Hi to all you Supercars Fans around the World!
On the weekend of the 17th and 18th of July 2021 was the WD-40 Townsville Supersprint.
After the postponement of Winton and the Sydney Supernight this was the second event of a double header at Townsville.
On the previous weekend the Townsville 500 was dominated by the 888 team. All eyes were on them to see if they could do it again; Could Shane Van Gisbergen continue his fiery streak for the season? Could Jamie Whincup repeat his double win at this event last year, 2020?
In the Pre–race sessions the results were as follows:
- Scott Pye was fastest in Practice 1.
- Anton de Pasquale earned himself pole position for the first race of the weekend being fastest in the Amour All Qualifying and Top 10 shootout.
In race 17 Anton De Pasquale started on pole position with Cameron Waters alongside him.
Zane Goddard started 10th because he didn’t complete his top 10 shootout lap.
Cameron Waters led he opening stages of the race.
Behind him though there was chaos because cars were getting hit left right and centre.
Brodie Kostecki was battling with Shane Van Gisbergen for positions 5 and 6.
Tim Slade came in to pits early on lap 5 to get clear air.
The cars back in the pack tried to pass the cars in front. When they realised that they couldn’t the teams called them into pit in an attempt to get out of traffic and make time while the others pitted later.
Will Davison had a really slow stop when the crew had issues with with the gun on the front left tyre of car 17. THe delay cost him dearly. It was more than double the standard pit stop time.
Most teams were doing 3 tyre changes in the stop, others did 2 tyres.
Shane Van Gisbergen received a 15 second penalty for making contact with car #99 of Brodie Kostecki.
Then teammate, Jamie Whincup got a 15 second time penalty for exceeding the pit lane speed limit.
In the middle of the race Cameron Waters had the lead and looking good for his 2nd win of 2021.
He confidently held the lead to the end of the race coming in 2.8708 seconds ahead of Anton de Pasquale in second placed who was 1.587 seconds ahead of cheeky Chaz Mostert.
The three drivers were way ahead of the rest of the pack. The next contender in fourth place was Tim Slade crossing the line 10+ seconds later.
Results for Race 17
1st Cameron Waters – Tickford Racing.
2nd Anton De Pasquale – Dick Johnson Racing.
3rd Chaz Mostert – Walkinshaw Andretti United.
In Race 18 Jamie Whincup started on pole postion for the 91st time in his Supercars career! Alongside him was teammate Shane Van Gisbergen.
As the race got underway Jamie Whincup got the jump and led into turn 1 for the first of 39 laps.
Shane Van Gisbergen tried to go around the outside of Jamie Whincup but it couldn’t be done.
Tim Slade yet again came in to the pits early for clear air.
The cars further back in the pack came in early to get out of the traffic.
Meanwhile Jamie Whincup stayed out on track and at one stage worked up a 6 second lead.
Later, Todd Hazelwood managed a great pass and got down the inside of James Courtney at turn 11.
In the middle of the race Jamie Wincup and Shane Van Gisbergen were batting for the race lead and race win. Shane Van Gisbergern held the lead and the battle was fierce. Shane Van Gisbergen was told told to let Jamie Whincup past but he disobeyed team orders and didn’t do so. They were both in the heat of the moment. The teammates were racing against each other for all their worth.
At lap 25 of 39 Will Brown of Erebus Pedders Racing left the track and wasn’t able to continue. A few minutes later on lap 26 Macauley Jones of Coca-Cola Racing met the same fate and left the track. Both received an NC (not complete) for the race.
At the front end of the race, no one could catch Shane Van Gibergen as he built his lead over Whincup. He crossed the finish line 4.5+ seconds ahead of Jamie Whincup. Cheeky Chaz Mostert came across the line 3.5+ seconds later with Will Davison right on his tail. The three front drivers had a invincible lead over the rest of the pack. It was nearly 9 seconds before Todd Hazelwood took 5th place followed by Scott Pye. Both of them had gained 5 places throughout the race which is impressive for such a short sprint.
So once again Shane Van Gisbergen continues his 2021 winning streak. Fantastic!
Results for Race 18
1st Shane Van Gsbergergen – Red Bull Ampol Racing team.
2nd Jamie Whincup – Red Bull Ampol Racing Team
3rd Chaz Mostert – Walkinshaw Andretti United.
In race 19 Cameron Waters started on pole position alongside him was Shane Van Gisbergen.
As the race got underway Cameron Waters got the jump and led into turn 1 for the first of 39 laps.
Over Shane Van Gisbergen. ??? The cars further back in the pack came in to get clear track which worked.
The leaders stayed out longer because they had track position.
On lap 16 Macauley Jones again had to park his Coke Commordore after starting 8th on the grid and received his second NC for the weekend.
Shane Van Gisbergergen came in to get clear track.
Then Jamie Whincup also came in to get the undercut on Cameron Waters.
In the middle of the race Will Davison was in 3rd and looking good for a podium.
Towards the end of the race Shane Van Gisbergen was putting pressure on Cameron Waters for the race lead and race win. Cameron Waters experience kept him just out of reach from rivals and finished less than a second ahead of Shane Van Gisbergen.
Results for Race 19
1st Cameron Waters – Tickford Racing.
2nd Shane Van Gisbergen – Red Bull Ampol Racing Team.
3rd Will Davison – Dick Johnson Racing.
The next event is event 8 the Ipswich Supersprint on the 21st and 22nd of August 2021.
The gap between 1st and 2nd in the championship Shane Van Gisberen and Jamie Whincup is 276 points.