Tag Archives: Lucas Dumbrell

V8 Supercars 2017 Coates Hire Newcastle 500

Hi to all you V8 Supercars fans around the world!

On the weekend of the 24th to the 26th of November 2017 was the Coates Hire Newcastle 500.

This was the final race for the season. It was very exciting because the season champion was still to be determined and this race weekend was going to be the decider. The main championship contenders were Scott McLaughlin and Jamie Whincup. They were only separated by 30 points in favour of Jamie Whincup. I didn’t get the feeling either would hold back and there would be some incredible racing.

It was also the first race event at Newcastle, a seaside city about 2 hrs north of Sydney. This was a street circuit that no one had driven at before so it made the practice sessions all critical in order to determine their car setup for the race.

Due to the circuit being local streets, some parts are quite narrow and there are plenty of ups and downs for the drivers to navigate. This would mean a reduced opportunity for passing and possibly slower speeds.

Jamie Whincup went there a couple weeks in advance in a reconnaissance mission to get a feel for the area.

The weekend finally arrived and Newcastle put on a beautiful show. The weather was beautiful and sunny with the main straight running along the shore of the sparkling beach and great crowds had turned out for the spectacle.

On the Saturday Race 25 was for 95 laps. Due to the tight schedule for other race events it was also time certain so when the time was up the winner would be called regardless of laps.

It was a special occasion for Todd Kelly as this was his 540th V8 Supercars race, which is a long time to be in this sport.

Scott McLaughlin started on pole position alongside him was David Reynolds.

Scott McLaughlin got the jump on David Reynolds and got to turn 1 first.

Later in the first lap, Jamie Whincup made contact with Michael Caruso which as a result put Jamie Whincup into the wall and broke his right front steering arm.  This was not ideal considering he went into the Newcastle event 30 points ahead of Scott McLaughlin.

Mark Skaife and Neil Crompton couldn’t believe that Jamie Whincup managed to steer his car back to the pits.

During the opening stages Scott McLaughlin was the race leader until the first round of pit stops.

Up until that first round of pit stops Craig Lowndes was on track for his first podium finish in 2017. The last time he got a podium finish (1st, 2nd or 3rd) was the Sydney SuperSprint 2016.

There was contact between Jason Bright and Alex Davison. Jamie Whincup just missed being involved which would have been disastrous as he was already 13 laps behind the race leader as a result of having a broken steering arm.

Soon after, Simona de Silvestro pulled off some amazing driving passing a bunch of cars at turn 7. My first thoughts were after looking at the racetrack that the drivers wouldn’t be able to pass at turn 7 safely but she somehow managed to do it.

In the middle of the race the two DJR cars held the lead strongly.

As the race went on the schedule time was running out and the race was going to be called short.

The 2 DJR cars driven by Scott McLaughlin and Fabian Coulthard were too quick, their pace was really fast and reached the flag in a 1, 2 finish at lap 91 (4 laps short of the set laps).

It was such bad luck for Jamie Whincup. He had been making incredible gains, after being 13 laps behind he finished in 21st position only 2 laps behind the leader. If he just had a bit more time it would have been really interesting.

Results for race 25

1st Scott McLaughlin – Shell V Power Racing Team.
2nd Fabian Coulthard – Shell V Power Racing team.
3
rd Tim Slade – Brad Jones Racing Team. 

In Qualifying for race 26 James Courtney caused a red flag meaning his fastest time to that point was deleted and also meant he couldn’t take any further part in the session.

Scott McLaughlin started on pole position once again for the 16th time in 2017.  Alongside him was Shane Van Gisbergen.

Jamie Whincup started 5th on the grid.

At the start of the 95-lap race, Scott McLaughlin took the race lead, which was good for the DJR Team.

As the first round of pit stops started the Championship leader Scott McLaughlin got a pit lane penalty for exceeding the speed limit of 40kms p/h.  Then Fabian Coulthard pitted and had to try and fix his gearbox issue. After that Fabain Coulthard also received a pit lane penalty for the same infringement. That was a blow for the DJR Team Penske Crew.

Later Scott Mclaughlin turned Simona de Silvrestro around at turn 2. Scott McLaughlin received another penalty of 15 seconds. Things for Scott McLaughlin as one of the main championship contenders were not looking good.  Commentators Mark Skaife and Neil Crompton said it will be the longest 15 seconds of his life.

In the middle of the race the teams started to get organized for the 2nd round of stops to take place and prepare for the run to the finish.

When the Vodafone Safety Car was deployed it was to get Aaren Russell out of the tyre bundle. As a result that helped Scott McLaughlin big time.

At this stage of the race Scott McLaughlin was down the order in 16th position. He needed to finish in 11th to claim the title for 2017.

Scott McLaughlin’s car was bruised and battered and he was trying to do the best he could on the day.

Towards the end of the race with 2 laps to go, Craig Lowndes tried to get up inside of Scott McLaughlin at turn 1 but Scott McLaughlin blocked his pass and they made contact. This resulted in 2 things. First Craig Lowndes dropped from 6th to 10th. Second Scott McLaughlin got a post-race penalty dropping him all the way down to 18th in the results. Even though Scott McLaughlin would have finished 12th and not won the championship it must have been a real kick in the guts to be pushed down to 18th after the race had finished.

Jamie Whincup won the race and the season championship for 2017. A great result for the Red Bull Holden Racing Team.

Results for race 26

1st Jamie Whincup – Red Bull Holden Racing Team.
2nd Shane Van Gisbergen -Red Bull Holden Racing Team.
3rd David Reynolds – Erebus Motorsport.

 

Well done to all the drivers and teams in 2017.

Looking forward to seeing you in 2018.

The next event will be the Adelaide 500 on the 1st to the 4th of March 2018.

 

 

Wilson Security 500 Sandown – Pre race report 2016

Hi to all you V8 Supercar fans around the world.

In 2015 on the weekend of the 11th – 13th of September 2015, was the Wilson Security Sandown 500, Dad and I were there. We watched all the practice sessions and qualifying. The main race on Sunday 13th September, was very exciting. We also got to catch up with some old mates as well as make some new friends… I had the chance to meet my favourite Game Show host Grant Denyer.

Grant Denyar & I

See below for the list of Main drivers and their Co-drivers.

For those of you who missed the Sandown 500 here is what happened in 2015, the race is 161 laps long and because it is an endurance race we have the main drivers and we have co-drivers. The co-drivers do the first 54 laps.

sandown-race-track

Paul Dumbrell started on pole position alongside them was Steve Owen, on lap 1 Paul Dumbrell got the jump and led the field through turns 1, 2 and 3 for the first of 161 laps, Marcos Ambrose didn’t get a good start and dropped back through the pack.

On lap 2 Chris Pither entered pitlane to top up on fuel and get some clear air as no one was coming in behind him.

On lap 3, Steve Owen was trying to catch Paul Dumbrell during the co-driver’s stint. Marcos had dropped back to, as far as 24th spot.

On lap 4 Cameron Waters was following Jonathon Webb. Jonathon Webb made a big mistake in-between turns 3 and 4.

On lap 5 the Jonathon Webb was holding off Cameron Waters.

On lap 6 the pack was starting to settle into a race pace, on the same lap, Greg Murphy was chatting to Scott Pye about the start that Ambrose made.

On lap 10 Warren Luff was in front of former V8 Supercars driver Karl Reindler.

On lap 11 Steve Owen was chasing down Jamie Whincup, Alex Premat had to pit twice the first it was to remove the air spike for the air jacks the 2nd time was to serve a pit lane drive thru penalty for an unsafe release. In the middle of the race, Jamie Whincup was still leading the race, in fact they led the first half of the race, then Mark Winterbottom took over. Jamie Whincup lead for the first 86 laps, before he had to make 6 pit stops due to a hook coming off the gantry.

Towards the end of the race Mark Winterbottom of Pepsi Max dominated followed by his team mate Chaz Mostert and finished 1, 2.

The commentators were Greg Rust, Neil Crompton and pit reporters Greg Murphy and Riana Crehan.

Results for the 2015 Wilson Security Sandown 500

1st – Mark Winterbottom and Steve Owen. – Pepsi Max Crew.
2nd – Chaz Mostert and Cameron Waters – Pepsi Max Crew.
3rd – Shane Van Gisbergen and Jonathon Webb – Tekno Autosports.

Last year’s Main drivers and Co-drivers

Jamie Whincup and Paul Dumbrell – Red Bull Racing Australia – Car 1
Craig Lowndes and Steven Richards – Red Bull Racing Australia – Car 888
Mark Winterbottom and Steve Owen – Pepsi Max Crew – Car 5
Chaz Mostert and Cameron Waters – Pepsi Max Crew – Car 6
David Reynolds and Dean Canto – Rod Nash Racing – Car 55
Scott Mclaughlin and Alex Premat -Volvo Polstar Racing – Car 33
David Wall and Chris Pither – Volvo Polstar Racing – Car 34
Jack Perkins and Russell Ingall. Holden Racing team – Car 22
Garth Tander and Warren Luff – Holden Racing team – Car 2.
Tim Slade and Tony Dalberto – Supercheap Auto racing – Car 47
Lee Holdsworth and Sebation Bourdais – Walkinshaw Racing – Car 18
Scott Pye and Marcos Ambrose – Dick Johnson Racing – Car 17
Rick Kelly and David Russell – Jack Daniels Racing – Car 15
Todd Kelly and Alex Buncombe – Nissan Motorsport – Car 7
James Moffatt and Taz Douglas – Nissan Motorsport – Car 99.
Micheal Caruso and Dean Fiore – Nissan Motorsport – Car 23
Nick Percat and Oliver Gavin – Lucas Dumbrell Motorsport – Car 222
Tim Blanchard and Karl Reindler – Lucas Dumbrell Motorsport – Car 3
Will Davison and Alex Davison – Erebus Motorsport V8 – Car 9
Ash Walsh and Jack Lebrocq. Erebus Motorsport. V8 – Car 4
Jason Bright and Andrew Jones – Team BOC – Car 8
Fabain Coulthard and Luke Youlden – Freightliner Racing – Car 14

This weekend the Main Drivers and Co-drivers are: –

Jamie Whincup and Paul Dumbrell – Red Bull Racing Australia car 88.
Shane Van Gisbergen and Alex Premat – Red Bull Racing Australia car 97.
Craig Lowndes and Steven Richards – Team Vortex car 888.
Will Davison and Jonathon Webb – Tekno Autosports car 19.
Garth Tander and Warren Luff – Holden Racing Team. Car 2.
James Courtney and Jack Perkins – Holden Racing team car 22.
Mark Winterbottom and Dean Canto – Rod Nash Racing the Bottle O Racing Team car 1.
Chaz Mostert and Steve Owen – Supercheap Auto Racing. Car 55.
Cameron Waters and Jack Le Brocq. Monster Energy Racing Team car 6.
Scott McLaughlin and David Wall – Volvo Polstar Racing car 33.
James Moffatt and James Golding – Volvo Polstar Racing car 34.
Jason Bright and Andrew Jones – Team BOC car 8.
Tim Blanchard and Macauley Jones – Team Cool Drive car 21.
Tim Slade and Ash Walsh – Freightliner Racing car 14.
Lee Holdsworth and Karl Reindler – Preston Racing team. Car 18.
Chris Pither and Richie Stanaway – Super black racing car 111.
Rick Kelly and Russell Ingall – Nissan Motorsport car 15.
Todd Kelly and Matt Campbell – Nissan Motorsport car 7.
Michael Caruso and Dean Fiore – Nissan Motorsport car 23.
Fabain Coulthard and Luke Youlden – Dick Johnson racing Team Penske car 12.
Scott Pye and Tony Dalberto – Dick Johnson Racing team Penske car 17.
David Reynolds and Craig Baird – Erebus Motorsport car 9.
Nick Percat and Cameron Mcconville – Lucas Dumbrell Motorsport car 222.
Dale Wood and David Russell – Nissan Motorsport car 96.
Shae Davies and Chris Van der Drift – Erebus Motorsport, car 4.
Andre Heimgartner and Aaren Russell – Lucas Dumbrell Motorsport car 3

 

 

Clipsal 500 South Australia 2016 Post Race Report

Jamie Whincup Adelaide 2016

HI to all you v8 Supercars fans.

On the weekend 3rd – 6th March 2016 was the Clipsal 500.

In race 1 Scott Pye started on pole position alongside him was Jamie Whincup. On lap 1 of 39 Jamie Whincup went straight to the race lead by passing Scott Pye at the centre chicane and from there on in Jamie Whincup was never caught. As the field was settling down into a rhythm with everyone looking for positions on the opening lap.

On lap 2 the cars near the back came in early to put tyres on to avoid double stacking it was Mark Winterbottom’s first weekend running car number 1. When the field came in for their pit stops they either brought their car in the lap before or the lap after.

On lap 3 Scott Pye was running up the pointy end of the pack until his pits stop where his crew dropped the 17 car way too early. They had not done up 1 of wheel nuts on the right rear corner.

On lap 4 Jamie Whincup was still out in front and controlling the race with ease, he stayed out as long as possible until the Red Bull team called him in.

On lap 5 everybody had not only the cars at the back had. To get track position.

On lap 6 the cars that were out front stayed on the track a bit longer.

On lap 7 Craig Lowndes pitted so he didn’t get stuck behind the cars in front of him. It was also his 251st Australian Touring car – V8 Supercars Championship Series start.

Before the race started it was already 64 degrees in the cockpit. In the middle of the race   no one could catch Jamie Whincup.

After Jamie won the opening race it took his career victories tally up to 98 so he is now only 2 finishes off the magic 100 and join Craig Lowndes in the most unique of clubs. Looks like Red Bull Australia are going to be the only ones with drivers in the club…

Race 1

Results for race 1

1st – Jamie Whincup – Red Bull Racing Australia
2nd – James Courtney – Holden Racing Team
3rd – Shane Van Gisbergen – Red Bull Racing Australia

In race 2 Chaz Mostert started on pole position alongside him was Jamie Whincup on lap 1 of 39 Chaz Mostert took the race lead early on through the centre chicane. Jamie Whincup tried to follow him through but James Courtney had to get out of the throttle to insure that there was no contact.

On lap 2 Jamie Whincup tried to do the crisscross at turn 4, but he couldn’t pull it off.

During the opening laps everybody was settling down to a race pace. Then the pit stops started when the pack came into the pits for the stop a few teams had to Double Stack. That is why teams like to have 2 or in our case 3 cars on different strategies.

Craig Lowndes had to try and stay in front of Will Davison so that he didn’t have to double stack behind Will Davison.

On lap 3 the cars back in the pack where trying to keep up with the race leaders.

On lap 4 the leaders stayed out longer the cars down the bottom of the field. Came in.

In the middle of the race James Courtney got track position over Jamie Whincup. As a result of a faster pitstop from the Holden Racing Team.

On lap 5 all the crews where watching from the garage until they needed to go out into the pits.

 Race 2

Results for race 2

1st – James Courtney – Holden Racing Team
2nd – Jamie Whincup – Red Bull Racing Australia
3rd – Chaz Mostert – Supercheap Auto Racing

James Courtney Car 22

In race 3 Fabain Coulthard started on pole position alongside him was Chaz Mosert the race started behind the Lexus RCF Safety Car because the track was wet the cars did 6 laps under yellow.

MARK Dutton and the team manager at Nissan Motorsport were complaining that the race had not started on the Sighting lap.

Mark Winterbottom nearly put car 1 in the wall at turn 8. Because he was on Slick Tyres on a wet track.

The restart was on lap 7 Shane Van Gisbergen was 3rd right behind Chaz Mostert.  Early on, he had a massive Tankslapper( means when a car goes into the wall sideways the cars behind have got to be careful not to get caught up with anyone’s Else dramas) James Courtney went down the inside of Cameron Waters in 6. At turn 4 Jamie Whincup and Shane Van Gisbergen ran wide out of turn 7. Scott McLaughlin went up the inside of Shane Van Gisbergen right into the Spray at turn 8. Then Shane Van Gisbergen made the pass on Scott McLaughlin.

On lap 8 James Moffatt had damage on a steering arm of his car. Garth Tander spun Jamie Whincup around at turn 9. Scott McLaughlin had a problem with damage on the front of the 33 car.

On lap 9 Rick Kelly had grip  and he was using it.

Shane Van Gisbergen took the race lead at turn 4, Fabain Coulthard could not take the race lead back off the wet weather master.

On lap 10 Fabain Coulthard resumed as the leader of the race once Shane Van Gisbergen made a mistake by himself down at turn 9.

There were 2 storm cells the first one wasn’t too bad but the 2nd one was horrendous. Also on that lap Craig Lowndes had the fastest lap of the race and was running 4th.

On lap 11 Fabain Coulthard was under pressure to hold the race lead from Shane Van Gisbergen. Then Shane Van Gisbergen he took the lead back from Fabain Coulthard.

On lap 12 Grant McPherson got on the Radio to inform Shane Van Gisbergen that 11 laps were complete. Chaz Mostert passed Fabain Coulthard to move to position 4.

On lap 13 the drivers were looking for wet racetrack to keep the tyres cool.

On lap 14 Jamie Whincup was battling with the two Lucas Dumbrell cars plus Lee Holdsworth as well.

On lap 15 there was contact between David Reynolds and Jamie Whincup. Back in the pack Rick Kelly Will Davison and Fabain Coulthard were battling for position at turn 9. In the middle of the race Chaz Mostert hit the wall first which put him out of the race. Then James Courtney hit the wall at turn 8 in car 22 which meant he had to go back into the garage, but after the HRT Crew fixed his car he re-joined the race.

Towards the end of the race Nick Percat was leading and managed to hold on to get his first solo win on home soil.

The commentators Neil Crompton and Mark Skaife, and the pit reporters were Greg Rust, Greg Murphy and Riana Crehan.

The next event is the non-championship event at Albert Park in Victoria.

The next championship event is the Tyrepower Tasmainia Supersprint on the 1st – 3rd of April 2016.

Race 3

 

Results for race 3

1st – Nick Percat – Lucas Dumbrell Motorsport
2nd – Michael Caruso – Nissan Motorsport
3rd – Garth Tander – Holden Racing Team

 

Wilson Security 500 – Sandown Vic – Post Race report

Hi to all you V8 Supercar fans around the world.

On the weekend of the 11th – 13th of September 2015, was the Wilson Security Sandown 500, Dad and I were there. We watched the all the practice sessions and qualifying. The main race on Sunday 13th September, was very exciting. We also got to catch up with some old as well as made some new friends… I had the chance to meet my favourite Game Show host Grant Denyer.

Grant Denyar & I

Qualifying 1

Qualifying 2

See below for the list of Main drivers and their Co-drivers.

For those of you who missed the Sandown 500 here is what happened, the race is 161 laps long and because it is an endurance race we the main drivers and we have co-drivers. The co-drivers do the first 54 laps.

Paul Dumbrell started on pole position alongside them was Steve Owen, on lap 1 Paul got the jump and led the field through turns 1, 2 and 3 for the first of 161 laps, Marcos Ambrose didn’t get a good start and dropped back through the pack. On lap 2 Chris Pither entered pitlane to top up on fuel and get some clear air as no one was coming in behind him.

On lap 3, Steve Owen was trying to catch Paul Dumbrell during the co-drivers stint. Marcos had dropped back to, as far as 24th spot. On lap 4 Cameron Waters was following Jonathon Webb. Jonathon Webb made a big mistake in-between turns 3 and 4 on lap 5 the he was holding off Cameron Waters. Also on that lap channel ten had a replay of the race start.

On lap 6 the pack was starting to settle into a race pace, on the same lap, Greg Murphy was chatting to Scott Pye about the start that Ambrose made.

On lap 10 Warren Luff was in front of former V8 Supercars driver Karl Reindler. On lap 11 Steve Owen was chasing down Jamie Whincup, Alex Premat had to pit twice the first it was to remove the air spike for the air jacks the 2nd time was to serve a pit lane drive thru penalty for an unsafe release. In the middle of the race, Jamie Whincup was still leading the race, in fact they led the first half of the race, then Mark Winterbottom took over. Jamie lead for the first 86 laps, before he had to make 6 pit stops due to a hook coming off the gantry, towards the end of the race Mark Winterbottom of Pepsi Max dominated followed by his team mate Chaz Mostert and finished 1, 2.

The next Pirtek Enduro Cup Race is the Supercheap Auto Bathurst 1000, on October 8th – 11th 2015, which is 4 weeks away.

The commentators were Greg Rust, Neil Crompton and pit reporters Greg Murphy and Riana Crehan.

Results for the 2015 Wilson Security Sandown 500

1st – Mark Winterbottom and Steve Owen. – Pepsi Max Crew.
2nd – Chaz Mostert and Cameron Waters – Pepsi Max Crew.
3rd – Shane Van Gisbergen and Jonathon Webb – Tekno Autosports.

Main drivers and Co-drivers

Jamie Whincup and Paul Dumbrell – Red Bull Racing Australia – Car 1
Craig Lowndes and Steven Richards – Red Bull Racing Australia – Car 888
Mark Winterbottom and Steve Owen – Pepsi Max Crew – Car 5
Chaz Mostert and Cameron Waters – Pepsi Max Crew – Car 6
David Reynolds and Dean Canto – Rod Nash Racing – Car 55
Scott Mclaughlin and Alex Premat -Volvo Polstar Racing – Car 33
David Wall and Chris Pither – Volvo Polstar Racing – Car 34
Jack Perkins and Russell Ingall. Holden Racing team – Car 22
Garth Tander and Warren Luff – Holden Racing team – Car 2.
Tim Slade and Tony Dalberto – Supercheap Auto racing – Car 47
Lee Holdsworth and Sebation Bourdais – Walkinshaw Racing – Car 18
Scott Pye and Marcos Ambrose – Dick Johnson Racing – Car 17
Rick Kelly and David Russell – Jack Daniels Racing – Car 15
Todd Kelly and Alex Buncombe – Nissan Motorsport – Car 7
James Moffatt and Taz Douglas – Nissan Motorsport – Car 99.
Micheal Caruso and Dean Fiore – Nissan Motorsport – Car 23
Nick Percat and Oliver Gavin – Lucas Dumbrell Motorsport – Car 222
Tim Blanchard and Karl Reindler – Lucas Dumbrell Motorsport – Car 3
Will Davison and Alex Davison – Erebus Motorsport V8 – Car 9
Ash Walsh and Jack Lebrocq. Erebus Motorsport. V8 – Car 4
Jason Bright and Andrew Jones – Team BOC – Car 8
Fabain Coulthard and Luke Youlden – Freightliner Racing – Car 14
Dale Wood and Maculey Jones – Brad Jones Racing – Car 21

Sydney Motorsport Park – Eastern Creek Raceway Post Race Report

Hi to all you V8 Supercars fans

On the weekend of the 21st – 23rd August 2015, was the Sydney Motorsport Park Supersprint – Eastern Creek.

William and Dad

Dad and I arrived at the Alpha Hotel on the Thursday afternoon to get ready for the weekends race. We arrived at the track early on the Friday morning as I didn’t want to miss a thing. Just after lunch dad and I were at the back of the Triple 888 garage, when the Navy helicopter came down too low and all the debris went flying. James Courtney got hurt in the ribs also got a punched lung. We were very lucky not to get hit by anything flying around. Mum sent dad a text message on the Saturday saying that Roland Dane mentioned me in an interview that was in the Saturday Telegraph…

Staying in a hotel across the road from the track meant Dad and I were at the track very early each day and one of the first in to the event.

Race 21

In race 21 Chaz Mostert started on pole position alongside him was Mark Winterbottom, and on lap 1, Chaz Mostert got the jump for the first of 16 Laps. Chaz Mostert tried to make a pass on his teammate Mark Winterbottom, but he had drop back in behind Tim Slade and he passed Will Davison. Towards the end of the opening lap Garth Tander passed Ash Walsh. On lap 2 the 2 Pepsi Max Crew Fords were leading the race, David Reynolds was trying to pass Jamie Whincup to make it a Ford 1, 2 and 3 but could not be done. Craig Lowndes did his best to try and pass David Reynolds, in the middle of the race and no one could catch Chaz Mostert. In the end it was Ford finished 1 and 2.

Before the race I was able to get photos with Jamie Whincup, Craig Lowndes, Mark Dutton, Jamies engineer Roland Dane, head of Red Bull Racing, James Warburton, CEO of V8 Supercars Fabain Coulthard and Brad Jones. I was also invited to get photos of Craig Lowndes and Jamie Whincup’s 2 Red Bull cars, we got a grid walk before race 1 and I also got photos with Dean Canto, Grant McPherson Craig’s Race Engineer, Barry Hay from Lucas Dumbrell Motorsport. Garry Rogers from Wilson Security racing GRM, Chad Neylon commentator for V8 radio station.

Results for race 21

1st – Chaz Mostert – Pepsi Max Crew.
2nd – Mark Winterbottom – Pepsi Max Crew.
3rd – Jamie Whincup – Red Bull Racing Australia.

Race 22

In race 22 Chaz Mostert started from pole position alongside him was Jamie Whincup. Jamie Whincup led into turn 1 for the first time, Fabain Coulthard was 2nd at turn 1. Scott Pye and James Moffat Fabain was right behind Whincup towards the end of the first lap Rick Kelly and Jason Bright both ran wide on the exit of turn 8 . On lap 2 David Reynolds was chasing down Shane Van Gisbergen. Inbetween turns 2 and 3, Todd Kelly had to go into the garage to fix the Nissan Altama car 7. In the middle of the race Jamie had a broken exhaust pipe, in the end Jamie Whincup was able to hold on to the race lead. Jamie Whincup has now moved his career tally onto 92 wins, 8 behind his teammate Craig Lowndes.

Results for race 22

1st – Jamie Whincup – Red Bull Racing Australia.
2nd – Fabain Coulthard – Brad Jones racing.
3rd – Chaz Mostert – Pepsi Max Crew.

Race 23

Race 23 is the big race of the weekend and Scott McLaughlin started on pole position alongside him was David Reynolds on lap 1 of 52 David made a great start, bur Scotty managed to hold the spot. Rick Kelly and Andre Heimgartner made contact on the exit of turn 1, towards the end of the opening lap Todd Kelly got spun by Garth Tander. Todd Kelly had to drive back to the pits with a left rear tyre that wasnt pointing in the right direction and he was pretty cranky about it, on lap 2, the safety car came Ash Walsh and Jack Perkins made their first stop under yellow, with a number of other cars. A lot of the drivers were slowing up in the pits before the 40 Kilometres per hour sign so that they would not have to double stack for too long. The restart was in between laps 4 and 5. Lee Holdsworth was behind Jamie Whicup at the restart, but he tried to go around him on the outside. In the middle of the race it started to rain and the 2 Red Bull cars had to double stack in the pits, to change from slick tyres to wet tyres. Towards the end of the race it was a time certain finish due to the Safety cars by just 2 laps.

The commentators Greg Rust, Neil Crompton and Chad Neylon, the pit reporters were Greg Murphy along with Riana Crehan.

The next event is the Wilson Security Sandown 500, on the 11th – 13th September 2015. I will be there…

Results for race 23

1st – Chaz Mostert – Pepsi Max Crew.
2nd – Fabain Coulthard – Frieightliner Racing.
3rd – Jason Bright – BOC.

Symmons Plains Tasmania Post Race 2014

Craig Lowndes Tas

Hi guys and girls the Tyrepower Tasmania 400.

While Dad and I were not there, here is a brief rundown of what happened in the 3 races over the weekend of 28th – 30th March 2014

In race 4, in what is happening more often than not we had Jamie Whincup and Craig Lowndes start on the front row.

Craig got the jump off the start line, David Reynolds and Russell Ingall were racing together in car 55 and 23. Mark Winterbottom was battling with the Bottle-O-car.

In the middle of the race Todd Kelly’s right front tyre was wobbling due to contact with Jack Perkins. Rick Kelly ran wide at the turn 4 hairpin, Russell Ingall started to fight back after a slow start from the second row, behind Jamie and Craig. Mark Winterbottom and David Reynolds were racing side by side down the back straight to turns 6 and 7. Todd Kellys Jack Daniels ended parking his Nissan Altama. Towards the end of the 4th race Jamie was trying to get down the inside of his teammate in-between turns 6 and 7. In the end Jamie managed to hold on to get his 78th race win in his V8 Supercars career and his 10th win at Symons plains raceway.

Results for race 4

1st Jamie Whincup – Red Bull Racing Australia.
2nd James Courtney – Holden Racing Team.
3rd Mark Winterbottom – Pepsi Max crew.

In race 5 Jamie Whincup started from pole position alongside him was Mark Winterbottom due to Craig Lowndes being sent to the back of the pack due to a Technical infringement, on lap 1 Will Davison locked up his rear brakes as a result he went into the sand trap at turn 4. On the restart Todd Kelly passed before the control and he ended up getting penalized for that. As a result of Nick Percat and Russell Ingall coming together, Craig passed them with ease.

In the middle of the race Craig was chasing down Scott McLaughlin, for 4th spot. But wasn’t able to do it, in the end Jamie made it 2 starts from 2 wins. Triple 8 Race Engineering/Red Bull Racing Australia, dominated event 2 of 2014, there are 38 races in all.

Results for race 5

1st Jamie Whincup – Red Bull Racing Australia.
2nd Mark Winterbottom – Pepsi Max Crew. FPR.
3rd Fabain Coulthard – Lockwood racing.

 

In race 6, yet again we see the Red Bull Racing Australia duo Craig Lowndes and Jamie Whincup start on the front row of the grid. Craig got the jump off the line and led the field through turns 1 and 2 for the 1st of 84 laps. Robert Dahlgren in the Volvo stalled off the line and that meant he was last at the start.

Jamie pitted early so that the 2 Red Bull cars didn’t have to double stack in the pits, Scott McLaughlin passed Will Davison and James Courtney down at the turn 4 hairpin. When Craig came for his 1st compulsory pit stop for 4 fresh tyres and refuel. But when he re-joined the race he made a slight mistake by going off the racetrack on the pit exit. Tim Slade re-joined in front of David Wall. When the Volvo S60 had completed its compulsory pit stop, he re-joined in front of car 1 but Jamie managed to pass him on the outside at the turn 4 hairpin.

In the middle of the race Fabain Coulthard and Dale Wood both made a pit stop, at the same time, Jamie Whincup ran wide on exit of turn 7 and when Jamie entered the pits for his 2nd pit stop for another set of tyres and last load of fuel to get him to the checkered flag. When James Courtney re-joined the circuit he nearly hit Scott McLaughlin, but somehow he managed to avoid contact.

Craig Lowndes was in the pits with no one around him for his last load of fuel, and a fresh set of Dunlop tyres. Dale Wood went straight ahead into the sand trap in between turns 1 and 2.

Towards the end of the race, Fabain put the pressure on Will Davison for 3rd spot, in the end neither of them could not catch the top three places. Craig Lowndes went on to claim his 96th race win. In his stellar V8 career, and 7th race win at Symmons Plains.

Results for race 6

1st Craig Lowndes – Red Bull Racing Australia.
2nd Jamie Whincup – Red Bull racing Australia.
3rd James Courtney – Holden Racing team.

Adelaide Clipsal 500 2014

Hi Guys and Girls on the 27th February to the 2nd of March 2014 was the Clipsal 500.

In race 1 Red Bull Racing Australia’s Jamie Whincup started on pole position alongside him was his teammate Craig Lowndes.  Craig got the jump into turns 1, 2 and 3 for the first of 39 laps. Also on lap 1 Chaz Mostert went into the wall at turn 5, due to an oil leaking from the rear of car 6.

Tim Slade was trying to pass the Rick Kelly, towards the end of the opening lap, Shane Van Gisbergen was ahead of Mark Winterbottom in 3rd spot. On lap 2 the race leaders had to be careful due to the oil that Chaz had left behind in-between turns 4 and 5. Chaz’s car ended up in the pit garage to fix the oil leak issues, and the sister car of David Reynolds also pitted due to damage on the front right hand corner, from hitting the wall at turn 11. Scott Pye ran wide down at turn 9 due to a locked brake on the front left corner. On lap 3 Lee Holdsworth had David Wall and James Moffat. Jason Bright ended up being passed by Russell Ingall. Garth Tander passed the DJR car, for position 12.

On lap 4 Jamie was the first car to make his pitstop for tyres and fuel, so that his teammate didn’t have to double stack, the 2nd car was Garry Rogers motorsport Volvo Polestar racing, car 34 driven by Robert Dahlgren. On lap 5 David was in the garage getting checked over by the doctor after a hard hit at turn 11. On lap 6 James Courtney was chasing Mark Winterbottom, through turns 1, 2 and 3. Todd Kelly was asked to enter pit lane in car 7 on lap 7, cars 7, 21 and 16 pitted on the same lap. James Courtney, also Scott McLaughlin pitted together.  On the pit exit Todd got passed Scott as he was re-joining the racetrack.

The Pepsi Max crew FPR team did Mark’s pitstop on lap 9, James Moffat had to serve a pit lane penalty for exceeding the pit lane speed limit which is 40 klms/hour. Car 97 peeled off on lap 13 for his compulsory pitstop. Craig pitted on lap 14, for 2 tyres and fuel. Craig said ‘what the heck happened there’, and his race engineer Jeromy Moore said sorry to Craig about the pitstop issue with the right rear wheel.

In the middle of the race Shane was following Craig for the effectively 2nd and 3rd positions. Towards the end of the race cars 22, 47 and 2 are all were battling for 10th 11th and 12th spots. Tim nearly hit the wall on the left hand side.

Nick Percat made contact with Michael Caruso. In the end Nick ended up in the garage. Craig caught the grass on approach to turn 14. Rick was under pressure from Scott, in the end Jamie ended the first race of the season on the top spot of the podium and he claimed his 8th win at Clipsal and race win number 74.

Results for race 1

1st Jamie Whincup – Red Bull Racing Australia.
2nd Craig Lowndes – Red Bull Racing Australia.
3rd Shane Van Gisbergen – Team VIP – Tekno Autosports.

 

In race 2 Craig Lowndes started on pole position alongside him was Scott McLaughlin, Craig got the jump into the turns 1, 2 and 3 chicane. On lap 1 Lee Holdsworth tried to get passed the Pepsi Max Crew Ford. When James passed the FPR car, he started to chase Lee Holdsworth. Meanwhile Nick Percat and Garth Tander made contact at turn 9. On lap 2 Craig got a kerb strike Neil Crompton said that Craig burning a kerb hop after lap 1 was not good. Jamie managed to get passed Scott McLaughlin, for 2nd spot. On lap 3 Jason Bright tried to a make a move down the main straight. Mark Beretta was right at the last corner, turn 14. On lap 4 Jason Bright tried get down the inside of the Volvo at turn 9. On lap 5 Scott was complaining about the over steer to his race engineer Richard Hallway. The first car to make to a pit was Robert Dahlgren. Robert stalled on exit of the pits Matt White was talking to Robert and he said to him ‘I bet it is not 30 degrees where you come from on the east coast of Sweden’, he replied ‘yeah minus’.  In the middle of the race James Courtney nearly lost the passenger’s side door on approach to turn 4. Towards the end of the race, Scott and Jamie were battling for 2nd and 3rd.

Results for race 2

1st Craig Lowndes – Red Bull Racing Australia.
2nd Scott Maclaughlin – Volvo Polstar racing GRM.
3rd Jamie Whincup – Red Bull Racing Australia.

In race 3, Shane Van Gisbergen started on pole position alongside him was the 5 times V8 Supercars Champion Jamie Whincup. Jamie got the jump and led the field into turns 1, 2 and 3 for the first of 78 laps. Rick Kelly made contact with the tyre bundle at turn 1. As a result of the guard rubbing on the front left tyre, there was smoke pouring out of the left hand side of his car. On lap 2 David Reynolds pitted early for fuel. On lap 3 Todd Kelly had no throttle meaning the car running only on idol due to a broken throttle cable.

Shane tried to pass Jamie at turn 9, but wasn’t able to make the move stick. On lap 4 the first 3 cars to pit were Craig Lowndes, Chaz Mostert and Fabain Coulthard. On lap 5 Car 7 was limping back to the pits. On lap 6 James Courtney made his first compulsory pitstop. On lap 7 Nick Percat came in for tyres and fuel. On lap 8 the Volvo 560 got through on Tim Slade, at turn 9. Micheal Caruso got a black flag for speeding in the pitlane. Will Davison went into the wall at turn 8 on lap 10, as a result a safety car was deployed, that meant that cars 1 and 2 could make their compulsory pitstops.

At the restart on lap 14, Jason Bright ended up rolling his car at turn 1, the cars that were involved were cars 8 Jason Bright, 6 Chaz Mostert, 16 Scott Pye, and 4 Lee Holdsworth. The 2nd safety car was deployed due to this crash.

On the 2nd restart on lap 19, cars 15 and 97 got drive thru penalties for not maintaining the speed after the restart, Mark went into the tyres between turns 6 and 7. When Rick took his pit lane penalty that left cars 1 and 888, to start the next lap in positions 1 and 2.

In the middle of the race Craig came in for his last pit stop and

towards the end of the race Jamie got a pit lane drive thru penalty for the car controller touching his car as Jamie was trying to save his day he made contact at turn 9 with Michael Caruso. In the end James Courtney won race 3.

Results Race 3

1st James Courtney – Holden Racing Team
2nd Craig Lowndes – Red Bull Racing Australia
3rd Shane Van Gisbergen –Techno Auto Sports

The next event is the Tasmania 400 on the 28th to the 30th of March 2014 races 4, 5 and 6. Craig Lowndes currently leads the 2014 V8 Supercars Championship series points standing by 282 points over 2nd placed Fabain Coulthard.

Trivia

Tekno Auto Sports, VIP Petfoods, Lucas Dumbrell motorsport and HHA Racing have only got one car in this year’s Championship. Mark Larkham has a new inferred camera which he uses for checking out the temperatures on both the front and rear brake routes and pads.

The last time that Tim drove for Supercheap Auto Racing before this year was 2009.