Teens impress at Rodin track
The first graduates of a joint opportunity between Rodin Cars and MotorSport New Zealand have completed a three-day training and evaluation course and are taking their new skills and experiences into their racing programmes.
Blake Dowdall and Toby McCormack, both 17-year-old Formula Ford drivers, were recently given an opportunity to drive a selection of racing cars under expert tuition at Rodin Cars’ test and manufacturing facility at Mt Lyford in North Canterbury.
Under the watchful eye of professional driving instructor Mark Williamson, the pair experienced driving wings and slicks, single-seater racing cars for the first time as part of the Formula Ford to Formula 1 scheme.
“They were both fresh from winning races in the New Zealand Formula Ford championship and it was obvious they’d both amassed a great deal of confidence from their respective championship and race wins,” says Williamson.
He coached the pair through driving a McLaren GT4 car before they took to Rodin’s private test track in Formula 4 and Formula 3 open-wheel cars.
“Blake was impressive in our McLaren GT4 race car and looked very comfortable with the car on the limit. For his first laps in a GT car this was impressive,” explains Williamson.
“Blake adapted quickly to wings and slicks in our F4 car and looked at home from his early laps.
“Very impressed with Blake’s progress in our F3 car, which saw him finish just nine-tenths [of a second] off our outright lap record.
“He also has a really good understanding of what he wants in car setup and how to articulate that to the engineers. I’m sure Blake has a bright future ahead of him.”
Dowdall gained automatic entry into the three-day testing programme after winning the national Formula Ford title, while McCormack was a “wild-card” chosen for his race-winning performances throughout the season.
“Toby really impressed with his maturity and communication skills,” notes Williamson.
The young Aucklander had some recent wings and slicks experience and “this experience showed with his excellent consistency and speed in our F4 car”.
“He adapted naturally to the requirements of left-foot braking and was particularly strong in high-speed corners.”
New experience
McCormack has started racing in the Australian Formula Ford series, while Dowdall is weighing up his options and also hopes to compete in open-wheel cars.
“Working with a professional driving coach was a new experience for me and Mark’s knowledge of F4 and GT cars helped us get up to speed very quickly,” says McCormack.
“To drive three new cars we’d both never driven before was an incredible experience. There are definitely [driving] techniques that I learnt at Rodin that I will continue to carry over for the next few years of my racing.”
McCormack describes his experiences at Rodin as “amazing” and says he made some great memories.
“Very few people get to drive on that track, so to be one of those is really cool. And to see through the Rodin manufacturing facility was eye-opening to say the least.
“I would like to thank Rodin Cars and Motorsport New Zealand for the awesome opportunity to be part of this test.”
Dowdall notes he had high expectations of the experience but was still blown away by the facilities, cars and all-round quality of the programme.
“The week at Rodin was full of firsts for me. I’ve never had any real one-on-one coaching before, so working with Mark was a great experience,” he adds.
“Another first for me was the wings and slicks experience, it’s the first real go I’d had in a car with downforce. It was difficult to learn to trust the downforce to begin with, but I got on top of the car quickly and it all became very natural to me, with Mark’s help.”
‘Incredible opportunity’
Deborah Day, Motorsport NZ president, says this new partnership with Rodin Cars will provide opportunities for future Formula Ford champions.
“We are incredibly grateful that Rodin Cars has partnered with us to put forward this incredible opportunity for our aspiring young drivers,” she continues.
“Both Blake and Toby can hold their heads high as great ambassadors for the sport and great examples of the talent that the New Zealand Formula Ford Championship produces,” she said.
Emma Duncan, managing director of Rodin Cars and Rodin Motorsport, says she was impressed with the quality of the first recipients for the pathway programme.
“Blake and Toby were exceptional representatives of the skill and potential coming through New Zealand motorsport. Their ability to adapt to the cars, to absorb coaching, and deliver on track was truly impressive,” she explains.
“We are proud to support this important step in their careers and look forward to seeing where their journey takes them next.”
Highlights from one day of the testing and evaluations at Rodin Cars can be seen in the video below.
