14. Yes, that’s the number of Australians who have ever competed in the NASCAR Cup Series. And Cameron “Cam” Waters is one of them, having made his debut at Sonoma Raceway. He had already made a pair of starts in the Truck Series earlier this year, but when the chance came to drive RFK Racing’s third entry in Wine Country, the 29-year-old couldn’t pass it up. While his debut was always going to be a one-off this season, Cam Waters has no immediate plans to compete in the Cup Series again.

It was far from a fairytale race for Waters, who was involved in a multi-car collision on Lap 35, and was eventually forced to retire after 66 laps and a 35th-place finish.

A disappointing debut for Cam Waters

In an interview with Frontstretch, Cam Waters was asked about his debut race in Sonoma. The 29-year-old replied, “Yeah, we just had kind of too much damage, heaps of steering damage and we kept trying to fix it and then we had kind of another little incident right at the end there which proper bend the car so bit of a shame.”

When asked if he had the urge to come back for another Cup race, Waters said, “Yeah whenever I can, whenever it fits into my schedule I’d love to come over and do a few more. Yeah, for this year it’s probably all it’s going to be, but maybe next year we can do a couple more like we have this year and yeah I’ll just absolutely love the experience.”

It was clear from the get-go that the Supercars driver was struggling to adapt in Sonoma, evident during qualifying as well. He started the race 31st but slowly progressed into the top 20 by Stage 2. However, on lap 35 of 110, Josh Berry hit the inside wall in Turn 11, turned onto the track, and collided with several cars.

At least seven cars were affected by the incident, including Christopher Bell and Martin Truex Jr. Down but not out, Waters’ #60 Ford soldiered on until lap 66 after which he was finally forced to enter the pits with severe suspension damage. But alongside him making a first-time show was fellow Supercars race Will Brown.

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How did the other debutant fare

Featuring in the third car for Richard Childress Racing, Brown struggled in qualifying after a throttle issue left Brown with only 75 percent power, which meant he started the race in Sonoma in 24th place.

During the race, the racer climbed up the positions by capitalizing on his speed, competitors stopping in the pits, and incidents occurring on the track. He managed to climb as high as 11th place at one time by gaining 13 positions. However, he dropped back with a strategic decision to pit under caution during the closing laps of Stage 1.

Things went from bad to worse from that point on, as Brown was running in the mid-20s before his #33 Camaro developed electrical problems for the second day in a row. He initially pulled off into the infield at the exit of Turn 11, triggering a caution at which time he went into the pit lane.

By the time Brown resumed, he was already four laps behind in 36th place during the seventh caution period and ended up finishing the race in 31st place, three laps behind, and with seven drivers who didn’t finish the race behind him.

What did you think of Cam Waters’ performance at Sonoma? Let us know in the comments!