MOTORSPORT: Bathurst boost for Davison

While a new generation of young stars grab the spotlight, defending Bathurst 1000 champion Will Davison is determined to remind the Supercars world of his talent in this Sunday’s Great Race.

Davison arrives at Bathurst one of the centerpieces of the driver silly season. His deal is up with Holden privateer team Tekno Autosports at the end of this year and there is no news about whether he will stay at the low-budget single-car squad or move on.

In years past Davison has been in high demand among teams, but with younger drivers arriving on the scene and a sponsorship package often helpful in securing a drive, his 2018 home doesn’t yet appear obvious.

But the 35-year-old, who finished championship runner-up in 2009 and third in 2013, is both philosophical about his situation and determined to keep racing full-time in the category.

“It is a brutal, ruthless category nowadays and it’s fantastic,” Davison said. “You have to look at it as a real challenge to dig deep and try and get more out of yourself.

“I definitely know I am capable to be in there and mixing it up for the championship. I still have it in me and I am keen to secure my future so I can get on with it.”

Davison and co-driver Jonathon Webb took the win in sensational circumstances last year, finishing second on the road behind the Jamie Whincup, who dropped back to 11th after being penalised 15 seconds for his part in a spectacular late-race multi-car crash.

They had to wait nine days to be confirmed winners after an appeal by Whincup’s team, Triple Eight Race Engineering, was finally rejected by CAMS.

It was Davison’s second win in the 1000 and the first for Webb, who also owns the Tekno operation.

It was also Davison’s first season with Tekno and he finished the championship in fifth place. But this year has been less successful as the team has struggled for pace as it has gone through fundamental personnel and technical changes.

“If you can put yourself in the top five at Bathurst anything can happen,” says Davison. “That’s certainly our goal, we know we will have a strong package.

“Our car is capable of being quick and that’s what we have to focus on as a group.”

A win for Davison and Webb would be an even bigger surprise than 2016. The clear favourites for the race are the Red Bull Holden Racing Team Commodores of Whincup and co-driver Paul Dumbrell and defending Supercars champion Shane van Gisbergen and his co-driver Matt Campbell.

The performance of Whincup will be one of the leading storylines of the weekend, given the controversies he has been embroiled in over the last three years and his “win it or bin it” attitude.

The DJR Team Penske Shell V-Power Ford Falcon FG Xs of championship leader Scott McLaughlin and co-driver Alex Premat and Fabian Coulthard and Tony D’Alberto will challenge the Bulls, but this is a rebuilding organisation yet to prove its mettle in endurance racing.

The team’s brain trust must also be conscious that McLaughlin has an 84-point championship lead to defend over Whincup, with Coulthard third 161 points off the pace.

Following the Sandown 500 success for young guns Cameron Waters and Richie Stanaway, the revitalized Prodrive Racing Australia Falcons loom large as challengers. Chaz Mostert and Steve Owen will also be contenders from this squad, as should 2013 winner Mark Winterbottom and his co-driver Dean Canto.

Mostert is fourth in the championship, 282 points behind McLaughlin. The winner takes home 300 points on Sunday.

Van Gisbergen will also be worth watching. Now 414 points off the championship lead, he will be more inclined to chase the win than play safe.

Among the rest of the field look out for the Craig Lowndes/Steven Richards TeamVortex Commodore, Garth Tander/James Golding GRM Commodore and the Erebus Commodore of David Reynolds and motoring.com.au’s Luke Youlden to figure toward the front at some stage.

As this was written it had still not been confirmed if Ash Walsh would join Tim Slade in the Brad Jones Racing Freightliner Commodore. Walsh is fighting to be fit after being injured in a testing accident in a sports car at Phillip Island last week.

Meanwhile here's what to look out for at Mount Panorama this weekend:

>>The Supercheap Auto Bathurst 1000 is t race 20 of the Virgin Australia Supercars Championship. It includes practice on Thursday, Friday and Saturday and qualifying on Friday and Saturday, the latter for the top 10 only. On Sunday the 161 lap classic kicks off at 11.10am after an 8.05am warm-up.

>> All qualifying and racing will be conducted on the 2016-spec Dunlop control tyre.

>> All cars will have to make at least seven stops. The co-drivers must complete one-third distance.

>> The anti-clockwise 6.213km track has a top speed of 300km/h (theoretically anyway). Average speed is 178km/h. The public road circuit is rated as one of the world’s great motor racing venues, combining flat-out drags up and down the mountain with a fast, swooping series of corners across the top that challenge the driver’s skill and bravery and the car set-up.

>> Jamie Whincup owns the practice/qualifying lap record at 2m 04.9097 sec, while David Reynolds holds the race lap record at 2m 06.2769 sec.

>> Seven different drivers have taken pole potion in the last eight years. Garth Tander in 2009 is the only one of those seven to have followed up with the race win, which he achieved with Will Davison.

>> This is the 57th running of Australia’s most famous race, including the two 2.0-litre Super Tourer races held in 1997 and 1998. A total of 56 drivers have won the race and 19 of them are multiple victors.

>> The late great Peter Brock has the most wins with nine, with Jim Richards on seven and Craig Lowndes the leading active driver with six.

>> Holden has won Bathurst outright 31 times and Ford 19. Nissan, which is also on the grid this year, has won twice.

>> Safety cars play a key role in determining the outcome of the 1000. On average over the last 10 years, the safety car has been deployed more than six times each race.

>> Four-time Bathurst winner Steven Richards will make his 200th Supercars championship race start at Mount Panorama. Richards is co-driving with Craig Lowndes in the TeamVortex Holden Commodore.

>> Lowndes/Richards are one of only nine driver pairings that are unchanged from 2016.

>> Fox Sports and Channel 10 will telecast the action live.