Motor racing can raise drivers up and just as quickly knock them back down again, Ant Pedersen has discovered. He talked to Catherine Pattison about the life and luck of a ''semi'' professional V8 SuperTourer driver.
In the first round of the 2014 season, however, Pedersen's Ford Falcon ''struggled most of the weekend'' at Highlands Motorsport Park.
''We rocked up here with high expectations. High hopes. But the car really hasn't been where we wanted it to be.''
Pedersen (25) has sampled success - he and Australian co-driver Chaz Mostert won the SuperTourers endurance championship, staged within the overall series - and he is hungry for more.
''I need to try and get that step further. It was a tight finish last year and after that you really want to get that No 1,'' he said.
After cutting his teeth in the Mini ranks, moving up to Porsches, completing three seasons in the SuperTourers and dabbling in V8 Supercars, Pedersen has been recognised as a good driver. Last year, he surprised many as he established himself in the top tier, finishing ahead of full-time V8 Supercar drivers Shane Van Gisbergen and Scott McLaughlin.
''I've grown in confidence. When you're racing successfully with these guys, who do it fulltime through the year in Australia, it gives you confidence that you can foot it with the best in this part of the world,'' Pedersen said.
Does it mean that he has a paid SuperTourer drive with his Auckland-based International Motorsport team?The short answer is ''no'', and with the knowledge that landing one is rare, he has just completed his chartered accountancy qualifications.
Although Pedersen would love racing to be his ''fulltime gig'', for now, crunching numbers for an accountancy firm helps pay the bills.
And what big bills they are. A season in the V8 SuperTourers will cost a team between $250,000 and $300,000 to run a car. Cross the Ditch and you are looking at up to $700,000 to compete in the V8 Supercars Development Series and add another $300,000 to that figure to drive in its fully fledged big brother.
Even exceptionally talented drivers will be required to stump up some cash, whether it's their own or through their sponsors, Pedersen said.
''Ninety-nine, in fact 100% of the time, there's a 'how much can you bring?' discussion. Everything revolves around money.''
His Highlands weekend went from podium result, with a third in the first race, to a slip off the dais for fourth in the second race, to heartbreak in the final. Pedersen's Ford contracted a power steering problem in the pits, meaning he spent an agonising five laps of down time, before it was rectified and he could storm on to the track, trying to salvage some series points.
He is hanging in there in fourth, 99 points behind Murphy. Pedersen will have to grit his teeth and be soothed by the knowledge that there are six rounds to go and every chance fortune will swing in his favour.
