MOTORSPORT: Supercars superpowers go to war

Australia’s Supercars championship superpowers fought an all-out war at Winton over the weekend with Triple Eight (T8) and DJR Team Penske (DJRTP) scoring a win apiece.

Scott McLaughlin won Saturday’s race in his DJRTP Shell V-Power Ford Falcon FG X, while Shane van Gisbergen led team-mate Jamie Whincup home in a T8 Red Bull Holden Racing Team one-two on Sunday.

Whincup’s two seconds for the weekend meant he jumped SvG into second place in the drivers’ championship, just four points behind McLaughlin’s teammate Fabian Coulthard, who was third in both races.

Meanwhile McLaughlin’s follow-up fifth on Sunday, despite a gearshift-cut issue, was enough to ensure he departed the weekend ahead of van Gisbergen in third in the championship.

Van Gisbergen dipped down the order after finishing only eighth on Saturday following a slow pitstop.

These four superstars are separated by just 37 points and have now pulled away from the rest of the field, which is led by Chaz Mostert. The Prodrive Racing Australia (PRA) Ford driver had a dreadful weekend, dropping out of second place on Saturday with a driveline failure and then qualifying only 17th on Sunday, before fighting his way back to eighth in a hectic race.

Despite his successes, it was still a case of what might have been for Whincup on Sunday, as he led after a safety car restart with only 13 laps to go on Sunday only to run wide and give up the lead under fierce pressure from van Gisbergen.

He also surrendered second to Coulthard, but got back in front of him when the Ford driver made an unsuccessful lunge at van Gisbergen a few corners later and was hung out wide.

Following on from a dramatic scramble on the opening laps, it was the second brutal stoush in the race and exactly the sort of racing we hope for from these pitlane heavyweights for the rest of the year.

Sunday was the first ever win for van Gisbergen at Winton and the first in Red Bull colours for T8. It was also the first win for the team since the truncated non-points Saturday crash-fest in Tasmania. Incredibly, Ford Falcons had won every race since Tassie.

If Whincup had finished on top it would have equaled him on 105 all-time race wins with teammate, Craig Lowndes.

“I did everything to get across that line first,” Whincup said.

“I pushed as hard as I could to be in that box seat. Safety car at the wrong time, dirt on the track, the car was loose on the restart -- what could go wrong, did go wrong.

“We didn't win the race, I haven't won a race this year and it is starting to get on my nerves. We have the potential, we need to get there,” Whincup lamented.

On Saturday McLaughlin had gapped the field and won his 150th championship race comfortably. Both days he qualified on pole to grow his 2017 tally to five. No-one else is close.

While the rest of the field were very much the supporting cast, it didn’t stop them putting on one hell of a show.

Saturday’s race featured a brawling, snarling pack that inevitably exploded on the last lap, with James Courtney ending up in the sand trap after a run-in with former teammate, Nick Percat.

For Courtney, it was just insult added to the injuries his 2017 season has been so far.

Walkinshaw Racing continued to struggle at Winton, which was hardly a surprise, while Nissan Motorsport was unable to get an Altima into the top 10 in either race and then fined $13,000 and 84 championship points for various misdemeanours.

On the bright side, nominees for best supporting driver included David Reynolds for his charge from 14th to fourth on Saturday and Cam Waters for the same result on Saturday after qualifying in that position. Garth Tander and Will Davison meanwhile scored two top 10s and Craig Lowndes drove to sixth on Saturday after qualifying down the back. He was off the back again on Sunday as his qualifying blues continued.

Young Holden driver, James Golding showed the best from of any of the three wildcards in 16th on Saturday.

The championship now draws breath, with the next round scheduled in Darwin on June 16-18.

Virgin Australia Supercars Championship standings
1 Fabian Coulthard, Shell V-Power Racing Team Ford Falcon FG X -- 1060 points
2 Jamie Whincup, Red Bull Holden Racing Team Holden Commodore VF -- 1056
4 Scott McLaughlin, Shell V-Power Racing Team Ford Falcon FG X -- 1032
4 Shane van Gisbergen, Red Bull Holden Racing Team Holden Commodore VF -- 1023
5 Chaz Mostert, Supercheap Auto Racing Ford Falcon FG X -- 861
6 Garth Tander, Wilson Security Racing GRM Holden Commodore VF -- 804
7 Mark Winterbottom, The Bottle-O Racing Team Ford Falcon FG X -- 798
8 Craig Lowndes, Team Vortex Holden Commodore VF -- 726
9 David Reynolds, Erebus Penrite Racing Holden Commodore VF -- 717
10 Cameron Waters, Monster Energy Racing Ford Falcon FG X -- 703