The reason why I am writing this article is because Todd Kelly has now retired from fulltime V8 Supercars racing after a 20+ year career. He has had outstanding success and given a great deal to the sport so I wanted to say thanks by summarising his career.
Todd Kelly was born on the 9th of October 1979.
He started racing in the Australian Formula Ford Championship way back in 1996 to 1998 before joining The Shell Championship Series (aka the V8 Supercars Championship) in 1999.
He stayed with the Holden Young Lions in 1999 before moving to the Holden Racing for Enduro races in 2000 which were at the Queensland 500 and FAI 1000 at Mount Panorama Bathurst New South Wales.
Then in 2001 he joined the Kmart Racing Team and he stayed through 2002.
From 2003 to 2007 was with the Holden Racing Team to be teammates with Mark Skaife.
He spent the following year, 2008 with Jack Daniel’s Racing – Perkins Engineering before Tod and his brother, Rick Kelly started their own race team in 2009 called Kelly Brothers Racing.
Todd and Rick share a passion for racing so starting their own team made sense. However no one could ever say there was no sibling rivalry. When it came to racing, brother or not they were very competitive.
Unfortunately Todd Kelly’s competitive nature means he was going to be in the thick of it resulting in some bad incidents:
·Barbagallo 2009 in race 24 he crashed on lap 40 of 84 ·Sydney Olympic Park 2011 in race 28 he crashed on lap 47 of 74 ·Albert park 2005 in race 2 he crashed on lap 1
Some of his career highs (and a few lows) include:
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.
3rd 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.
On the weekend to the 7th to the 9th of July 2017 was the Watpac Townsville 400. Races 13 and 14 were both 200 Kilometres and 70 laps.
Its interesting to note:
Craig Lowndes had a worrying start to the weekend. In both practice sessions on Friday he lost control and spun his car.
Later in qualifying Jamie Whincup baulked Craig Lowndes costing him a solid top ten starting spot. Craig Lowndes was now placed 19th in the start.
Tim Edwards who is the Managing Director at Prodrive Racing Australia was not present for the weekend because he was with his boys watching them play Soccer. Rod Nash was delegated to the role over the weekend.
It was Simona De Silvestro first V8 Supercars event in North Queensland. Mark Skaife commented during this race he believed she was improving with every race that she does. I believe without a doubt as she returns next season to the different tracks for a second time she will be a force to be reckoned with.
For this season there have been only 2 Aussie drivers to win a race, Jamie Whincup and Chaz Mostert. It has been predominantly NZ drivers so it will be interesting to see if this becomes a matter of contention.
In race 13 Scott McLaughlin started on pole position, alongside him was Jamie Whincup.
On lap 1 of 70 Jamie Whincup got the jump on Scott McLaughlin off the start line after starting from 2nd spot which was on the clean side of the race track (meaning it has got more grip).
Towards the end of Lap 1 Jamie Whincup let Scott McLaughlin take over the race lead. Commentator Mark Skaife thought that letting Scott McLaughlin pass him was too soft.
On lap 2 Jamie Whincup tried to stay close as possible but Scott McLaughlin just pulled away.
Fabian Coulthard had starting in the top ten. He held high hopes to maintain his position as championship leader to the end of the season. On lap 3 he was hit from behind and spun around. As a result he ended up at the back of the pack and probably felt his championship hopes fade. However, I am sure he knew it was still early in the race and had plenty of opportunity to do something about it.
His worries weren’t over yet. On lap 6 he had a close call. Fabian Coulthard’s rear wing clipped the driver’s side door of Lee Houldsworth’s car. The damage didn’t look too bad but the door on Lee Houldsworth’s car wouldn’t stay shut. Fabian Coulthard got off without damage but Lee Houldsworth had to make it the pits and have his door taped shut.
On lap 7 Scott McLaughlin was still the race leader but chose to pit now. I can only assume it was part of the strategy to give him as much opportunity to retake the lead later in the race.
On lap 11 Chaz Mostert was battling with Mark Winterbottom to get fresh air but it wasn’t going to be easy trying to take a position while in the top ten.
By lap 12 Fabian Coulthard was trying to fight back from the spin on the opening couple of laps.
On lap 13 Shane Van Gisbergen was battling with Jamie Whincup for 3rd and 4th and also pit priority.
On lap 14 Jason Bright caught up with his teammates but had to wait till after the hairpin turn to make a pass safely.
On lap 19 Simona De Silvestro was following Rick and Todd Kelly for experience at the new track.
By lap 23 Macauley Jones was getting noticed carving his way through the field after starting near the back.
On lap 24 some drivers hit the pits to get out from the battle going on near the back of the pack.
On lap 26 Jason Bright caught up to his teammates mark Winterbottom and Cameron Waters. He couldn’t manage to pass them so decided to pit again.
On lap 29 Jamie Whincup was putting pressure on Scott McLaughlin hoping he would make an error but Scott McLaughlin was faultless and wasn’t going to give the lead away easily.
In the middle of the race no one could catch the top 3 drivers which were Scott McLaughlin, Jamie Whincup and Mark Winterbottom.
On lap 34 Todd Kelly ran into engine problems and could go on. He received a DNF.
Towards the end of the race Shane Van Gisbergen had a sick car not running on all eight cylinders. Regardless, he managed to complete the race coming in at 7th position.
Scott McLaughlin finished with nearly a 4 second lead over Jamie Whincup. Mark Winterbottom came in third over 15 seconds after the winner. Quite a spread at the finish line.
Results for race 13
1st Scott McLaughlin – Dick Johnson racing Team Penske.
2nd Jamie Whincup – Red bull Holden Racing Team.
3rd Mark Winterbottom – Prodrive racing Australia.
In race 14 Scott McLaughlin started on pole position alongside him was Shane Van Gisbergen.
Craig Lowndes started in 21st on the grid due to not making the top 10 shootout. To add to the pressure he also had to get passed Will Davison to get pit priority.
On the start of the 70 lap race Shane Van Gisbergen tried to go around the outside of the pole sitter but couldn’t get the job done.
On lap 2 Scott McLaughlin was still the race leader but he was under pressure from Shane Van Gisbergen and Jamie Whincup which was good to see such a challenge.
On lap 3 John Mcgregor who is Craig Lowndes race engineer told him to pit because even though it wasn’t ideal timing he could see he was getting held in traffic.
On lap 5 Jamie Whincup was still chasing Scott McLaughlin for the race lead.
On lap 7 Fabian Coulthard was trying to regain the Championship lead but it wasn’t his day. He must have been gutted over losing his championship lead.
On lap 9 Jamie Whincup running second to Scott McLaughlin him in their first round of pit stops.
On lap 10 Simona De Silvrestro was battling with Michael Caruso for positions 12 and 13. Both knew they were just outside the top 10 so these were critical spots.
On lap 11 Alex Rullo was doing a great job for his first V8 Supercars race at Townsville.
On lap 13 Jason Bright pitted to re-enter the race track with no cars in front or behind him.
On lap 15 Craig Lowndes was doing a fantastic job moving up through the field. He was picking cars off with every lap which I thought was very impressive.
On lap 16, Grant McPherson, race engineer for Shane Van Gisbergen called a change in strategy; Shane Van Gisbergen was behind Jamie Whincup so was called into pits early. The strategy was so that Jamie Whincup would not have to double stack behind him.
On lap 18 Scott Pye was forced into pits at an un-ideal time because he was getting held up by James Courtney.
By lap 22 Craig Lowndes had worked his way up to 11th position, which in my opinion was a mighty drive.
On lap 25 a lot of cars started pitting for the 2nd round of pit stops to prepare for the race to the chequered flag.
On lap 27 Jamie Whincup ended up getting the undercut which made him the effective race leader at that point of the race. He was not only on his way to his first race win for 2017 but also being on the same number of race wins as Craig Lowndes, in fact equalling the same of Career wins.
On lap 28 the top 3 at that stage were Jamie Whincup, Scott McLaughlin and Shane Van Gisbergen.
In the middle of the race no one else could catch the top drivers which were Jamie Whincup, Scott McLaughlin and Shane Van Gisbergen. Holden, Ford, Holden.
They kept the pattern and finished the race in that order.
The win by Jamie Whincup puts him only 6 points behind Scott McLaughlin.
Results for race 14
1st Jamie Whincup – Red Bull Holden Racing team.
2nd Scott McLaughlin – Dick Johnson racing Team Penske Shell V Power Racing Team.
3rd Shane Van Gisbergen – Red bull Holden racing team.
The next event is the Coates hire Ipswich Supersprint 28th to the 30th of July 2017.
On the weekend of the 16th to the 18th of June 2017 was the CrownBet Darwin Triple Crown.
This year Darwin celebrated its 20th year anniversary for V8 Supercars races.
For the 42 laps of race 11, Rick Kelly started on pole position with Scott McLaughlin alongside him.
Rick Kelly got a good start and held Scott McLaughlin’s pass attempts off.
Craig Lowndes started in position 18 due to not getting a clear lap in Qualifying. Roland Dane (888 owner) didn’t attend the weekend’s racing probably based on Craig Lowndes poor starting position.
Craig Lowndes immediately wanted to get out of the pack traffic to get some cool air but he had to hang out there for an extra lap and give pit priority to Will Davison whom he shares pit boom with.
On lap 2 Fabian Coulthard gained second position when Scott McLaughlin ran off the race track.
On lap 4 Garth Tander and Scott Pye put on a show as they battled for positions 5 and 6.
·On lap 5 Rick Kelly was holding onto the race lead quite Comfortably. Which he was happy with.
·On lap 6 Shane Van Gisbergen was staying out on the track and doing good lap times.
On lap 7 Shane Van Gisbergen had moved from his starting position 5 into 3rd. His race engineer, Grant McPherson made the call to stay out on track while the going was good. Jamie Whincup wasn’t far behind him, so I guess the strategy was for the 888 team to hold onto those good positions.
·On lap 8 Rick Kelly was enjoying not being back in the pack, and not hot brake temps and engine temps.
·On lap 9 Simona De Slivestro had to get used to hot and warm Temperature’s in a v8 Supercar.
·On lap 10 Maculey Jones was 1 of 4 wildcards to have a run in the main game. In prep for the Endurance races.
Rick Kelly had been comfortably holding the lead from the start but on lap 11 he overshot the first turn. Fabian Coulthard had been unable to catch the leader until now and used the opportunity to take the lead.
Soon after Shane Van Gisbergen had the lead but it didn’t last long. As he came down the main straight he wasn’t able to slow down and just kept going straight. His lead was over and once again Fabian Coulthard had the number 1 spot.
On lap 15 James Courtney made contact with Jack Le Brocq, which didn’t make him very happy because he went right to the very back of the pack.
It wasn’t the end of Rick Kelly’s unfortunate luck. Later, on lap 16 the throttle got stuck and he had a massive off hitting the tyre barriers. It was the end of the race for Rick Kelly and he received a DNF.
As it approached the middle of the race Fabian Coulthard maintained his lead but things had changed behind him, Scott McLaughlin and Nick Percat were now in 2nd and 3rd. The drivers further back in the pack couldn’t catch them.
With so many changes in the top ten positions up until now, it felt as though anything could happen and nothing could be taken for granted.
Amazingly these three drivers held position right to the end of the race and those behind them battled it out between themselves without hope of catching them.
Shane Van Gisbergen made contact with Garth Tander in lap 38. Garth Tander got to the finish the race but Shane Van Gisbergen lost his steering controls. It was just 4 laps to the finish but he had no option and left the track with a DNF.
In preparation for the Endurance races there were also a few wildcards on track. They seemed to benefit from the earlier mayhem:
·Macauley Jones starting in position 26 moved up 2 positions finishing 24th. ·Jack Le Brocq starting 24th finished 19th. ·Tim Blanchard moved up 2 positions and finished 12th. ·Cameron McConville made the best show, starting 28th gained 11 places and finished 17th. In the following order Fabian Coulthard, Scott McLaughlin and Nick Percat crossed the finish line. Close behind was Jamie Whincup, Chaz Mostert and Cameron Waters. Craig Lowndes was the closest car behind them about 4.5 seconds later. A surprising finish considering.
Results for race 11
1st Fabian Coulthard – Dick Johnson racing team Penske. 2nd Scott McLaughlin – Dick Johnson racing team Penske. 3rd Nick Percat – Brad Jones Racing.
4th Jamie Whincup – red bull Holden racing team.
In race 12 Scott McLaughlin started on pole position, alongside him was Jamie Whincup.
At the start of the 70 lap race Jamie Whincup got the jump on Scott McLaughlin and led during the opening stages. I was thinking that Jamie Whincup would get his first race win for 2017 in Darwin but wasn’t to be. Then Scott McLaughlan was trying to get past Jamie Whincup as quickly as possible so his engine didn’t overheat.
On the 2nd lap Mark Winterbottom was battling away with Cameron Waters and Chaz Mostert for the positions behind the two leaders.
Craig Lowndes was desperately trying to get out from behind his teammates and get some fresh air.
Shane Van Gisbergen didn’t quite get the result he wanted but did manage to get a position on the podium. Mark Dutton wasn’t pleased with the result either, having high expectations for Shane Van Gisbergen to win the race like last year.
Will Davison had come in early because how far down the in the race he was. Which he knew there was a long way to go but he was still happy with the pace of the Tekno car number 19.
Shae Davies had his first race at Darwin. He stuck close behind Rick and Todd Kelly.
Just 12 laps to go, James Moffat had a tyre blowout. It was bad timing and cost him dearly, crossing the finish line 25th from a start position of 3.
Jamie Whincup had control of the lead in the early stages of the race but in the end it was Scott McLaughlin’s day. He took the chequered flag ahead of Jamie Whincup by over 2 seconds.
This puts Scott McLaughlin second in the championship to his teammate Fabian Coulthard.
Results for race 12
1st Scott McLaughlin – Dick Johnson Racing Team Penske. 2nd Jamie Whincup – Red bull Holden racing team. 3rd Shane Van Gisbergen – Red bull Holden Racing Team. The next event is the Watpac Townsville 400.
On the weekend of the 2nd to the 4th of December 2016 was the Coates Hire Sydney 500.
In race 28 Shane Van Gisbergen started on pole position. Alongside him was Jamie Whincup.
On lap 1 of 74 Jamie Whincup got the jump on his teammate at the first turn in an exciting start. Chris Pither spun between turns 2 and 3. James Moffatt got down the inside of Fabian Coulthard at turn 9.
Jason Bright passed his teammate, Tim Slade in the complex of turns on lap 2. Then Todd Kelly passed Scott Pye at turns 2, 3 and 4. Chris Pither was forced to park his car 111 back in the garage to deal with the damage he had after the spin earlier. Craig Lowndes made a great start and got into 2nd spot straight away. But for the championship leader, Shane Van Gisbergen the starting laps weren’t so great. His car copped a whack from one of the Prodrive cars. Chaz Mostert hit the back of Mark Winterbottom which in turn sent car 97 straight on.
On lap 3 Shane Van Gisbergen was still up with the leading group of cars. Lap 4 saw the Red Bull and Holden Racing team cars battling against each other. Meanwhile, the Prodrive Racing Australia team were madly trying repair car 111 and get it back out on the track. On lap 6 Cameron Waters came in to the pits first, to not double stack with Mark Winterbottom. On lap 7 Garth Tander looked pacey on the back of Shane Van Gisbergens car. Towards the end of lap 7 David Reynolds got passed Scott Pye. Reviewing the replay showed that the rear diffuser had been torn off Time Slade’s car 14 during the pass by David Reynolds.
On lap 8 and 9 Shane Van Gisbergen ‘Wild Child’ put the pressure on Mark Winterbottom trying to force him into error. It didn’t go exactly to plan and Shane Van Gisbergen earned himself a drive through penalty for spinning Mark Winterbottom. The penalty caused Shane Van Gisbergen to drop to position 22. Grant McPherson (Red Bull’s engineer) encouraged his team mate ‘we can recover from this’. Mark Winterbottom came into pits to try and repair the damage on his car 1. Shane Van Gisbergen couldn’t redress because Mark Winterbottom had pitted.
Meanwhile Jamie Whincup was still up front dominating the race. On lap 12 Shane Van Gisbergen came through the pits for PLP(Pit Lane Penalty) and David Reynolds was exiting the pits to re-join the race. On lap 14 Shane Van Gisbergen was trying to come back after the PLP. On Lap 15, Craig Lowndes needed to pass Scott McLaughlin in an effort to secure 3rd on the championship ladder. He put the pressure on Scott McLaughlin to try and force him into error. They battled it out and Craig Lowndes got his way.
On lap 16 the cars back in the pack pitted and re-joined the race with no traffic around them. In the middle of the race the cars took their last pits to get ready for the run to the finish. However, in the end no one could catch the clear leader, Jamie Whincup in car number 88.
Results for race 28
1st – Jamie Whincup – Red Bull Racing Australia.
2nd – Garth Tander – Holden Racing Team.
3rd – Shane Van Gisbergen – Red Bull Racing Australia.
In race 29 Garth Tander started on pole position. Alongside him was Champion Elect, Shane Van Gisbergen. Jamie Whincup started 10th position because of a mistake in the top ten shootout when he completely missed a turn.
On lap 1 of 74 Garth Tander got the jump on Shane Van Gisbergen at turn 1 and led the opening laps. Jason Bright hit the wall on the exit of turn 2, which put him towards the back of the pack. David Reynolds kept close behind Shane Van Gisbergen and made his presence felt. Lap 2, Tim Blanchard copped damage to the front of his car 21. On lap 3 Garth Tander maintained race lead. Jamie Whincup put the moves on Michael Caruso to take 8th place.
Cars back in the pack came into pits early on lap 4 to avoid double stacking with their 2nd team cars out on track. Jamie Whincup waited till the next lap to pit, avoiding a double stack with Shane Van Gisbergen.
On lap 6 Jason Bright lost his chance to finish his career well with Brad Jones Racing, his car came to a stop after his wall incident in lap 1.
On lap 7 Shane Van Gisbergen had a hard time with the outgoing Holden Racing Team driver and it took a while to get by him.
On lap 8 Todd and Rick Kelly were driving cautiously not wanting to risk car damage in the middle of the busy pack. The Nissan Motorsport team made it clear they did not want to park either car 7 and/or 15 off track in this race. Fortunately they stayed out of trouble.
On lap 10 the cars back in the field pitted early for track position and clear track.
On lap 11 Shane Van Gisbergen showed the right stuff and took the lead from Garth Tander, wanting to be remembered in the last ever race at the Homebush track.
On lap 16 everybody had completed their first round of pit stops and then re-joined on lap 17.
In the middle of the race the 2nd round of pit stops had started, with the cars up front choosing to stay and the cars near the back of the pack come in.
Towards the end of the race Rick Kelly showed his frustration at losing valuable time in the pits, having a battery problem checked on his car 15.
In the last laps no one could catch the front 4 cars with Shane Van Gisbergen crossing the line first.
A great finish for an historic last ever Motor race at Homebush.
Also noted as it was the last race of the season:
Roland Dane (one of the owning partners of the Triple 8 Team) was looking very happy with his team’s performance for the year.
Craig Lowndes has had a great run in his first year with Team Vortex.
Cameron Waters also had a good run for a rookie in his first year of driving full time.
James Courtney had first win.
Mark Winterbottom wanted to keep the number 1 season spot on the Bottle-O car but he hasn’t been constant enough.
Have a Merry Christmas and a Happy New year. See you in 2017.
Results for race 29
1st – Shane Van Gisbergen – Red Bull Racing Australia.
2nd – Garth Tander – Holden Racing Team.
3rd – David Reynolds – Erebus Motorsport V8.
On the weekend of the 6th – 9th of October 2016 was the Supercheap Auto Bathurst 1000. This is the one race that both Dad and I stay glued to the TV to watch the race, he goes for Craig Lowndes and I go for Jamie Whincup. We become armchair critics through the whole race… Hehe…
At the beginning of the race we had the main drivers in except for these co-drivers, Tony Dalberto, Renee Gracie and Aaron Russell.
Jamie Whincup started on pole position alongside him was Scott McLaughlin for the 161lap race.
On lap 1, Jamie Whincup got the jump and led everybody up Mountain Straight. Scott tried to him catch him at turn 2, Bloodstone bend but wasn’t able to get the move done. Going across the top of the mountain everyone had to stay single file until the cars got onto Conrod straight.
On lap 2, everyone had started to settle down into a race pace. But there were no safety cars for the first couple of hours.
On lap 3, with Jamie Whincup still out in front saying catch me if you can.
On lap 4, Shane Van Gisbergen tried to pass Garth Tander but wasn’t able to get it done unless the other driver left a lot of room.
On lap 5, the crowd did a standing 0oation for the late great Peter Brock. Lee Holdsworth’s car sounded sick.
On lap 6, the Red Bull team was happy to see Jamie Whincup pulling away early on.
On lap 7, the pack settled down Jamie Whincup started his 400th race, Rick Kelly went up the inside of Cameron Waters at turn 1.
On lap 8, Shane Van Gisbergen was in front of the three time Bathurst winner Garth Tander. Russell Ingall made his 25th start at Bathurst on the weekend.
On lap 9, Craig Lowndes was moving up from 21st to 13th.
On lap 10, Rick Kelly was behind Chris Pither but he made contact with his car at turn 1.
On lap 11, the reason why most of the co drivers were ready just in case there was going to be an early Safety car.
On lap 12 Chris Pither had dropped all the way down to 25th as a result of contact with Rick Kelly.
On lap 13 Craig Lowndes was up to 12th spot after getting passed Tony Dalberto, after that he set his sights onto Will Davison.
On lap 14, the first car to make a pit stop was James Moffatt handing over to the rookie James Golding. The Nissan motorsport crew had to use the pit board due to radio failure.
On lap, Rick Kelly and Dale Wood pitted for a drive change tyre change and fuel. Rick had a 10 second stop and hold penalty at his next stop.
On lap 16, Craig Lowndes was chasing his teammate down for pit priority.
On lap 17, Dean Canto was chasing Jack Perkins.
On lap 18, Steven Richards came in to get fresh air and to not get caught up in traffic.
On lap 20, both Scott Pye and Matt Campbell nearly hit the wall coming out of the cutting and approaching the top of the mountain with the car was stuck in gear. Brad Jones Racing had an oil fire on the right front calliper. I was laughing at Mark Skaife and Neil Crompton when they said its pot of Penguins. Neil’s response ‘was handy if you’re at Phillip Island not so at Mount Panorama’.
On lap 21, then everybody started to file through one car at a time, because teams that have two or three cars have got to have different strategies from those that have only one.
On lap 22, the leaders stayed out on the track, meanwhile the cars further back pitted to not get caught up in traffic.
On lap 24, the leading cars were breaking laps records, Jamie Whincup holds the lap records at Bathurst now.
On lap 25, the next cars to stop were Jack Perkins along with Dean Canto respectively.
On lap 26, Rick Kelly was going off his brain about not having a good race which ultimately cost him any chance of a solid result.
On lap 27, Paul Dumbrell was sitting in the pits watching Jamie Whincup do his stuff in the car.
On lap 28, I couldn’t believe there was no safety car early. Drivers must have been behaving themselves.
on lap 29, the co-drivers were in the cars for their stint.
On lap 30, Paul Dumbrell still had the race lead by over 30 seconds.
On lap 31, Ash Walsh came into to hand car 14 back to Tim Slade in the process the Freightliner Racing doing the brake pad change, there was a fire due to the pistons popping out of the calliper which had put them 2 laps behind.
On lap 33, the leaders were still controlling the race out front Tim Slade was running 2nd behind car Jamie Whincup.
On lap 34, the Team Vortex crew had to put car 888 the defending winners of the great race, into the garage to repair the broken gear linkage.
On lap 35 in the middle of the race the Bathurst 1000 was still under green flag.
The first safety car wasn’t until lap 92, for the crash involving Andrew Jones.
On the restart the two Red Bull cars were in control of the race.
Towards the end of the race there was a safety car to rescue Frosty because he was stuck in the sand trap down at the chase.
With 10 laps to go Jamie Whincup was behind Scott McLaughlin going down the Conrod Straight then he was told to stay behind Scott McLaughlin for the redress due to an small tap previously. This end up causing an incident between Scott McLaughlin and Garth Tander. I’m sure you have heard all about it.
In the end, Will Davison and Jonathon Webb took the Bathurst 1000 victory which is Will’s second win and Jonathon Webb’s first Bathurst win.
Results for the 2016 Supercheap Auto Bathurst 1000.
1st – Will Davison & Jonathon Webb – Tekno Autosports.
2nd – Shane Van Gisbergen & Alex Premat – Red Bull Racing Australia.
3rd – Nick Percat & Cameron Mcconville – Lucas Dumbrell Motorsport.
The Next event is the Castrol Gold Coast 600 on the 21st – 23rd of October 2016.
Let take a look back at what happened on the weekend of 19th – 21st June 2015, in Darwin.
Race 13
In race 13 James Courtney started on pole position alongside him was Chaz Mostert. On lap 1 James Courtney made a good start. But Chaz Mostert got the jump and led the field around turn 1 for the first of 21 laps. Both Jamie Whincup and Fabain Coulthard went off the track at turn 1. Then Craig Lowndes and Tim Blanchard, also Craig Lowndes along with Tim Blanchard, spun at turn 5.
On lap 2 James was having an issue with the Holden Racing Team Commodore. Also on that same lap Rick Kelly got passed Shane Van Gisbergen. Fabain Coulthard had a bent steering arm. Both the Red Bull cars were at the back of the field.
On lap 3 Dale Wood tried to go around the outside of James Moffat from Nissan Motorsport. James got down the inside of David Reynolds.
The Safety car was deployed due to a grass fire. On the exit of the 5th corner, Greg Murphy was chatting Mark Dutton about the incident that sent both Jamie Whincup and Craig Lowndes to the back.
The restart was on lap 6.
In the middle of the race Andre Heimgartner couldn’t pull up the Super Black Falcon, the criss-cross was on for Jason Bright, Michael Caruso had a bit of speed way action on the exit of turn 1.
Towards the end of race 13 Scott Pye and Shane Van Gisbergen were following James Courtney.
Results for race 13.
1st – Chaz Mostert – Pepsi Max Crew
2nd – Mark Winterbottom – Pepsi Max Crew
3rd – Rick Kelly – Jack Daniel’s Racing
Race 14
In race 14 Rick Kelly started on position alongside him was Fabain Coulthard of the 21 lap race.
On lap 1 Craig Lowndes led the whole way through race 2. After the front 2 cars came together at turn 1, Craig Lowndes started 5th but was leading the race by the time they got to the first turn. Andre Heimgartner ran wide towards the end of first lap taking out Nick Percat, Will Davison and Jamie Whincup. Fabain Coulthard had contact with the Jack Daniel’s racing Nissan.
On lap 2 Andre Heimgartner had damage to the Super Black Racing Ford Falcon, also on lap 2 a safety car was deployed to clean up the mess left behind by the damaged race cars.
Meanwhile Greg Murphy was interviewing Brad Jones about the start of race 2 and Riana Crehan was interviewing Mark Dutton about opening race tangles.
The restart was on lap 7. In this race it was the 888th race in V8 Supercars. Craig Lowndes was only 15 laps away from claiming his 100th win in this sport. Scott Pye got down the inside of Michael Caruso.
In the middle of the race David Reynolds tried to get down the inside of Michael Caruso at turn 5, Dale Wood and David Wall went off the track at turn 5.
Towards the end of the race Chaz Mostert tried to get up the inside of Tim Slade but in the end Craig Lowndes was the first of the current V8 drivers to reach that incredible milestone of 100 career wins.
Results for race 14
1st – Craig Lowndes – Red Bull Racing Australia
2nd – Tim Slade – Supercheap Auto Racing
3rd – Chaz Mosert – Pepsi Max Crew
Race 15
In race 15 David Reynolds started on pole position alongside him was Fabain Coulthard of the 70 lap race.
On lap 1 Fabain Coulthard got the jump on David Reynolds and led the field into turn 1. Fabain Coulthard was still out in front while the car to make a compulsory pit stop was Jamie Whincup.
On lap 2 then Todd Kelly was first to make a pit stop, so that the 2 Kelly boys didn’t have to double stack behind.
On lap 3 the 2 Red Bull Racing Australia had to split their strategy to stop them from doing the awful double stacking. This is Craig Lownde’s 19th season in V8 Supercars.
On lap 4 Scott McLaughlin ran wide on the exit of turn 1, then he went onto grass out of the first corner. The Red Bull Racing Australia team thought that they could do the whole race on the soft compound tyres, but unfortunately that wasn’t the case.
In the middle of the race both the Red Bull cars came back due to flat spots on both tyres on the front left.
Towards the end of the race, David Reynolds was the leader of the race all the way to the end.
The commentators were Greg Rust and Neil Crompton the pit reporters were Greg Murphy and Riana Crehan.
Results for 15
1st – David Reynolds – Bottle ‘O’ Racing
2nd – Chaz Mostert – Pepsi Max Crew
3rd – Fabain Coulthard – Brad Jones Racing
On the weekend of the 20th – 22nd May was Woodstock Winton Supersprint.
Dad and I left on Thursday the 19th and headed for Beechworth were we would be staying for the weekend. We hired a wheelchair accessible car from Freedom Motors as usual and we stayed at Armour Motor Inn. It was our first time to Beechworth and I have to say it’s the most beautiful spot.
On the Friday we headed out to the track early to catch up with the action. We had box seats to watch all the practice matches. Say hello to all our V8 Supercar friends that arrived early. Eddie Mostert was there to stir me up and put ‘Mossie ’55’ bumper sticker on the back of my wheelchair and now I can’t reach it to take it off… Thanks a lot Eddie.
Greg Murphy’s hot lap
In race 10 Tim Slade started on pole position alongside him was Mark Winterbottom for the 40 lap race.
On lap 1 Tim Slade got the jump and led into turns 1 and 2. Scott McLaughlin passed Mark Winterbottom to move into second place on the opening lap and James Courtney was in no man’s land (meaning he was out where there was not much grip). Lee Holdsworth got bumped out of position by James Courtney behind, but Tim Slade was still in control of the race.
On lap 2 Tim Slade had 0.8 of a second as a margin. The Holden Racing Team were laying up to bring in Garth Tander. James Moffat had a drama and went straight in the garage. Rick Kelly got up the inside of the Rookie Cameron Waters.
On lap 3 Neil Crompton and Mark Skaife showed different angles of the race start.
On lap 4 the cars were settling down into a race pace. Scott McLaughlin was putting the pressure on the race leader and Mark Winterbottom was putting the pressure on him. Chaz Mostert was following Lee Holdsworth. Shane Van Gisbergen got passed Chaz Mostert at turn 10. Cameron Waters, Shane Van Gisbergen and Craig Lowndes all came in.
On lap 5 the leader was still Tim Slade. On departure back on the race track Shane Van Gisbergen was on cold trying to hold off his affective teammate Craig Lowndes.
On lap 6 Jason Bright was holding up the next group of cars. Scott Pye tried to get down the inside of Fabain Coulthard at turn 12.
On lap 7 Dale Wood had damage on the front and the front left hand corner.
On lap 8 Jamie Whincup was still behind James Courtney battling for position 6 and 7.
On lap 9 Greg Rust reported that James Moffat had a broken right front steering arm but the GRM team didn’t know what caused the steering arm to break.
On lap 10 Jamie Whincup, Rick Kelly and Michael Caruso all made there pit stop on lap, also on that lap Rick Kelly rejoined behind Cameron Waters. Then while cars 15 and 6 were getting up to speed, Tim Slade entered the pits for his top. Tim Slade rejoined with cold fresh rubber for the race leader.
In the middle of the race Chris Pither was battling with James Courtney.
Towards the end of the race the top 3 cars were just pulling away, in the end Tim Slade managed to hold on for his first ever V8 Supercars victory.
Results for race 10
1st – Tim Slade – Brad Jones Racing
2nd – Scott McLaughlin – Volvo Polstar Racing
3rd – Mark Winterbottom – Rod Nash Racing
In race 11 Chaz Mostert started on pole position alongside him was Fabain Coulthard for the 67 lap race.
On lap 1 Chaz Mostert made a weird start which allowed Fabain Coulthard to take the race lead at turn 1 and 2. Shane Van Gisbergen gave Cameron Waters a hit in between turns 3 and 4. Chris Pither had 2 wheels in the sand meaning Dale Wood could not see where he was going due to the dust and the dirt getting brought up onto the racing line, then Dale Wood went straight across the track and in the sand on the left hand side by Andre Heimgartner.
On lap 2 Craig Lowndes was putting pressure on Chaz Mostert for 2nd place. Mark Winterbottom, Shane Van Gisbergen and James Courtney all came in early. Will Davison got up the inside of Jamie Whincup at turn 3 which resulted in him going off the racetrack and into the dust. (that was testing their mateship.) On the same lap Chaz Mostert came into the pits for the first of his 2 stops.
On lap 3 Jamie Whincup was behind Cameron Waters
On lap 4 Jamie Whincup finally got up the inside of Cameron Waters along with Scott Pye and Garth Tander. Craig Lowndes did a 21.2 second lap, that was the fastest lap of the race.
On lap 5 Dale Wood made contact with the back of Andre Heimgartners. Craig Lowndes pitted on the 5th lap as well as Rick Kelly and Cam Waters.
On lap 6 Shane Van Gisbergen got up the back of James Courtney at turn 3. His next target was Will Davison.
On lap 7 David Reynolds came in to the pits for his first stop. Michael Caruso was putting the pressure on Scott McLaughlin.
On lap 8 the on board telemetry of Michael Caruso shows the gears the and the throttle and the speed of how fast he was going.
On lap 9 Lee Holdsworth was catching Rick Kelly. Mark Skaife said he just wanted to get a shot of Ricks steering wheel just to make sure it was still straight and it was.
On lap 10 Lee Holdsworth made his first stop, then rejoined with clear track.
In the middle of the race the cars started to settle into a rhythm for the run to the Checkered flag.
Towards the end of the race the cars were getting ready for run to the end of the race no could catch Tim Slade who had dominated the whole weekend at Winton.
I got photos taken with Jamie Whincup, Shane Van Gisbergen, Craig Lowndes, Will Davison, Lee Holdsworth, Scott McLaughlin, James Courtney, Garth Tander, Fabain Coulthard, Jason Bright, Tim Slade, Jim Richards and also John Bowe. Also John’s Touring Car Masters race car, car 18. The only 2 we didn’t get were Glenn Seton and Steven Johnson.
Results for race 11.
1st – Tim Slade – Brad Jones Racing
2nd – Mark Winterbottom – Rod Nash Racing
3rd – Fabain Coulthard – Dick Johnson Racing Team Penske
The next event is the Crown bet Darwin Supersprint on the 17th – 19th June 2016.
This weekend 20th – 22nd May, is the Woodstock Winton Supersprint.
Let’s take a look at what happened at Winton in 2015.
On the weekend of the 15th – 17th May 2015 was the Winton Supersprint.
In race 10 Chaz Mostert started on pole position alongside him was Michael Caruso.
On lap 1 Michael Caruso made a brilliant start due to him starting right up the pointy end of the starting grid, in second spot the Nissan Altama was coloured in red because Nissan Narvra were the main sponsor for the Winton Supersprint, weekend. David Reynolds had a tough start, the two Pepsi Max Crew Ford Falcons led into turns 1 and 2. A couple of cars were trying to run side by side on the opening lap. Craig Lowndes was putting the pressure on Jason Bright. While the front Runners were just pulling away. Chaz Mostert had a 1.2 second lead after the opening lap.
On lap 2 Mark Winterbottom had gone from 4th to 2nd. Shane Van Gisbergen had passed Jamie Whincup to put him up into 8th and Jamie Whincup back 1 spot to 9th Craig Lowndes was still following the Team BOC car. The Margin after 2 laps was 1.55 seconds.
On lap 3 Mark Winterbottom had the grip and then he took off. Todd Kelly was hunting down David Reynolds. Dick Johnson once described the Winton track as like running an F1/11 around your clothes line. Scott McLaughlin went backwards after contact with Dale Wood, Scott McLaughlin’s s60 spun around approaching the halfway mark, (Dutto said they had no car pace. No one could catch the 2 Pepsi Max Crew Prodrive Racing Australia. Cars 5 and 6.)
Results for race 10
1st – Chaz Mostert – Prodrive Racing Australia
2nd – Mark Winterbottom – Prodrive Racing Australia
3rd – Michael Caruso – Nissan Motorsport
In race 11 Chaz Mostert started on pole position alongside him was his teammate Mark Winterbottom.
On lap 1 of 20 the 3 Walkinshaw racing cars of cars 2 22 and 18 of Garth Tander James Courtney and also involved was Lee Holdsworth on approach to turns 1, 2 and 3 for the first time Andre Heimgartner went off the racetrack and onto the grass, Michael Caruso was holding off Scott McLaughlin in the Volvo. Rick Kelly ran the fastest lap of the race, after the race 11 start, Shane Van Gisbergen did the over and under manoeuvre on Jamie Whincup.
That was on lap 2 also on that same lap Craig Lowndes tried to get down the inside of Will Davison. Lee Holdsworth had to watch the rest of the race from the pit lane. James Courtney got a drive thru penalty for making contact with Garth Tander. After he served his pit lane penalty he then came back in again, the team put wet tyres on the car then sent him back out again onto the circuit.
In the middle of the race Craig Lowndes was still putting pressure on the Mercedes E63 AMG.
Towards the end of race, no one could catch the 2 race leaders.
Results for race 11
1st – Mark Winterbottom – Prodrive Racing Australia
2nd – Rick Kelly – Jack Daniel’s Racing
3rd – Chaz Mostert – Prodrive Racing Australia
In race 12 Chaz Mostert started on pole position alongside him was Mark Winterbottom.
On lap 1 of 67 Chaz Mostert got the jump off the line and led the field through turns 1 and 2 turns. Micheal Caruso got swamped off the starting grid by Will Davison. Scott Pye tried to go around the outside at turns 1 and 2 Michael Caruso. Craig Lowndes got in position 3 by turn 3. Rick Kelly tried to make space to get down the inside during the opening lap, Scotty McLaughlin found himself in no man’s land, on the outside. but then the Volvo driver had to Yield. Rick Kelly had a lot of oversteer on the exit of turn 5. Craig Lowndes went from 3rd to 2nd in between turns 8 and 9. Will Davison had the inside line for turn 10. Scott McLaughlin was on the dirty side of the Winton racetrack.
On lap 2 Craig Lowndes took the race lead at turn 3. David Wall in the Volvo s60 also come in on the 2nd lap, the 2 Holden Racing team cars were side by side into turn 8. Tim Slade was on the wrong side for turns 8, but on the right side for turn 9 meaning he was able to pass easier at the hairpin. James Courtney was on the outside of the Scott McLaughlin. But James Courtney managed to cover him around the outside. Garth Tander tried to pass Tim Slade at turn 10, but he didn’t. he managed to pass him in between turns 11 and 12. Craig Lowndes started race 12 (race 3 for the weekend) on soft compound tyre.
On lap 3 Fox Sports had a replay of the start. Craig Lowndes cleared the cars that were in front of him. Early on in the 3rd and final race
On lap 4 Garth Tander went down the inside of Will Davison at turn 3. Craig Lowndes had a 1.4 second lead in front of the field. Towards the end of lap 4 both Fabain Coulthard and Scott Pye got down the inside of David Reynolds.
On lap 5, Marcos Ambrose was watching on from the Dick Johnson Racing Team, Penske Garage.
On lap 6 Greg Murphy was chatting to Adrain Burgess at the SP Tools Holden Racing Team about the Strategy, the HRT guys, the Walkinshaw racing guys and Triple 8 guys, all of those teams were going for track position, meaning they were trying to get towards the front to not get caught up in any incidents or accidents. Jamie Whincup started the last race in 22nd on the grid, he was the first driver to make a pit stop, the double stacking issues happen, when a team that runs 2 cars if the second car is behind on the track that means when it comes to pit the other car has to sit in the cue and wait for the car that is in front to exit the pit lane so the 2nd car can enter and get serviced.
In the middle of the race Chaz Mostert put on the back of the tyre Bundle after getting turned around by himself and the front of the car was full of sand.
Towards the end of the race the 2 Red Bull cars were coming through the field because they were behind. The Pepsi Max crew was leading, chasing him was Fabain Coulthard.
Results for race 12
1st – Mark Winterbottom – Prodrive Racing Australia
2nd – Fabain Coulthard – Brad Jones Racing
3rd – Craig Lowndes – Red Bull Racing Australia
