 Chaz Mostert, PRA, SMP Supersprint. (C) It's arrived. V8 Supercars' endurance season is upon us. The Sydney Motorsport Park Supersprint has been run and won. Now it's time to turn our attention to the Pirtek Endurance Cup. Sandown 500, Bathurst 1000 and the Gold Coast 600. Pit stop strategies, the opportune time to run the co-drivers, the mechanical strain on the race cars. All adds up to uncertainty doesn't it? What more can a V8 Supercar fan desire?
Prodrive Racing Australia's Mark Winterbottom still leads the championship, but team mate Chaz Mostert is definitely on the ascendancy. Can Mostert win the big one at Mt Panorama, claiming back to back Bathurst 1000 victories, this time partnered with Cameron Waters? With age on his side, Chaz could very well end up being a multiple Bathurst winner and future championship winner. Then there's the return of Marcos Ambrose to partner Scott Pye. What can the former champion offer the quickly improving Dick Johnson Racing team? Red Bull Racing and six time champ Jamie Whincup looked to be on the rise on Saturday at last weekend's SMP Supersprint, only to be brought back down to earth in the Sunday race. However, only the brave would write off the proven combination of Whincup and Paul Dumbrell who incidentally start the endurance season with a new car. There's an international contingent to the enduros as well with the likes of Frenchman Alexandre Premat rejoining Garry Rogers Motorsport to partner Scott McLaughlin, and former F1 driver and Indy Car hotshoe Sebastien Bourdais joining Lee Holdsworth at Walkinshaw Racing. Will Bourdais be able a muscle a V8 Supercar? One of the big stories is the return of Russell Ingall to V8 Supercar action. The Enforcer is replacing the injured James Courtney at HRT to partner Jack Perkins. Have HRT made an inspired choice, or would they have been better served to give a drive to a hungry young driver? Perkins/ Ingall has a familiar ring to it though. It's one of the wildcard entries for the Bathurst 1000 that has us intrigued. Rising star Renee Gracie is partnered with an absolute superstar in Indy Car and Formula E driver Simona de Silvestro. The "Iron Maiden" has also been an affiliated driver with the Sauber F1 team. Would love to see the ladies leave the boys in their exhaust fumes. So, anyone willing to pick a winner for Bathurst or the Pirtek Endurance Cup for that matter? If you know, let us know, because we don't have a clue. Cheers.... Sadly, the motorsport community is once again in mourning. Former F1 driver and Indy Car driver Justin Wilson passed away after succumbing to injuries sustained at Pocono. Immensely popular and will be sadly missed. Our thoughts and best wishes are with the Wilson family. Vale Justin Wilson.
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 V8 Supercars, AGP. (C) Our friends and supporters who frequent this site will know how much we love all forms of motorsport, but they will undoubtedly be aware of how much the anticipation and excitement levels crescendo when the endurance season approaches. V8 Supercars is once again about to dip its big toe into the unpredictability of endurance racing including its showcase event, The Bathurst 1000, being just a breath away.
However there's the matter of the Sydney Motorsport Park Supersprint to contend first before the enduros commence at Sandown. Sydney fans can enjoy a plethora of motorsport with a bumper support programme scheduled. Closely matched Porsche Carrera Cup contest 3 x 19 lap races, crowd favourites Aussie Racing Cars fight over 4 x 11 lap races, the top end exotic marques of GT racing race a 1 hour mini enduro on Saturday and a 40 lap race on Sunday, and the FIA and Cams sanctioned Formula 4 make their long awaited Sydney debut over 3 x 15 lap races. V8 Supercars at this time of year always seems to take on an interesting perspective. The main protagonists bidding for championship glory begin to show their hands. Prodrive's Mark Winterbottom takes an almost 300 point advantage over Red Bull's evergreen Craig Lowndes, with team mate Chaz Mostert and David Reynolds plus HRT's James Courtney breathing down CL's neck. Can 2015 finally be Winterbottom's year? And what of defending champ Jamie Whincup? His title's defense might not be going to plan to date, but he always manages to excel come endurance season. Only the brave would consign him to the also-rans. Ford seemed to have produced a car that can win on all types of circuits with their Falcon FGX. Winterbottom will certainly be hoping that that will be the case at Sydney Motorsport Park. Any increase to his slender advantage going into the endurance season will certainly be welcomed by Frosty. See you trackside next weekend. Ciao.... |
Will Brown, Red Bull Racing Aust., Supercars.
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Josh Buchan, HMO Customer Racing, TCR Aust. Series.
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