Best aims to put best foot forward for main game drive

Supercars driver Zak Best is preparing for his second Bathurst 1000 and says he has his hometown to thanks for his motor sport career.

Benalla’s Zak Best knows his hometown has nurtured him into a potential rising star in Supercars.

And he has no intention of leaving the area anytime soon.

The 20-year-old next month will make his second appearance at the Bathurst 1000, racing for Tickford Racing with Thomas Randle in the 55 Castrol Racing Ford Mustang.

Best is one of the next generation of drivers looking to make his name in the sport and gain a full time seat in Supercars.

His performances in the past 12 months have helped put him in the mix.

Last year, he finished 15th on debut at the Bathurst 1000, with Jack LeBrocq, and impressed in his stints at the mountain.

This year, his performances in the Super 2 series, the feeder series to Supercars, and in the Supercars with wildcard drives, have attracted attention from teams in pitlane.

Zak Best at the 2021 Bathurst 1000. Picture: Supplied

At The Bend earlier this season in his wildcard, Best stunned the field, claiming a pole position and finishing inside the top five in one of the Supercars races.

In Super 2, he’s currently second, 114 points behind championship leader Declan Fraser, after winning two rounds out of four this season.

His performances at The Bend have not only put him in contention for a full-time drive next year but it has also helped him prepare for this year’s Great Race.

The car he’s driving at the mountain is exactly the same as the car he used at The Bend.

A crash to Thomas Randle, at the same event, destroyed his car, which forced the team to use Best’s car for the rest of the season.

The combination of Randle and Best now has the advantage of both drivers racing the car this year.

No other team has had the luxury.

“I think it is definitely beneficial,” he said.

“I’m one with the car because of how we went at Tailem Bend and I’ve done two rounds under my belt with the car.

“I’ve got a bit of confidence going in there, knowing the car and its setup for us and I’m very comfortable with it.”

While his focus is on a good performance at the Bathurst 1000, he does have one eye on his Super 2 campaign with a round also to be held at Mount Panorama on the same weekend.

“I’m still in the hunt for the Super 2 title and that is something I want to get after finishing runner up last year,” Best said.

“It’s really something we’re pushing hard for.”

Win, lose or draw for Best he still remains a country boy at heart.

He is still based at Benalla, where he was born and raised, and doesn’t see it changing anytime soon.

And Benalla has played a major part of his career with Best learning his craft at the nearby racetrack at Winton.

He’s spent plenty of weekends and test days at the venue, honing his craft to get better.

It’s an advantage not many other country drivers get the privilege of having.

“Having a racetrack so close is handy,” he said.

“(When we test) I get to sleep in my own bed and I’m five minutes away from the track.

“It’s just fantastic, when we have test days I don’t have to travel.

“I wouldn’t say the track is an advantage because everyone does laps there all the time.

“It’s the same test track for everyone but it definitely feels like home out there and I know everyone out there.”

Before he turned to racing Best had a country upbringing and sporting background much like all his Benalla classmates.

“Growing up in Benalla, being a country boy, I loved it,” he said.

“I always played footy and stuff as a kid, did anything all the country kids did, and rode motorbikes and stuff like that.

“I love the area and every time I go away and come back it feels like home.

“It’s really good to have the support behind me.”

His goal for the race is to finish on the podium with Randle.

His confidence at the mountain is also at an all-time high.

“After my first 1000 I felt like I got a groove and felt like I knew the track more and how it works,” Best said.

“I wouldn’t say I’ve conquered the mountain but you feel like you know where it can bite and where not to be and where to be.”

He also hopes his performances in the next few weeks can get him a drive in 2023.

He’s vying for a drive with Tickford Racing but could also move to another team if it eventuates.

“I’d really like to be on the main game grid next year, it is something I want to do and I feel I deserve to be there now after a strong showing.

“I feel like I have the pace to be there.

“But it’s all availability of seats and all how the commercial things work out.

“I’ll do my best and that’s all I can do and where I end up is where I end up.”

The Bathurst 1000 starts on Thursday, October 6, with the race to be held on Sunday, October 9.