Invercargill racing driver Brendon Leitch has matched a seasoned Supercars regular on his first full day in a touring car, completing more than 80 laps at Winton Motor Raceway in rural Victoria as he prepares for a Dunlop Super2 Series debut at the Bathurst 1000.
Leitch tested Team Kiwi Racing's Holden ZB Commodore on Wednesday alongside Brad Jones Racing driver Jordan Boys, who was brought in to provide a performance reference. By the end of the day, Leitch was on par with him.
That's a solid result for a driver who has spent most of his recent career in GT machinery. The chance to race a contemporary touring car is new territory for Leitch, who came up through open-wheelers before making the switch to GT cars.
The session focused on brake modulation, heel-and-toe technique, and standing starts — the kind of fundamentals that transfer poorly from GT racing. Leitch said his first standing start in about five years went well, crediting his years in the Toyota Racing Series.
"I'm really happy with how everything went and the team is too," Leitch said. "It was good to have Jordan to have a reference point. He's obviously got a lot of experience in these cars and a few Super2 Series race wins under his belt, so to be matching him is a big confidence boost."
Leitch was selected by Team Kiwi Racing owner David John for the Super2 Series start after an evaluation against 2018 Super2 Series winner Chris Pither and TA2 driver Brent Collins.
The race at Bathurst will be the curtain-raiser to the Repco Bathurst 1000 main event — not the big dance, as Leitch acknowledges, but significant enough. He grew up watching the race.
"I've grown up watching the Bathurst 1000, so to race a Supercar there is going to be a big bucket list item ticked," he said. "The feedback I've gotten since being announced to race for Team Kiwi Racing has been incredible, especially from everyone back home in New Zealand. I know there will be a lot of eyes on me being a bit of a wildcard."
Leitch's week illustrated just how packed his racing schedule is right now. He also tested with Tigani Motorsport at Sydney Motorsport Park on Tuesday ahead of a GT World Challenge Australia round, then flew straight from Winton to Melbourne Airport to catch a flight to Japan for this weekend's Suzuka 1000km.
At Suzuka, he will drive a Ferrari 296 GT3 Evo for Harmony Racing in the Bronze class, alongside GT World Challenge Asia co-driver Jiajun Song and Liu Kaishun.