MOTORSPORT: Sydney finale so important for V8 Supercars

Courtney has 2932 points after 24 races in the V8 Supercar Championship, Whincup 2879 and Winterbottom 2729 – so 53 points between first and second, 150 between second and third, 203 between first and third. There's a maximum 300 points for any of them to earn in the weekend's two 250km races. Courtney's therefore in the box seat for the title.

Both Courtney and Winterbottom are western Sydney boys, even though neither resides there now. They're driving Ford Falcons, while Whincup is in a Holden Commodore after winning the championship the past two years in Ford.

There's a lot going for this second Sydney Telstra 500 at the 2000 Olympics precinct. Apart from the country's premier race series, the Fujitsu development series, the utes, the Touring Car Masters and the soon-to-be-no-more MINI Challenge are on the program (although not the exciting little Aussie Racing Cars, despite them being built just down the road). And there are big music concerts Saturday and Sunday nights.

While the V8 Supercar Championship has come down to the wire, as it ideally should, this weekend is going to be an important test of the strength of the category. A test in terms of the attendance the event draws to the circuit and the TV audience it attracts in Sydney and around the country, up against the Australian Open golf tournament, also in Sydney, and an Ashes cricket test in Adelaide.

It also will compete for attention with the never-ending stream of football news, especially the wash-up from Australia missing out overnight on hosting the 2022 soccer World Cup and the latest episode of players from whichever code behaving badly.

On top of all this, there's the strong prospect of a weekend of dodgy weather. Scattered showers are forecast for Sydney both days of the weekend.

A lot of NSW taxpayer dollars have gone into the Sydney Telstra 500 – most of it in the set-up for the first one last year.

Year one was moderately successful by many measures, although it didn't have the enthralling championship battle that this year does. Twelve months ago Whincup only needed to start one of the Homebush races to seal the title. Now this season's grand finale needs to find its place in the V8 Supercar – and broader Australian motor racing, and general sporting – charts.

As the conclusion to the championship, and the decider, in the biggest city and market in the country it needs to establish itself as at least the equal of Adelaide's 500 and the Gold Coast's now 600.

When V8 Supercar chief Tony Cochrane was fighting to establish the Sydney Telstra 500, and finally got his way with the NSW government, there were some saying it would be "The Bathurst of the Big Smoke". That's not something it's going to become in a couple of years.

First it needs to set itself above 10 or so other rounds and, as noted above, at least the equal of Adelaide and the Gold Coast.

Those other two have their own advantages – Adelaide being the first Australian round of the championship and a city with a particular passion for motor racing, and the Gold Coast its setting and sunshine (as well its location in the stronghold of V8 Supercar racing). Sydney has what ought to be one huge plus – not that the racing is run on the hallowed streets of the Olympic site, nor that the competition is supplemented by big concerts (so are Adelaide and the Gold Coast), not even that it is slap, bang in the middle of the country's biggest market, but that it is here that Australia's major motor racing championship climaxes.

Any of the three potential champions should be good news.

Courtney is already well known beyond the motorsport community for his television dancing stint. He'll be a breath of fresh air as champion -- no disrespect to Whincup intended.

The champion of the past two seasons has accumulated an amazing record in a short term. All the more amazing, still, because he was not rated highly by a couple of team owners who otherwise have shown a sharp eye for talent – Garry Rogers and Larry Perkins.

Winterbottom has been a bridesmaid in V8 Supercar racing for quite some time but if he were to come from so far behind to steal the title it would be a sensation.

For Ford, having seen Team Vodafone/Triple Eight Race Engineering take Whincup and Craig Lowndes across to Holden this season and seemingly set to see Courtney switch to Toll Holden Racing Team next year, the title in the hands of Ford Performance Racing's lead driver Winterbottom would be the best outcome.

But it's hard to envisage that it won't be Courtney hoisting the trophy on Sunday.

An incredible success it will be for him, in light of the turmoil that has embroiled Dick Johnson/Jim Beam Racing for so much of the season – and so publicly since around Bathurst time.

Courtney was a karting world champion and gave open-wheeler racing a big shot overseas – getting to the brink of Formula One. To have come home and settled into V8 Supercar racing, a national title five years later is deserved. He will be the face of the triumph.

Yet, we can't help thinking there is an irony to it all. Two and three years ago Dick Johnson, a multiple champion and Bathurst winner, was on skid row in V8 Supercars. DJR almost collapsed. Johnson's standing in many eyes was greatly diminished – particularly the eyes of creditors.

A forklift entrepreneur, Charlie Schwerkolt, then came to the rescue, buying half the team.

Schwerkolt is given much of the credit for turning around the team's fortunes. Yet Johnson and Schwerkolt have fallen out. Bitterly and, it seems, irretrievably.

For weeks it looked as though Schwerkolt would untangle himself from the DJR ownership imbroglio and take Courtney to run under the FPR umbrella next year. Now it appears Courtney is destined for HRT and Schwerkolt, surely the biggest shaker and mover in V8 Supercar circles of late, is in something of a no man's land in the sport.

And, if Courtney becomes champion this weekend, he will go into the history books having done it for Dick Johnson. It's a curious irony.

We make no judgment on either Johnson or Schwerkolt. Just glad that Australia's oldest touring car team survives, and hope a neat solution is found to the mess behind the success already achieved this year.

And may the best driver win the championship on the weekend.