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Speaker 1: Supercars back this weekend. By the way, one did the

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Speaker 1: word with Matt Pain at twenty one, he's one of

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Speaker 1: the sport's big prospects. Another key we flying the flag

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Speaker 1: very successfully and motorsport internationally. Rookie last year is in

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Speaker 1: a second season with Penske sits fifth as they head

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Speaker 1: into Tasmania this weekend. Matt Pain is, well, it's very

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Speaker 1: good morning to you.

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Speaker 2: Yeah, good morning, Mike.

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Speaker 1: How are you listening? Very well? Now for people who

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Speaker 1: don't follow supercars that closely, just work us through the

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Speaker 1: jump because you were previously in Toyota. Eighty six is

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Speaker 1: beatling round places like Hampton Downs. You've jumped into the

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Speaker 1: big car. Now, what's the difference from eighty six is

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Speaker 1: to supercars?

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Speaker 2: It's a very large, large gap you have sort of

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Speaker 2: asked there eighty six's are obviously it's been a lot

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Speaker 2: lot different cars to what a supercar is, you know,

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Speaker 2: supercars to queens your if the pedal box is a

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Speaker 2: lot different, style of driving is probably a lot different

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Speaker 2: as well, so you know the characteristics of the car

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Speaker 2: are completely different. But also the level of competition and

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Speaker 2: supercars is super high, so it's a big, big step

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Speaker 2: up going from from an eighty six in New Zealand

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Speaker 2: all the way across the debts these guys are these

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Speaker 2: guys are played for keeps.

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Speaker 1: How much more confident are you feeling this year from

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Speaker 1: the learnings that you took out of last year?

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Speaker 2: Yeah, I think it's it's a good question. Like last year,

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Speaker 2: I definitely you know, set it out as a learning

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Speaker 2: year and trying to gather as much knowledge as I

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Speaker 2: can and you know, just try and trying to tick

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Speaker 2: all the boxes. So it's this year has been it's

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Speaker 2: been okay, you know, like we had a really good

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Speaker 2: start and you know, the Grand Prix was was really

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Speaker 2: promising with a couple of podiums and a poll and

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Speaker 2: New Zealand probably didn't get as much as I wanted

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Speaker 2: out of that. I think we left a little bit

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Speaker 2: on the table and then kind of struggled a little

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Speaker 2: bit through the through the midway of the year with

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Speaker 2: the car. So things are picking back up again now,

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Speaker 2: like it's definitely going back into the direction we want.

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Speaker 2: So yeah, hopefully you know we can continue that and

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Speaker 2: finish out the year you know, strong and not have

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Speaker 2: too many Bogue tracks to go back to next year.

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Speaker 1: I mean if you look, I put modesty aside for

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Speaker 1: a moment. If you look at your last four races,

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Speaker 1: you've been on the podium twice for goodness sake, come

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Speaker 1: back to top on just a moment. But as a

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Speaker 1: young guy news to this game, you are winning. I mean,

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Speaker 1: you can't ask for much more than that.

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Speaker 2: No, it's pretty good when you know. Obviously Council was

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Speaker 2: really good for us to sort of come back and

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Speaker 2: get that when it was we really needed it at

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Speaker 2: that time. You know, we were struggling a little bit

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Speaker 2: before that and you know, probably lost our way a

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Speaker 2: little bit, but to come back and it just gives

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Speaker 2: you so much confidence, you know, for the rest of

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Speaker 2: the year. And it was really really important for us

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Speaker 2: to try and somewhat back it up at Sydney, and

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Speaker 2: I think we kind of did that. You know, our

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Speaker 2: qualifying card definitely needs improving, but it's yeah to be fair,

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Speaker 2: Like I just want to be rent winning races. So

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Speaker 2: that's that's the goal at the moment.

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Speaker 1: See, Taupo was a very good example of what I've

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Speaker 1: noticed about you. You came forth eventually in the race,

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Speaker 1: but but you were first in the shootout. In other words,

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Speaker 1: you you are fast. So what's the difference between qualifying

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Speaker 1: first and the race itself.

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Speaker 2: Yeah, at the start of the year, we had a

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Speaker 2: really strong qualifying car. You know, it wasn't wasn't hard,

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Speaker 2: It wasn't a real stretch for us to be inside

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Speaker 2: the top five most of the time when it when

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Speaker 2: it came to qualifying. But it's the race. The race

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Speaker 2: set up requires a little bit different sort of balance

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Speaker 2: to the car, and it's probably something we didn't quite

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Speaker 2: understand at the start of the year and we were

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Speaker 2: probably a little bit lost. So it's probably why you know,

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Speaker 2: you see results like like Talpo kind of slip away

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Speaker 2: and we do all the work to qualify on the

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Speaker 2: front row, but doesn't really get rewarded for the race

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Speaker 2: result because the car just wasn't quite in the window

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Speaker 2: of what we needed. So and it's kind of funny

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Speaker 2: because now we've kind of flipped that around and now

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Speaker 2: our qualifying car is not necessarily very strong and we're

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Speaker 2: just kind of making the top ten, but our race

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Speaker 2: car has definitely improved. And you know, now even though

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Speaker 2: we've made some mistakes and we're qualifying tents and eleventh,

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Speaker 2: but we're still able to race forward. To a possible podium,

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Speaker 2: which is a really good thing to have, but also

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Speaker 2: we need to find the right balance to get the

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Speaker 2: qualifying car back in the window to make our life

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Speaker 2: easier fast.

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Speaker 1: Up, which is I suppose one of the most fascinating

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Speaker 1: things for people who follow supercars. I mean, the gap

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Speaker 1: at the top of the field is just so minute,

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Speaker 1: you know, tenths of a second. For goodness sake, these days,

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Speaker 1: how much mucking around goes on with these cars and

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Speaker 1: how much of it might work out well versus you know,

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Speaker 1: it being pure guesswork.

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Speaker 2: Look, it's really crucial of how you roll out at

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Speaker 2: the start of a weekend and your first couple of

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Speaker 2: apps or your first two runs in practice really you know,

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Speaker 2: sort of tell you how your weekend is going to go.

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Speaker 2: You can sometimes we've rolled out and it's been in

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Speaker 2: the top three, and you know we're going to make

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Speaker 2: you know, two or three set up tweaks, but not

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Speaker 2: massive things during practice, and that's kind of all it

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Speaker 2: needs sometimes And then other times you roll out in

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Speaker 2: your sixteenth and you're kind of like, oh, it feels okay,

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Speaker 2: but five tenths off the leader, we definitely need something.

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Speaker 2: So then you're kind of just working on what you

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Speaker 2: need and trying to achieve that and you know, probably

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Speaker 2: taking bigger swings at it then you would have if

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Speaker 2: it just needed a little bit of a tweak when

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Speaker 2: you try to find that margin. So yeah, sometimes you

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Speaker 2: can roll out and be really strong and not have

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Speaker 2: to think too hard about it and just go and

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Speaker 2: drive it. And then sometimes you roll out and you're

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Speaker 2: slow and you're sort of scratching your head and you think, wow,

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Speaker 2: this is it's going to be a long weekend.

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Speaker 1: Let's talk about some of the names legends of the

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Speaker 1: sport in your side, Garth Tender, Couchy, Alista McVeigh. These

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Speaker 1: are legends. How useful are they to somebody like you?

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Speaker 2: It's been huge getting these people, and you know, I've

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Speaker 2: worked with with Couchy and Now and even gas Now

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Speaker 2: for a couple of years, and it was it was

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Speaker 2: really exciting at the start when this whole kind of

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Speaker 2: project was coming together with this team that you know,

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Speaker 2: they obviously sid out to get the right people. So

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Speaker 2: it's been really good to work with them and obviously

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Speaker 2: they know what it takes to get it done and

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Speaker 2: and just sort of been learning from the knowledge of

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Speaker 2: of what they know and trying to sort of craft

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Speaker 2: myself into being you know, the best kind of all

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Speaker 2: rounder for a racing driver has been has been really important.

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Speaker 2: Like Garth is a little bit older and anything around

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Speaker 2: for a long time, so he's really he was in

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Speaker 2: that period where the races were they were really hard core,

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Speaker 2: you know, so probably a little bit harder than what

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Speaker 2: we are now in these days. But it's it's interesting,

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Speaker 2: you know, learning from him, and then he goes about

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Speaker 2: things in a slightly different way, which is really interesting.

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Speaker 2: And and yeah, just just you know, having having those

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Speaker 2: people around and the persona they carry is important for

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Speaker 2: the rest of the team exactly.

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Speaker 1: And you're very lucky right to this weekend Matt Tasmania

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Speaker 1: does does the track bother you? By the way? I

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Speaker 1: mean some small tracks A funny little trick, isn't it.

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Speaker 2: Yeah, looks to be to be honest, Like, it's probably

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Speaker 2: not my most favorite on the calendar. It's only really

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Speaker 2: got three corners if you think about it, for three

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Speaker 2: opportunities to kind of get it right. So it's tough,

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Speaker 2: you know, it makes things difficult when you're when you're

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Speaker 2: trying to get you know, the right set up and

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Speaker 2: trying to get a lap out of it when the

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Speaker 2: times are, you know, the closest they probably will be

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Speaker 2: all year, So I probably prefer, you know, to go

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Speaker 2: out slightly longer tracks like I don't know that the

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Speaker 2: Bend or Battles or you know, even Taupo and things

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Speaker 2: like that. Slightly longer tracks are probably more my style.

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Speaker 2: But in saying that, like last year, we weren't particularly

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Speaker 2: strong at Tasmania, but we weren't particularly strong at Sydney

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Speaker 2: and we went really well this year, So it's really

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Speaker 2: a track that I want to look forward to coming

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Speaker 2: to and I really like Tasmania. It's the cool place.

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Speaker 2: It's a little bit different to the rest of Australia.

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Speaker 2: So it's I'm really looking forward to this week in

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Speaker 2: and trying to sort of flip around last year's result

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Speaker 2: to a positive note.

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Speaker 1: And past this weekend. Are you aiming for thinking about

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Speaker 1: Bethhurst yet or not?

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Speaker 2: Ah, Yeah, definitely now that the injury season's coming up,

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Speaker 2: it's it's not far away. It's really it's the perfect

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Speaker 2: opportunity to get big points and make you a bit

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Speaker 2: of a move in the championship, so it's it's important

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Speaker 2: we've got Garth on board and co driving with him

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Speaker 2: is going to be really good. He's he's always pretty

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Speaker 2: much falls when it comes to the two races. So

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Speaker 2: we're definitely you know, eyes onto it at the moment,

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Speaker 2: trying to focus on that. But we've got to focus

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Speaker 2: on getting Tasmania out of the lay first and sort

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Speaker 2: of gorowing good points here as well, because it's you

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Speaker 2: don't and so easily you know, turn upside down when

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Speaker 2: you just don't have car quite right and you're battling

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Speaker 2: and outside that top ten, it makes life pretty hard.

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Speaker 2: So we've got a job to do here first, but then

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Speaker 2: we'll be full focused on the on the standown and past.

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Speaker 1: So your fifth currently, what's a good year? I mean,

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Speaker 1: obviously winning is a great year, but but but realistically,

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Speaker 1: what would you be happy with?

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Speaker 2: Well, I think, you know, being I really want to

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Speaker 2: stay inside the top five in the championship and and

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Speaker 2: you know, fourth camp camps not far away, only fifty

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Speaker 2: points away, so I think there's a possibility to get forth.

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Speaker 2: But we're really going to need to be on top

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Speaker 2: of our game if we want to try and you know,

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Speaker 2: start making moves to towards the front. Guys we need

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Speaker 2: to be in the top three every single race, so

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Speaker 2: that's that's pretty tough. The competition is obviously very high,

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Speaker 2: but yeah it's in the top five for the Chemish,

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Speaker 2: but I think for me would would be a good

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Speaker 2: the dissolved and trying to just you know, get the

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Speaker 2: get the team's championships, get them as high as we

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Speaker 2: can as well, because that's that's important for us.

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Speaker 1: You're still pinching yourself or you know, living the dream

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Speaker 1: where you're sort of a hard bit and old vet.

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Speaker 2: Now I feel like I'm a little bit of a hard,

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Speaker 2: old old guy, you know, just being in it the

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Speaker 2: second year. But no, it's obviously pretty cool to be

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Speaker 2: doing what I'm doing and you know, get get to

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Speaker 2: call this my job technically, but even though it still

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Speaker 2: doesn't feel like a job. So I'm not sure if

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Speaker 2: that day will ever come where I feel like it's

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Speaker 2: so it's worse, But I'm just enjoying it at the

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Speaker 2: moment and trying to do the best thing I can

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Speaker 2: to move forward each day and just trying to get

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Speaker 2: more wins and then get a better results.

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Speaker 1: Well go, well, well, good to have you on the program.

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Speaker 1: We'll talk again. Matt Payne, who's part of the supercar

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Speaker 1: crowd this coming weekend in Tasmania. Another great key. We're

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Speaker 1: doing very well internationally. For more from the Mic Asking Breakfast,

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Speaker 1: listen live to news talks it'd be from six am weekdays,

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Speaker 1: or follow the podcast on iHeartRadio