Gardner's Slearning Curve
THE SUNDAY AGE
Saturday July 17, 1993
SO FIERCE is Wayne Gardner's desire to win that he would rather crash in the attempt than settle for second. Add to that his inexperience racing on four wheels, and throw him into one of the hottest touring- car championships going, and you've got a potent recipe.
Gardner's win-or-bust attitude endeared him to millions of motorcycle race fans but infuriated team managers. It is now having a similar effect on his rivals in the Australian touring-car championship where he is known as ``Captain Chaos".
Controversy has followed Gardner since his touring-car debut. Last weekend's series at Perth's Wanneroo Raceway was no exception.
His first race was interrupted by a spin probably caused by inexperience. In the following race, he passed Neil Crompton for second spot only to be sent into a spin when Crompton slammed into his back.
For critics, it was simply another case of Captain Chaos on the loose. But Wanneroo winner Jim Richards leapt to his defence.
``Wayne is doing really well considering his inexperience," Richards said. ``He's only been racing touring cars for six months and he's already driving as well as many of us.
``There are also a few drivers out there miffed at being beaten by the new kid on the block, and they lean on him a bit harder than they would someone with more experience.
Peter Molloy, the Sydney race engineer who steered Gardner through his early motorcycle years, remembers him as someone who ``couldn't tolerate being beaten".
``All he wanted to do was to ride the bike fast ... he was all throttle and balls ... but he wouldn't think about what he was doing," Molloy said. ``He tended to rush things; he had to learn the hard way.
The injuries hastened his retirement. By that time, Gardner had become the most successful Australian motorcycle racer ever, winning 18 Grand Prix races and the 1987 500cc world championship.
When Gardner turned to cars, it surprised many that the Holden racing team would pin its faith on a 33-year-old with virtually no experience racing cars. But Neal Lowe, the team manager, gambled on Gardner's burning desire to win. ``If a guy has the talent to win the world championship on bikes, he's obviously got tremendous talent," Lowe said.
Lowe realised he would have to be patient with Gardner after watching him race a BMW in Germany.
``I knew that he had the speed when he kept up with the recognised aces in Germany, although I also saw that he was very wild," Lowe said. ``But I felt it was easier for me to try to slow him down than it was to get someone else who wasn't as capable and try to make them go faster.
For Gardner, the transition meant that he had to learn new techniques.
``You have to have a lot more finesse in the Commodore where you can manhandle the bike," he said. ``For instance, you can't go rushing up into a corner, stamp on the brakes and turn as you can on the bike because the car will simply lock the brakes and go straight on.
Molloy and Lowe believe that Gardner will succeed, given more time in the driving seat.
But he also must adjust to a different on-track etiquette. ``In bikes, there's more respect between the riders because it's a lot more dangerous if there's a clash," Gardner said, ``but in cars they block you even if you are clearly quicker.
© 1993 THE SUNDAY AGE