help us to unlock more of our true potential and performance on the track – especially this weekend if we can improve our qualifying while also keeping or advancing the race pace we had there last year.
The race results showed that we had what it takes when it came to the racing at Taupo, and so did Richie with the team he was driving for at the time – so we need to make sure that we qualify well so we can really make the most of that pace.
We came into this season so well-prepared and already have had quite a dose of how tough this category can be, and while we have handled everything that has been thrown at us, so of course we all know that nothing is guaranteed no matter where you start the race. But, if we can make these important improvements in our qualifying pace, that will certainly help us start off on a better foot and have the best chance possible to unlock that potential when it comes to racing.
It certainly has been a busy period for the team with a lot of work going on behind the scenes in preparation for this weekend while also keeping an eye on the big picture.
As well as crunching plenty of data and running all the scenarios for the #31 and #62 PremiAir Racing Camaros, we have also designed a Special Edition Richie New Zealand shirt especially for this weekend, to celebrate him racing at home once again, and we can’t wait to see our fans wearing it around the track. If you can’t make it trackside to pick one up in person, you can also purchase on online at https://premiairracingshop.com.au/
The decision was also made to park the Top Fuel car for now, and I will be taking a sabbatical from drag racing for the rest of this season – with the win in Perth and a lot on my plate both commercially and personally, it was the right time to take a break (click here for more on that decision). I have been really humbled by the outpouring and well wishes from our fans since making that announcement – we really do have the best supporters here at PremiAir Racing!
And speaking of being busy personally – I won’t actually be on-track for the Taupo Super440 this weekend and instead will be keeping up with all that is happening with the team with our WhatsApp Channel (click here to subscribe).
While I am of course going to miss being part of the action, it is for a good reason – my son James is getting married this weekend! Carmen and I are very excited to see him and his beautiful partner Jamilla celebrate their nuptials.
It truly is going to be an amazing weekend on both sides of the ditch – last year the debut Supercars event at Taupo was truly a remarkable event, and I am expecting plenty more of the same this time around.”
Wish us luck!
Peter Xiberras
PremiAir Racing Team Owner
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