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  1. #91
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    Cool, im glad you enjoying it mate It is on same time this sunday, it is the Clipsal 500 at Adelaide. From last weekend. I is going to be a good season
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  2. #92
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    Tander starts fight back


    Jubilation: Toll Holden Racing Team's Garth Tander wins the first 250-kay race at the Clipsal 500 Adelaide.

    5:39 PM Sat 13 March, 2010

    Source: BigPond Sport

    Toll Holden Racing Team’s Garth Tander has won the battle of tyre management and fuel economy to claim the first leg of the Clipsal 500 Adelaide today (Saturday).

    Tander jumped pole-sitter, TeamVodafone’s Jamie Whincup, at the start of the race, which began a battle that saw the lead swap between the pair on a number of occasions throughout the 250-kilometre race.

    But it all came down to the final of four re-starts. Most of the front-runners headed to the pits during the safety car period, which ironically was caused by debris on the track from the Commodore of Whincup’s teammate Craig Lowndes.

    In the confusion of trying to pit both of its cars, TeamVodafone forgot to change the front tyres on Whincup’s Commodore.

    At the re-start Tander, who had changed all four tyres, was able to drive past Whincup, as was Jim Beam Racing’s James Courtney and The Bottle-O Racing’s Paul Dumbrell.

    Whincup fought his way back to third, but was then forced to give up the final podium position – to a charging Lee Holdsworth of Fujitsu Racing GRM – as he had to conserve fuel to ensure he made the end of the race.

    “In all the congestion we forgot to change the front tyres in the last stop and then we were really low on fuel towards the end of the race so we took the smart option to finish fourth rather than make another stop,” Whincup said.

    Tander went on to win the race as Courtney was also forced to conserve fuel in the dying laps.

    Following his disastrous results in the Middle East, Tander was happy to be back at the pointy end of the field.

    “You are only as good as your last race so I’ll take that,” he said.

    “There was massive determination for me coming back from the Middle East where we had very good car speed, but we certainly didn’t get the results that we had hoped for.

    “The car has been very good all weekend. It was good this morning; my shootout lap wasn’t as good as it needed to be. It was clearly my fault that we weren’t on pole.

    “We had a pretty good strategy; the car was pretty good when it needed to be and we looked after it when we needed to.

    “It turned out to be as perfect a day as it could have been.”

    Tander said it was important for his team to get a good result in Adelaide.

    “We are still the same core group of people who won the Teams’ Championship last year; we have been saying that we had good car speed but we never got to show it in the Middle East,” he said.

    “There are a lot of smiles in the garage at the moment, but we know that we there is still a lot of work to be done. From a championship point of view we just need to battle on and hopefully by the end of the year we will be in the mix, so hopefully results like that will keep the momentum going and the morale up.”

    Tander believes that his poor start to the series in the Middle East could actually have helped to take some of the pressure off.

    “We need to be careful that we don’t forget about the Championship altogether, but it is not our main focus at the moment,” he said.

    “I certainly have one eye on the Championship but that’s only 20 per cent of our focus at the moment; it’s important to win a lot of races.”

    Courtney was pleased to be on the podium considering his lowly qualifying position of 17th.

    “I wasn’t too happy when we came out of qualifying, so we went the other way (with car set-up) and it turned into a jet during the race,” he said.

    “We need to do a good job tomorrow and go one better, but Garth was pretty quick today in that last stint on new tyres. He took off once he got past Jamie and I had to conserve fuel.”

    Holdsworth thanked his crew for giving him a strong car and the right strategy to get on the podium.

    “We had a great strategy and I had to run conservatively at the start… (but) from about three-quarters into the race I could go all out to catch these guys and I had a very good race car and it just kept getting stronger and stronger through the race,” he said.

    Whincup still leads the Championship from Ford Performance Racing’s Mark Winterbottom – who had a poor race today which turned pear-shaped when he got involved in an incident with Jim Beam Racing’s Steve Johnson – and Courtney.

    Top 10 Championship positions

    Jamie Whincup Commodore 720
    Mark Winterbottom Falcon 585
    James Courtney Falcon 558
    Shane van Gisbergen Falcon 510
    Lee Holdsworth Commodore 501
    Craig Lowndes Commodore 495
    Rick Kelly Commodore 428
    Michael Caruso Commodre 384
    Paul Dumbrell Falcon 378
    Steve Johnson Falcon 365
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  3. #93
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    Tander wins on empty


    Garth Tander wins the first of four Grand Slam events in the 2010 V8 Supercar Championship.

    6:10 PM Sun 14 March, 2010

    Source: BigPond Sport

    In what will go down in history as one of the greatest V8 Supercar races ever, Toll Holden Racing’s Garth Tander has won the second leg of the Clipsal 500 Adelaide this afternoon (Sunday).

    The 90,000 spectators held their collective breath as Tander – with very little fuel left in his tank – hung on to finish ahead of a charging Jim Beam Racing’s James Courtney, and Ford Performance Racing’s Mark Winterbottom.

    It was a race that had everything, including a brave fuel strategy, a controversial black flag, late rain and a broken kerb at the dangerous turn eight.

    Tander and TeamVodafone’s Jamie Whincup swapped the lead for most of the 250-kilometre race, while Courtney was on a different fuel strategy after pitting early, but was showing incredible pace throughout his middle stint.

    However, it all came down to the last 20 laps when a kerb at turn eight broke up causing a safety car period.

    The five ensuing laps under the safety car was the break Tander needed as he was unlikely to have made it to the end of the race with the fuel he had left in his tank under normal racing conditions.

    When the race was re-started it created a sprint to the end with Tander tight on fuel, Whincup okay on fuel but struggling on old tyres and Courtney looking good on both fuel and tyres, while Winterbottom was also in the mix.

    Light rain added spice to the action as it caused Tander to slip on a wet painted white line allowing Whincup momentarily into the lead, before the former took control again.

    Courtney gave Whincup a nudge causing a piece of the #1 TeamVodafone Commodore to come loose.

    Whincup was subsequently black-flagged, but the part flew clear before he could head to the pits. However, under racing rules once a black flag has been displayed it can’t be rescinded until the car returns to pitlane for an inspection.

    TeamVodafone principal Roland Dane was furious with what became a farcical situation.

    “It’s difficult to accept. The rule is nonsense. They will have to have another look at it all,” he said.

    “From a sport’s point of view we have just made ourselves look ridiculous in front of all of these people and to all of the people watching at home.

    “Clearly the part had come off the car and yet you are called in to have a look at it when you know perfectly well that there is nothing wrong with it.”

    Meanwhile, Tander admitted that the late-race safety car played into his hands.

    “When we didn’t stop for a third stop when that safety car came out we were certainly rolling the dice; we were hoping that safety car period was going to go a couple of laps and it went a couple of laps longer than we needed. It was tight; there is not a lot of fuel left in the tank now,” he said.

    Courtney applauded the efforts of his crew for helping him come through the field to eventually finish second. He should have started fourth but his fastest time in qualifying was excluded when he was deemed to have illegally kerb hopped.

    “My guys did an awesome job to get us back from ninth to second this weekend – it’s just a shame that in qualifying I got that lap taken off me because it would have been a lot easier day starting at the front, but everything went smoothly... I think I passed about 300 cars out there,” he said.

    Winterbottom said he was planning to shout the bar after costing his team a possible victory by stalling in the pits and smacking a wall at turn eight.

    “I made a few mistakes today… I think the car was good enough today but the driver made a few errors. I owe the boys a few beers tonight because they gave me the car to win today,” he said.

    Whincup still holds the Championship lead, but Winterbottom has closed the gap, while Tander has fought back to 11th.

    Tander believes he still needs some more good results before he is back in the title chase after his poor start to the season in the Middle East.

    “We still need to have quite a few results like we had this weekend to continue to fight back… we don’t expect to be back anywhere near the hunt until the endurance races,” he said.

    Top 10 Championship positions

    Jamie Whincup Commodore 771
    Mark Winterbottom Falcon 714
    James Courtney Falcon 696
    Shane van Gisbergen Falcon 630
    Lee Holdsworth Commodore 573
    Craig Lowndes Commodore 552
    Rick Kelly Commodore 530
    Paul Dumbrell Falcon 489
    Michael Caruso Commodore 462
    Steve Johnson Falcon 455
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  4. #94
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    Make it official


    No breach: TeamVodafone.

    2:06 PM Sun 14 March, 2010

    Source: BigPond Sport

    V8 Supercar teams will be reminded at a team manager’s briefing that any issue they want investigated needs an official request lodged.

    The reminder follows allegations after yesterday’s race that tyres issued to the Commodore of TeamVodafone’s Craig Lowndes were used on teammate Jamie Whincup’s car.

    Under V8 Supercar rules, no tyres can be transferred between cars or teams to stop any competitor from gaining an unfair advantage.

    The rule is in place for instances where a driver in Championship contention swaps used tyres with green tyres from a driver outside of Championship contention.

    But even if TeamVodafone had swapped Lowndes’ tyres with Whincup’s in the last pit stop on Saturday at the Clipsal 500 Adelaide, both sets were green so there was no unfair advantage for either driver.

    V8 Supercars’ Director of Racing, Adam Perry, confirmed with BigPond Sport that teams had complained after the cars were released from parc ferme but an official incident report was not lodged.

    “The suggestion is they (TeamVodafone) may have used the wrong tyres but we haven’t been able to prove that; the request came to us after the cars were released from parc ferme,” he said.

    “We did do a very brief investigation after that but we couldn’t prove either way it was the case.

    “We can only act on the information that the teams give us at the time and if it’s past parc ferme time it’s pretty hard for us to prove what’s happened and there was no official request for an investigation put forward by any team so from our point of view it’s been dealt with.”

    The back-to-back pitstop rival teams have questioned was chaotic. The TeamVodafone crew forgot to put new front tyres on Whincup’s car as they hurried through his stop as Lowndes waited in pitlane for his pitstop to start.

    And if TeamVodafone had made the mistake of using the wrong tyres, it is not in the position now to admit fault because that would result in a penalty.

    Perry said if it could have been proven that TeamVodafone had bolted on the wrong set of tyres to Whincup’s car, the resulting penalty would have been minor because the rule breach was accidental rather than calculated.

    “We’re happy with what transpired; what we’re not happy with is the way that parc ferme is situated in the garages here,” he said.

    “We would prefer to have it out in the fast lane as we do at most other circuits; that way we actually get a better opportunity to do those checks.”

    Perry said the Fujitsu Series race, which takes place after the V8 Supercars race, prevents parc ferme taking place in the fast lane.

    “We will definitely look at changing that for next year if that’s possible,” he said.

    “I don’t think we can change the schedule, but if we can convince the officials that we can operate parc ferme (in the fast lane) with another race running and cope with any needs they need there we’ll do that.

    “But this is just one of the limitations of this particular circuit that we have.”
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  5. #95
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    Back-to-back soft tyre events

    Orrcon Racing's Mark Winterbottom at Queensland Raceway last year.

    V8 Supercars Australia has just announced that soft tyres will be used for the whole of this year's event at the Paperclip.

    4:45 PM Wed 17 March, 2010

    Source: BigPond Sport

    Drivers will use the Dunlop Sprint soft tyres for the entire duration of the City of Ipswich 300 at Queensland Raceway following a decision from V8 Supercars Australia.

    With the cancellation of the event at Perth’s Barbagallo Raceway, which was supposed to be a soft-tyre-only event, V8 Supercars has transferred the Dunlop Super Maxx Sprint tyre allocation to the City of Ipswich 300, which takes place from April 30 to May 2.

    The news means that the two soft-tyre-only events in the 2010 Championship will be held back-to-back because the meet directly following the City of Ipswich 300 is the event at Winton Motor Raceway (May14-16).

    All V8 Supercar teams were notified of the decision today. At each of the two soft-tyre-only events teams will be provided with 20 sprint tyres for racing and qualifying.

    In addition, four sprint tyres allocated for testing will be distributed at the Queensland Raceway event, which will be permitted for use in practice only at both Queensland Raceway and Winton. Teams will also be permitted to use eight pre-marked control tyres at these events.

    Ford Performance Racing’s Mark ‘Frosty’ Winterbottom, who currently sits second in the Championship, was in favour of racing on soft tyres for an entire event.

    “I’ve always wanted to qualify on it and give it a good go, so I think it’s a great idea,” he said.

    “I think it will be better racing using the soft tyre for the whole event.”

    Frosty noted that tyre wear would play a different role to what it has in the past and that it would probably affect the Championship.

    “It’s going to open it up a bit more and I don’t know who it will favour,” he said.

    “We’ve only ever had the soft tyre as a luxury so to have everyone on the same tyre, it’s really going to affect it because you have got to set your car up a bit differently and initially no one will know what the car set-up is.

    “All those things are unknowns so it will make it a greater challenge.”
    And with a car that has pace and the right strategy, Winterbottom said it will allow drivers to win on both days.

    “It will still play a big part of the strategy, but if you play it right you can win both races,” he said.
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  6. #96
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    Love my v8s

    Can't wait for melb. Go vodafone raceing

  7. #97
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    No way we’ll quit NZPrint www.v8supercars.com


    Kiwi native Shane van Gisbergen at last year's Hamilton event. His recent form is expected to generate interest, and ticket sales, for next month's ITM400 Hamilton.

    2:07 PM Thu 18 March, 2010

    Source: BigPond Sport

    V8 Supercars Australia Chairman Tony Cochrane has reiterated the category’s commitment to New Zealand and next month’s ITM400 Hamilton.

    His comments follow media reports emerging from New Zealand that the Hamilton event may be in jeopardy due to financial reasons, but Cochrane said this could not be further from the truth.

    “V8 Supercars Australia guarantees every New Zealander that the ITM400 in Hamilton will be another fantastic success in 2010, and a long way into the future,” he said.

    “The recent reports that the personal affairs of event promoter Dean Calvert are in any way linked to the event are extremely disappointing.

    “Let me assure every person in New Zealand that there is absolutely no question that this year’s event will proceed and once again be a terrific weekend in Hamilton.”

    Ticket sales for the ITM400 Hamilton, which runs from April 16-18, have to-date been slow, but New Zealanders are traditionally late ticket buyers and the country’s economy is also taking a heavy hit at the moment.

    And Kiwi native Shane van Gisbergen’s recent results, which have him currently sitting fourth in the 2010 V8 Supercar Championship, is expected to drive extra traffic through the gates.

    V8 Supercars has included a New Zealand event into its Championship since 2001 and the inaugural Hamilton street race was held in 2008.

    “V8 Supercars Australia has a long-term and unwavering commitment to this event and New Zealand, which I can absolutely guarantee,” Cochrane said.

    “The Hamilton City Council is also resolute in its support of the event both now and well into the future.

    “Our supporter base in New Zealand is huge and for more than a decade our Championship has enjoyed the overwhelming support of the public, providing some of the largest annual sporting events in the country.

    “The ties between our sport and New Zealand could not be greater.”

    While the media has focused on the withdrawal of Holden as a sponsor, the event has more large sponsors than ever.

    After sponsoring the event in a smaller capacity for the last two years New Zealand’s largest group in independent trade building supply merchants, ITM, has stepped up to become the naming-rights sponsor until 2012.

    Besides V8 Supercars, the 2010 ITM400 Hamilton offers a range of other on-track activities including the NZV8 series, the NZ/AUS V8 Ute Challenge, the Suzuki Swift Sports Cup, drag cars, Hitachi Stunt Utes, the Jim Beam Band, stunt bikes and a Harley parade.

    The event officially starts with a launch party in the town’s Garden Place on Thursday, April 15 from 4pm to 7pm, which includes driver signings, entertainment, car and motorbike displays and grid girl appearances.

    “The V8s is the biggest event in the city’s calendar and Garden Place is accessible for everyone to come and be part of what is a fantastic thing for the city,” Hamilton Mayor, Bob Simcock, said.

    As a further incentive for Australian fans and those in New Zealand who live a plane trip from Hamilton, a free three-day general admission pass to the ITM400 Hamilton is available with any Pacific Blue plane ticket booked

    For more information on the ITM400 Hamilton visit www.itm400.co.nz or to buy tickets visit www.ticketek.co.nz
    Last edited by Rob; 21st March 2010 at 19:53.
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  8. #98
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    Quote Originally Posted by Aussie View Post
    Love my v8s

    Can't wait for melb. Go vodafone raceing
    Great series, love the racing and passion of the fans. Im Toll Holden Racing fan, Go Garth and Will..

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  9. #99
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    A-OK at Bundy


    Bundaberg Red Racing's Andrew Thompson at the Clipsal 500 Adelaide before his car was to damaged to continue competing.

    2:48 PM Mon 22 March, 2010

    Source: BigPond Sport www.v8supercars.com

    Andrew Thompson has confirmed his #10 Bundaberg Red Racing Commodore will be ready for this weekend’s 2010 BRC IMPCO V8 supercar Challenge.

    The Bundy Commodore was deemed too damaged to repair at the Clipsal 500 earlier this month and was taken back to the workshop after Thompson slammed into the notorious turn eight at the Adelaide street circuit during qualifying on the Saturday.

    Thompson, who sat out both of the 250km races at Adelaide, said the car’s structural integrity was analysed and has been given the all clear.

    “It’s all been checked and tested and it’s basically brand new now,” the 22-year-old said.

    “The car’s all okay and it’s pretty much back together today and not far off being finished for the weekend.”

    Thomson was surprised that the crash did not take a greater toll on his body.

    “My foot copped a bit of a knock on the pedal and it had a bit of bruising for a couple of days but it’s all good now,” he said.

    “I was expecting a bit more but I was quite happy how I came out of the car because I didn’t want to have any more serious injuries because of the tight turnaround between Clipsal and the Grand Prix.

    “It’s not as easy corner and if you make a mistake there you pay for it dearly. I paid for it dearly on the car side of things, but I was lucky to come away from it without any major injuries.”

    Thompson acknowledged there was no room for error at Adelaide’s turn eight.

    “If you get it slightly wrong you pay for it,” he said.

    “Unfortunately I got it wrong, but the guys have worked really hard to get the car back on track this weekend so I can’t wait to get to the Grand Prix and get the Bundy Commodore back on track.”

    No Championship points are on offer at the 2010 BRC IMPCO V8 Supercar Challenge, which is a support event to the Formula One at Albert Park, but Thompson is determined to do well particularly after missing a lot of track time at Adelaide.

    “Right now I am not looking at it differently to any other (V8 event); even though it’s a non-Championship event we will go there as a team and do our best and get the best results we can,” he said.
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  10. #100
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    INXS rocks Townsville


    INXS will play a one-off concert at the Armor All Townsville 400 on Saturday, July 10.

    10:30 AM Fri 19 March, 2010

    Source: BigPond Sport www.v8supercars.com

    V8 Supercars Australia has announced that one of Australia’s greatest ever rock bands, INXS, will play a one-off concert at this year’s Armor All Townsville 400.

    The Armor All Townsville 400 takes place from July 9-11 and INXS, which had hits including Original Sin, Need You Tonight and New Sensation, will play at the event on Saturday, July 10.

    Townsville’s inaugural V8 Supercar event last year was a massive success and V8 Supercars Australia Acting Chief Executive Officer, Shane Howard, said the addition of INXS to this year’s event is sure to cement Townsville’s place as one of the Championship’s signature events.

    “To secure one of Australia’s greatest ever bands, INXS, to play at the Armor All Townsville 400 is a huge bonus for the event and for North Queensland,” he said.

    “The Saturday night concert, included in the event ticket price, is a great way to thank the people of Northern Queensland who showed incredible support for the inaugural 2009 event – smashing our expectations with a crowd of more than 168,000 people over the three days.

    “The ‘Rock n’ Race’ concept is proven as part of our strategy to provide both the best racing in the world combined with the best entertainment.”

    Today’s announcement of the INXS concert at the Armor All Townsville 400 will create a sensation in North Queensland. Not since the Elton John concert in 2007 has the region been treated to such a high profile internationally acclaimed act, particularly at such an affordable price.

    V8 Supercars Australia proved its credentials as ‘The Greatest Show on Wheels’ after securing international music sensation P!nk as the sport’s ambassador from 2010 through to 2012.

    “Our Greatest Show on Wheels campaign featuring the world’s hottest female artist today in P!nk shows that V8 Supercars can truly be a true mix of world class sport and world class entertainment,” Howard said.

    “The same can be said of the Armor All Townsville 400 where we can attract a band of the magnitude of INXS.”

    INXS are international rock legends, having sold more than 30 million albums and played to sold-out stadium gigs around the world.

    The band’s career spans over three decades and on April 20, INXS will release its greatest hits album titled INXS: PLATINUM exclusively on iTunes.

    INXS: PLATINUM will be INXS' debut release on CM Murphy's independent label, Petrolelectric and the first collaboration between long time partners, Chris and INXS since the early 1990's.

    The album features the band’s aforementioned songs along with other hits including Devil Inside, Never Tear Us Apart and Suicide Blonde.

    The official Armor All Townsville 400 winner’s trophy landed spectacularly back in Townsville today (Friday), signalling the start of the build-up to this year’s event.

    A helicopter carrying last year’s Sunday winner, James Courtney, carrying the trophy, landed in Reid Park.

    Reigning Jupiters Miss Townsville 400 Kasey-Lee Brunker met the Jim Beam Racing driver before the trophy was officially handed to Townsville Mayor Les Tyrell.

    Cr Tyrell said the biggest weekend of the year for the region was shaping up to be even bigger and better this year.

    “The V8 Supercar event in itself is a show-stopper but to have an entertainment act of the standing of INXS is a welcome boost,” he said.

    “The city is once again expecting a huge influx of visitors for the event and we are getting ready to roll out the welcome mat once again.”

    Courtney said the drivers couldn’t wait for the Armor All Townsville 400 event.

    “The people of North Queensland take such pride in the event and this creates a real buzz.

    “The facilities and the track are first-rate and we can’t wait for July.”

    The inaugural Townsville 400 took out the 2009 V8 Supercars Event of the Year Award and Howard encouraged people to get in quick to secure their tickets.

    “The Platinum Grandstands have already sold out but there are still plenty of Gold and Silver grandstand tickets available, as well as general admission,” he said.

    “We have also received an overwhelming demand for corporate facilities.”

    The INXS concert is absolutely free for anybody that holds a Saturday ticket to the event.

    Tickets are on sale now and are available through www.ticketek.com.au or 132 849. Children 12 years and under will again receive free entry to general admission areas with a paying adult.

    For more information on the Armor All Townsville 400 visit www.v8supercarevents.com.au

    The official Townsville Home Stay Program is again in place to meet demand for accommodation. Inquiries should be directed to Barrier Reef Dive Cruise and Travel on 07 4772 5800.
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    Whincup drives F1


    Jenson Button sits in the TeamVodafone Commodore with Jamie Whincup looking on.

    By Briar Gunther

    2:37 PM Tue 23 March, 2010

    Source: BigPond Sport www.v8supercars.com.au

    Reigning V8 Supercar Champion Jamie Whincup has described his experience in a Formula One car around the Australian Grand Prix circuit at Albert Park as “unbelievable”.

    The TeamVodafone driver swapped cars with reigning World Champion Jenson Button today (Tuesday) in front of an international media pack at the street circuit in the lead up to this weekend’s 2010 Formula One QANTAS Australian Grand Prix.

    Whincup, who drives for TeamVodafone in the V8 Supercar Championship, admitted he was a bundle of nerves but also excited before he jumped in the Vodafone McLaren Mercedes.

    “You can’t be any more nervous than I am right now,” he revealed.

    “It’s the biggest opportunity of my life. It could be the best thing I do.”

    Afterwards, Whincup said he had never felt anything like it.

    “I can’t really explain it,” he said.

    “I had a little bit of a celebration with myself 50 metres (after taking off) because I didn’t stall; that was the hardest thing.”

    Whincup said the Formula One car did “everything right”.

    “The strain on my head was unbelievable; I don’t get anywhere near the Gs in my car.

    “The Gs on your neck are unbelievable. I’ve got huge respect for their fitness. To do a full Grand Prix at that pace is unbelievable.”

    Button, who has expressed a desire to one day race a V8 Supercar, was equally thrilled to drive a Triple Eight Commodore.

    “For me it’s exciting as well because I’ve watched V8 Supercars for so many years and I’ve also said in the past after F1 I’m sure I’m going to look at doing something else and that (driving a V8) hopefully will be a possibility for me if I get the chance; I’d love to in the future.”

    After his drive, Button noted there was not a lot of downforce in a V8 Supercar compared to a Formula One car.

    “It was great, a really good experience,” he said.

    “I noticed that I need to strengthen my right leg if I ever want to drive one of these again or if I ever get the chance to drive one of these again because you use the brake pedal with your right leg whereas in our car it’s the left so it’s quite difficult to get used to but it was a great experience and I was surprised how much grip the car had especially in low speed corners.

    “It’s not as physical in the way of G force but it’s physical because it’s so hot.”

    Whincup likened his Formula One experience to going up in space or flying an F-18 fighter jet.

    “It’s right up there,” he said and Button, who would one day like to compete in the Supercheap Auto Bathurst 1000, agreed.

    “Even now driving it (fulltime) you’ll feel that, you don’t get bored of it.

    “You can get frustrated when the car’s not great but you still get a buzz every time you drive it.”

    The V8 Supercars will hold three non-Championship races at the Australian Grand Prix under the banner of the 2010 BRC IMPCO V8 Supercar Challenge.
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  16. #106
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    A grand affair

    James Courtney at last year's V8 event at the Australian Grand Prix in an older spec car.

    By Briar Gunther

    8:56 AM Wed 24 March, 2010

    Source: BigPond Sport

    V8 Supercars will provide more than 200km of racing as a support category to Formula One at Albert Park this weekend.

    As part of the 2010 BRC IMPCO V8 Supercar Challenge, the V8s will hold three 13-lap races around the 5.3km circuit.

    A maximum of 100 points are on offer in each of the three V8 Supercar races and the winner of the event will be the driver with the most points from the weekend.

    The sole qualifying session of the weekend for the V8 Supercars takes place on Thursday for 30 minutes and will not be extended regardless of the number of red flag periods.

    Each driver’s finishing position in the Friday race determines their grid order for the Saturday race and the results of the Saturday race determines the grid order for the Sunday race.

    Jim Beam Racing’s James Courtney is looking forward to finally getting to compete in a current-spec Falcon at the Albert Park circuit.

    For the last two years, Courtney has had to drive ‘spare’ cars after crashing out at the Clipsal 500 Adelaide in 2008 when he drove for Stone Brothers Racing and his debut season with the Jim Beam team last year.

    “I’ll be going there with my regular 2010-spec car which should be much more competitive,” he said.

    V8 Supercars intends to enforce a clause in teams’ contracts if they ‘tank’ at the 2010 BRC IMPCO V8 Supercar Challenge because no Championship points are on offer.

    Courtney said he had to intention of competing anything less than his best.

    “I’m a racer and once the lights go green I'll be flat-out going for the win the same as anywhere else,” he said.

    “This event has a high international profile because of the Formula One aspect, so it’s also a good chance to get exposure for my sponsors. The best way to do that is to win!”

    The upside for fans heading to the 2010 Formula One QANTAS Australian Grand Prix is that because the V8s are not the main attraction and Championship points are not on offer, the atmosphere in the V8 Supercar paddock is relaxed and drivers are a lot more accessible than at a usual V8 event.

    Official autograph sessions have been organised for the Friday through to Sunday at the autograph stage located in the V8 Supercar paddock.

    From 2pm on Friday Rick Kelly, Todd Kelly, Paul Dumbrell, Mark Winterbottom, Steven Richards, Lee Holdsworth, Michael Caruso, Jason Bargwanna, Tony Ricciardello and Daniel Gaunt will sign autographs for half an hour.

    Craig Lowndes, Jamie Whincup, James Courtney, Steven Johnson, Jonathon Webb, Jason Bright, Jason Richards, Karl Reindler and Tony D'Alberto will sign autographs for half an hour from 3pm on Saturday while Garth Tander, Will Davison, Alex Davison, Shane van Gisbergen, Tim Slade, Russell Ingall, Greg Murphy, Fabian Coulthard, Andrew Thompson and Dean Fiore will hold a half hour autograph session from 11.30am on Sunday.

    BRC IMPCO, the naming-rights sponsor of the V8 races, is a fuel systems solutions group offering LPG installations and conversions.

    The 2010 BRC IMPCO V8 Supercar Challenge schedule is as follows:

    Thursday

    2.10pm – 30 minute practice session
    5.15pm – Qualifying

    Friday

    3pm – Top 10 Shootout
    6.15pm – Race one (13 laps)

    Saturday

    6.15pm – Race two (13 laps)

    Sunday

    2.20pm – Race three (13 laps)
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  17. #107
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    Frosty seeks F1 test drive

    Ford Performance Racing's Mark Winterbottom, pictured at the Clipsal 500 Adelaide, wants to test a Formula One car.
    By Briar Gunther

    8:13 AM Thu 25 March, 2010

    Source: BigPond Sport

    Mark Winterbottom has declared he wants to test a Formula One car.

    Frosty was one of four drivers who rode in a two seater Minardi F1 in Abu Dhabi while on a promotional trip for the Yas V8 400 in January and with the Formula One show in town the Ford Performance Racing driver has made his intentions clear.

    “While I have always respected the speed and technology of Formula One, as a driver you tend to concentrate on what you are doing and forget about the chance of ever riding in or driving the ultimate racing car, being a Formula One car,” he said.

    “Having had this mind blowing experience in Abu Dhabi earlier this year, I have now set myself the goal of driving an F1 car.

    “Now I have to convince one of these teams to give me a one-off test drive as I have caught the F1 bug and I know that I won’t be able to shake it off for years to come.”

    Winterbottom said even with a passenger on board, the Minardi’s grip was “just unbelievable”.

    “I can only imagine what it would be like at full speed when you are on your own in one of these incredible mobile missiles,” he said.

    “The technology that makes the car seem so easy to drive compared to our racing cars reflects the premier level of engineering excellence and unlimited development that takes place in Formula One.”

    Prodrive, the company that owns the FPR V8 Supercar team, also has links with Formula One.

    It ran the BAR F1 Team for a number of years last decade, taking the team to second in the Formula One World Championship behind Ferrari in 2004.

    The company was accepted for an entry to the 2008 Formula One World Championship but a change in customer team rules governing the championship prematurely ended Prodrive’s campaign.
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  18. #108
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    Whincup quickest


    Patience rewards Whincup with a clear track during qualifying.

    6:17 PM Thu 25 March, 2010

    Source: BigPond Sport

    Boosted by his drive in a Formula One car earlier this week, TeamVodafone’s Jamie Whincup finished the first day of the 2010 BRC IMPCO V8 Supercar Challenge as the quickest V8 man on the track.

    In the sole qualifying session of the weekend, Whincup posted a time of 1:57.9308 ahead of Toll Holden Racing Team’s Garth Tander and Castrol Edge Racing’s Greg Murphy.

    Whincup said his Commodore performed a lot better than his Falcon did last year around the Albert Park Formula One street circuit in similar conditions.

    “We come here with a similar set-up that we ran the first two rounds (this year) which was very good,” he said.

    “I love Albert Park; it’s always good fun around here and (there’s) a little bit of stress off being non-Championship so we’ll just get out there and have a good go and I couldn’t be happier with my car here today.”

    While Whincup is still getting over the excitement of driving the McLaren Mercedes F1 car, he defended his own V8 Supercar.

    “Everything’s happening in slow-mo compared to F1 but… I’m having a ball,” he said.

    Tander was also happy with the performance of his Commodore, saying it was “very good” in the earlier practice session.

    “We changed the car from practice to qualifying and it wasn’t exactly as we hoped so we made a small change for the second run and the car was absolutely awesome,” he enthused.

    “I think the track changed quite a bit during that session. We probably qualified right at the point where the temperature was dropping and the track came really good by the end there.

    “Certainly the battle we’re having with Jamie at the moment’s enjoyable; the car set-up wise is different to what we would traditionally run here and it’s responding very nicely.”

    While Tander is enjoying is battle with Whincup, he was not so keen on the tyre bundles after the 30-minute session was red-flagged at one point to remove a bundle from the racing line.

    “Greg (Murphy) asked the question at the driver’s briefing this morning which corners had the tyre bundles and it was actually quicker for them to name the corners that didn’t have tyre bundles,” he said.

    “I think it looks bad. We did it at Abu Dhabi; put tyre bundles all over the joint and here we are at another F1 circuit and we’ve got tyre bundles everywhere.

    “Surely there’s a better technology out there than Bob Jane all-rounders.”

    Whincup was more diplomatic when he offered his thoughts on the tyre bundles.

    “It would just be good if the tyre bundles stayed in position; when they come out on the middle of the track that’s uncool,” he said.
    The Top 10 Shootout for the 2010 BRC IMPCO V8 Supercar Challenge starts tomorrow (Friday) at 3pm followed by the first 13-lap V8 race of the weekend at 6.15pm.
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  19. #109
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    Murph relishes the moment


    Greg Murphy at the 2010 BRC IMPCO V8 Supercar Challenge.
    6:52 PM Thu 25 March, 2010

    Source: BigPond Sport

    The 2010 BRC IMPCO V8 Supercar Challenge might be a non-Championship event, but you won’t hear Castrol Edge Racing driver Greg Murphy complaining about being at the front.

    Murph was quickest in the practice session and then posted the third fastest time during qualifying today (Thursday) at the 5.3km Formula One Albert Park circuit.

    The Kiwi native debuted a new Triple Eight designed, Paul Morris Motorsports built Commodore at the Clipsal 500 Adelaide – a car he said he was still getting used to.

    “We didn’t do much laps in Adelaide (due to mechanical failures) and the car felt really good there; it’s just trying to work out what it likes and today was really good,” he said.

    “The car’s been pretty much on the money out the gate; there or thereabouts and we’re happy to be sitting here at the moment, there’s no doubt.”

    Murphy said the car has needed changes to perform at the optimum for his driving style but that it was responding well to those changes.

    “Triple Eight have given us a bloody good tool to play with,” he said.

    “We desperately need to get some performances going right and we’ve got New Zealand coming up next and that’s huge for us.”

    Murphy said regardless of the absence of Championship points this weekend, the pressure was on to demonstrate the team’s previous statements that it will be competitive in 2010.

    “So this is a pretty good start,” he noted.

    “The car was pretty good at Adelaide, I didn’t get the most out of it in qualifying but it was a bloody good race car in that first race for as long as it lasted. So I’ve got a lot of confidence.”

    Murphy said it was “amazing” to have the ability to use information and data from the other Triple Eight Commodores.

    “I haven’t had that before and man that is pretty handy, I can tell you, so we’re really happy.

    “Paul’s (team owner Paul Morris) pretty happy; he’s got a smile on his face and hopefully Castrol will be really happy too.

    “This weekend, regardless of points, we’ve got to keep repeating it and this is just the start.”
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  20. #110
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    GT keeps momentum rolling


    Toll Holden Racing Team's Garth Tander starts the first race of the weekend from pole.

    3:46 PM Fri 26 March, 2010

    Source: BigPond Sport

    After a clean sweep of race wins at the Clipsal 500 Adelaide, Toll Holden Racing Team’s Garth Tander has kept the ball rolling by starting the first race of the 2010 BRC IMPCO V8 Supercar Challenge from pole position.

    Tander shares the front row for this evening’s race with Jim Beam Racing driver James Courtney.

    “It’s good for the fans and more importantly it’s good to keep the momentum going after Clipsal,” GT said.

    “We know we’ve got a good car and we’ve got good pace so it’s good to come back here and put the car on pole.

    “Im really happy with everything so far, Obviously like everybody else we’re developing and trying stuff out as far as testing goes but we’re pretty happy with the way things are going.”

    Tander said like yesterday, his #2 Commodore excelled.

    “I probably under drove the car for the first part of the lap because I wasn’t expecting that much grip,” he said.

    “The car was very, very good, my sectors were okay and then in the last sector I really pushed on and that’s where we got a bit of time so I’m really happy.”

    Clouds were looming as the Top 10 Shootout was wrapping up and it started raining as this article was going live but Tander is not concerned that it could crash his party.

    “We’ve got two hours so it could probably rain and dry out in that amount of time but we’ll have to wait and see; we can’t change the weather,” Tander said.

    Like Tander Courtney, who has had to drive older cars at the Albert Park circuit in the last two years, was glad to keep his momentum going from Clipsal.

    “It’s good just to carry the momentum we had from last year into this year at Clipsal into this weekend,” the Jim Beam Racing driver said.

    “It will hopefully just start snowballing and get bigger and bigger (throughout the year) which will be great.

    “It’s awesome to be here on the front row and it’s good to be here in my own car in front of a few old (Formula One) mates.”
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  21. #111
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    First Ford win

    James Courtney takes out the first of three 13 lap races at the 2010 BRC IMPCO V8 Supercar Challenge.

    6:58 PM Fri 26 March, 2010

    Source: BigPond Sport

    Jim Beam Racing’s James Courtney has won the first race for Ford in 2010 today (Friday) at the BRC IMPCO V8 Supercar Challenge.

    Courtney overtook Toll Holden Racing Team’s Garth Tander for the race win with less than three laps to go in the 13-lap battle.

    The Jim Beam driver said it was a “pretty sketchy” start with him running three-wide alongside his V8 rivals including Jack Daniel’s Racing driver Rick Kelly.

    “I thought this is getting a bit too exciting here so I backed out,” he said.

    After Kelly ran wide and got swallowed up in the pack, Courtney settled in behind Tander.

    “And it looked like he started to struggle a little with the car; it was quite loose in the rear so I just bided my time.

    “It was a good win and it was good to be able to get another win.”

    Tander said his car was good in the start of the race until a mechanical failure allowed Courtney to get the better of him.

    “We had a great car at the start of the race and managed to pull a gap on James and then about midway through the race (the car) started to have some gearbox issues where the car would actually over select and go down one too many gears at most of the critical braking areas,” he said.

    “So I had an off at turn one and a couple of other run wides at turn three. One of those was when James got through.

    “(It’s) disappointing we didn’t win the race but the car was pretty good apart from a small mechanical issue but we’ll fix that tomorrow and have another crack.”

    Stone Brothers Racing’s Shane van Gisbergen, who started from fifth position, crossed the finish line in third place.

    “It’s good to see Ford finally win a race; unfortunately it’s the wrong team but we won’t worry about that,” he said.

    “The start was pretty exciting, I got a few spots there and I was close to James at the start and then his car got going and we sort of settled into a rhythm and it got exciting again at the end.”

    Race two of the 2010 BRC IMPCO V8 Supercar Challenge takes place at 6.15pm tomorrow, Saturday March 27.
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  22. #112
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    V8 CHALLENGE RACE ONE: FULL RESULTS


    Jim Beam Racing's James Courtney wins first race of the 2010 BRC IMPCO V8 Supercar Challenge

    6:08 PM Fri 26 March, 2010

    Source: BigPond Sport

    2010 BRC IMPCO V8 Supercar Challenge race one full results

    1 James Courtney Ford
    2 Garth Tander Holden
    3 Shane van Gisbergen Ford
    4 Craig Lowndes Holden
    5 Jamie Whincup Holden
    6 Todd Kelly Holden
    7 Paul Dumbrell Ford
    8 Steven Johnson Ford
    9 Mark Winterbottom Ford
    10 Will Davison Holden
    11 Lee Holdsworth Holden
    12 Fabian Coulthard Holden
    13 Jason Richards Holden
    14 Alex Davison Ford
    15 Jason Bargwanna Holden
    16 Jason Bright Holden
    17 Russell Ingall Holden
    18 Tim Slade Ford
    19 Jonathon Webb Ford
    20 Greg Murphy Holden
    21 Steven Richards Ford
    22 Dean Fiore Ford
    23 Michael Caruso Holden
    24 Rick Kelly Holden
    25 Tony D'Alberto Holden
    26 Daniel Gaunt Holden
    27 Karl Reindler Holden
    28 Andrew Thompson Holden
    29 Tony Ricciardello Holden
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  23. #113
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    Tander takes race two


    Toll Holden Racing Team's Garth Tander wins the 13 lap race at Albert Park today.

    7:04 PM Sat 27 March, 2010

    Source: BigPond Sport

    Garth Tander survived a lap one battle with James Courtney and managed to hold off Jamie Whincup to win the second race at the 2010 BRC IMPCO V8 Supercar Challenge today (Saturday).

    With a spattering of rain enough to make for a greasy track, the 13 lap non-Championship race was pretty eventful throughout and the Toll Holden Racing Team driver was quick off the blocks.

    “It was a bit of fun with James; I thought I was gone because I braked way too late at turn three on the first lap and I was expecting him to come back up the inside but obviously he braked at about the same point I did,” Tander laughed.

    “It’s always fun finding your limiter on the first lap.

    “It was a tough race just because with the rain coming and going you didn’t really know how hard to brake at any of the braking zones, it was sort of different each lap so when you are the lead car the guys behind can sort of judge your car behaviour on where they’re going to brake.”

    Tander said the car performed well and did not chew through its tyres as much as it did yesterday.

    “And we made a change to our car that was pretty big and it worked in some parts of the race and then late in the race the car went off quite a bit, last two laps. It’s good to get the win,” he said.

    Whincup, who started the race from fifth and charged his way up to second place, noted that on the first lap
    “it was all happening at turn one”.

    “Everyone was going really, really hard, surprisingly, so I got through all that battle and the car was very good and I picked my way right up through,” he said.

    “I thought it was going to rain actually; all the weather stations were saying it was going to rain, we were ready for rain but it didn’t come.”

    The TeamVodafone driver was today handed a $3000 fine, which has been suspended until the end of the year, for driving at an excessive speed while marshals were on the track at the end of yesterday’s Top 10 Shootout.

    Whincup refused to comment on the matter at a post-race press conference, saying he “won’t waste everybody’s time with that” but he will deliver an apology at a briefing for officials tomorrow morning.

    Courtney, who won yesterday’s race, had to fight off SP Tools Racing’s Shane van Gisbergen for most of the race.

    Van Gisbergen overtook Courtney on the first lap but the order swapped again by the end of the second lap.
    The Giz stayed on the back of the #18 Falcon for the rest of the race and even attempted a gutsy move on the Jim Beam driver at the second-last corner on the last lap.

    “Shane tried to pass around the outside and it was never going to happen,” Courtney laughed.
    Tander commented that the weather should be different for tomorrow’s race.

    “So hopefully we can see where we’re going in tomorrow’s race and stay away from this weather that seems to descend on Albert Park late in the day,” he said.

    “It will make a pretty interesting F1 race but it will be nice to have a nice dry clean (V8 Supercar) one tomorrow.”

    The third and final race of the 2010 BRC IMPCO V8 Supercar Challenge starts at 2.20pm.

    2010 BRC IMPCO V8 Supercar Challenge top 10 points after race two

    Garth Tander Holden 192
    James Courtney Ford 186
    Jamie Whincup Holden 166
    Shane van Gisbergen Ford 166
    Craig Lowndes Holden 140
    Mark Winterbottom Ford 130
    Steve Johnson Ford 124
    Will Davison Holden 120
    Paul Dumbrell Ford 120
    Lee Holdsworth Holden 100
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  24. #114
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    Good, clean funPrint

    Rock Racing's Jason Bargwanna, pictured at Albert Park, is not surprised at the close racing this weekend even though no Championship points are on offer.

    4:53 PM Sat 27 March, 2010 www.v8supercars.com.au

    Source: BigPond Sport

    The first race of the 2010 BRC IMPCO V8 Supercar Challenge proved that good and clean are not mutually exclusive in V8 Supercars.

    As in past years, concerns have been raised about the possibility of cars ending up severely damaged at the Albert Park non-Championship event if drivers get too excited.

    Friday’s 13 lap race had plenty of battles going on amongst the field, yet major damage was avoided.

    Rock Racing driver Jason Bargwanna, who qualified in 21st and finished the race in 15th, was not shocked that everyone gave it a red-hot go.
    “It didn’t surprise me how hard everyone was racing out there; it’s always the same.

    “You put this bunch of knuckleheads out there on a race track in race cars and it’s always going to be on for young and old,” he laughed.

    “We were pushing very hard and so was everyone around me, I can assure you of that. It was a good old race out there.”

    His Kelly Racing teammate Todd Kelly, who pilots the #7 Jack Daniel’s Commodore agreed, saying: “It was on for young and old at the first corner.”

    Toll Holden Racing Team driver Will Davison, who started in 15th and finished in 10th, described his race as clean but good fun.
    “I had a good start and pulled off a couple of moves in the first few laps,” he said.

    “There was certainly plenty of action going on around me.

    “It was quite an enjoyable race as we had a few good fights.”

    Davo plans on continuing the good but clean racing in this evening’s race.

    “We’ve still not quite got the outright pace, but we’ve made a step in the right direction and we’ll use the information from today to creep further up the front tomorrow,” he said.

    But not all of the drivers were impressed with their rival’s actions during the first race.

    “We were pushing forward over the first six or seven laps and making good ground, which was pleasing after some front-end problems during qualifying,” Centaur Racing’s Tony D’Alberto said.

    “But I copped some contact I wasn’t expecting and that pushed us back a bit. I wasn’t prepared to risk the car after that.

    “It’s hard to believe how aggressive some of the other drivers were for an exhibition race.

    “The car is fine and hopefully everyone can keep it clean out there in the next two races.”
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    Noske prays for black gold

    The Bargwanna/Noske entry at the 2009 Supercheap Auto Bathurst 1000.

    4:53 PM Fri 9 April, 2010 www.v8supercars.com.au

    Source: BigPond Sport

    After missing out on a test drive with Kelly Racing earlier this week, Mark Noske is in contention to drive the 2010 endurance races with Gulf Western Oil Racing.

    The Kellys tested a number of drivers at Winton Motor Raceway and Noske told BigPond Sport why he couldn’t make it.

    “Todd (Kelly) gave me a call and I was due to go and test for him on Tuesday but my wife’s heavily pregnant and due any day so I had to decline the test which was a bit frustrating,” he said.

    “We live in Portland so to drive six hours to Winton, I just couldn’t do it in case she went into labour.”

    Noske, who finished sixth at last year’s Supercheap Auto Bathurst 1000 with Jason Bargwanna for the now defunct Tasman Motorsport, may end up driving with Daniel Gaunt for Lucas Dumbrell’s Gulf Western Oil team.

    “I have spoken to them and they are interested in giving me a test in the car,” he said.

    “I didn’t think teams would be quick to sign up drivers but what with the new rules (where regular drivers must drive their own car for the enduros) the seats have been filling fast.”

    Although Noske and Bargs finished a credible sixth at Bathurst, they were on target for a podium until a clash late in the race with the TeamVodafone entry of Jamie Whincup and Craig Lowndes.

    This, Noske said, is what makes it hard to accept he might miss out on an enduro drive in 2010.

    “Especially after last year and being three laps from potentially standing on the podium to potentially missing out on a seat, it’s a pretty hard pill to swallow so hopefully something comes of this test,” he said.

    “There’s a lot of people with money buying endurance drives and that’s where it gets frustrating. You’re results are getting overlooked and I understand that’s a part of motorsport all over the world.

    “But you look at the Adam Macrows of this world and because they don’t have corporate backing they miss out.”

    Noske, who currently has a management role with the Noske Group and oversees the transportation of wind farm components from Portland in Victoria’s west to the north of Adelaide, noted it was getting harder to compete in V8 Supercars without a full-time gig.

    “There’s 29 very A-grade drivers in these cars now and you certainly need to be in the car a lot of the time to do a good job,” he said.

    “I’ve been to Bathurst 14 times and have never put a mark on a car.

    “Hopefully I won’t miss out and if I get the opportunity to drive in this year’s enduros, I will grab it with both hands
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  26. #116
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    FPR hunts NZ success


    Ford Performance Racing driver Mark Winterbottom pictured at the Hamilton street circuit last year.
    4:28 PM Mon 12 April, 2010 www.v8supercars.com.au

    Source: BigPond Sport

    Ford Performance Racing (FPR) plans to be on top of its game at this weekend’s ITM400 Hamilton as driver Mark Winterbottom continues his quest to topple TeamVodafone’s Jamie Whincup.


    He sits 57 points behind Whincup in the Championship points standings and while Winterbottom was able to grab pole by a mere thousandth of a second off Whincup on the Saturday at Hamilton last year, it was his rival who won both races.

    Winterbottom said his car excelled at the New Zealand street circuit last year.

    “We had plenty of speed and scored a pole position but Jamie beat me into turn one and from there, with it being a pretty tight street circuit, I struggled to get back past him,” he said.

    “Although I’m in a new Orrcon Steel Falcon this year, a lot of what we’ve learnt in the past can be applied this year so we should be able to kick off the weekend in pretty competitive form.”

    Winterbottom’s teammate, Steve Richards, also plans on being in the mix this weekend.

    “I scored my first-ever pole for FPR here in 2008 and qualified third for the second race last year so I know we have the speed to again be at the pointy end of the field,” the Dunlop Super Dealer Team driver said.

    “Last year I clipped the tyre bundle down at the fast chicane and bent my steering arm which basically ruined my chances of a decent result but I’ll definitely be keeping a closer eye on that this year.”

    FPR Team Principal, Tim Edwards, noted that the team has had an encouraging start to the year.

    “While it's still very early in the season a race win has eluded us which is one monkey we’d really like to get off our back,” he said.

    “I think once we can clear that hurdle we’ll settle into a more consistent rhythm.”

    The V8 Supercars start arriving in New Zealand for the ITM400 Hamilton via air freight tomorrow (Tuesday) and teams arrive on Thursday.

    Richards and Winterbottom along with the other 27 V8 Supercar drivers will attend a special launch party at Hamilton’s Garden Place on Thursday from 4pm to 7pm.

    Two official signing sessions will take place, with half of the drivers signing autographs from 4.30pm to 5.15pm and the other half from 5.30pm to 6.15pm.

    Meanwhile Winterbottom has given his views on the Car of the Future plan on the XXXX Gold V8 Supercar website.

    He believes the cost reduction part of the plan can only be a positive for the sport, is glad the plan does not include the move to a silhouette type formula and that opening the shop front for new manufacturers is a good idea.

    To read his column, visit the website www.xxxxgoldv8supercars.com.au/
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    Chance over dollars

    Cameron McConville will drive for Walkinshaw Racing in this year's enduros.

    By Briar Gunther www.v8supercars.com.au

    3:00 PM Tue 13 April, 2010

    Source: BigPond Sport

    Cameron McConville has teamed up with Walkinshaw Racing for this year’s enduros not for the money, but because the team offers him the best opportunity to win Bathurst.

    He quit V8 Supercar racing full-time at the end of last year and started up his own JAXQuickfit Tyres franchise in Moorabbin in Melbourne.

    McConville, who last year raced for Brad Jones Racing, finishing second at the Supercheap Auto Bathurst 1000 with Jason Richards, clinched the deal with Walkinshaw late last year.

    “I was keen to do a deal before Christmas and get it locked away so I could focus on getting into the business and for the enduros getting the best drive that I could,” he explained.

    “It’s probably my one chance at having a crack at Bathurst.”

    McConville said it was still undecided whom he will pair up with, although he indicated it would be with either Garth Tander or Will Davison at Toll Holden Racing Team (HRT).

    “Until the Championship plays out a bit more it’s a bit early to say and I respect that, but no doubt it will be in a car capable of winning and that’s what I wanted to sign off and lock away,” he said.

    “I drove for HRT way back in ’99 with (Craig) Lowndes before I got into the series full-time so if anything it’s a bit of a reunion.

    “We finished second at Bathurst in 1999 and hopefully this year we will be able to go one better.”

    The new rule banning regular drivers from driving together at the enduros, McConville said, helped people like him and Mark Skaife, who have stepped away from full-time racing, to secure a good drive.

    But he said it was hard to give up a drive with Brad Jones Racing.

    “I had a chat with Brad and it was just with Walkinshaw being the factory team, it was something I wanted to do and I certainly wish Brad and Jason well.

    “Jason and I are still good mates and it was not about the money, it was about the opportunity.

    “I said to Jase ‘I hope you finish second at Bathurst, I really do – behind us (Walkinshaw)’.

    “We made a great pair, but I’m sure Brad will step up to the plate and give Jase a good co-driver.”

    McConville has kept himself involved in motorsport with Formula Ford where he is the Driver Standards Advisor, competing in the Bathurst 12-Hour and helping the ute series with parity testing.

    He will attend a number of V8 Supercar events to take part in the practice sessions for the enduro drivers.

    “It will be nice being at the (V8) rounds with the Formula Ford guys, but I have to say I have got massively itchy feet to get into the Walkinshaw car,” he said.

    “You can run around in other things to keep your reflexes up, but certainly V8 miles is what you need.

    “You certainly get a little bit rusty, but I’m still relatively race ready.”
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  28. #118
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    Toll Holden Racing Team ace Garth Tander is looking to continue his V8 Supercar ‘steamroller’ form this weekend in the ITM400 in Hamilton, New Zealand.

    After a tough opening two events in the Middle East, the 2007 V8 Supercar champion has stormed back into form with two victories in Adelaide plus two more in the non-championship races at the Australian F1 Grand Prix in Melbourne.

    The inaugural winner of the Hamilton event in 2008, Tander is fired up to keep his championship fight back on track.

    “We were written off the first couple of races in the Middle East when some said we were hopeless and had no chance, and we came straight back at Adelaide and blew them all away,” says Tander.

    “Then to go to the Grand Prix and continue that form, even though it was not a championship event, was very satisfying. We had a great run at Hamilton in 2008 and we hope to continue with our current form there this year.

    “The championship is a long year. Here we are in April and there’s still a long way to go.

    “Yes, we are 11th, yes we’ve closed the ground to the leaders in the points, but we are under no illusions to it being anything but a long year for us to fight ourselves back into championship contention.

    “We expect by Bathurst we’ll be back to where we need to be and ensure we have a strong back half to the season.”

    Tander won all three races in Hamilton in 2008 and draws comparisons between it and Adelaide, where he won both races to make himself the only driver eligible this year to win V8 Supercar racing’s $2 million ‘Grand Slam’.

    “It’s a narrow track, quite bumpy, with aggressive kerbs and close walls – everything that street events are all about Hamilton’s got,” he says.

    “The crowds are nice and close to the action too, so it’s a real cauldron-like atmosphere.

    “Success in Hamilton is all about being smart. It’s a track that’s hard on the cars, hard on drivers. Two 200-kilometre races around that track makes for a tough event.

    “Being smart, staying out of trouble, keeping the car off the kerbs, keeping the car off the walls and ultimately having a fast car – if you tick all those boxes, ultimately you will be somewhere up the front.”

    His team-mate Will Davison has also been rebuilding his season and is making further progress towards the ‘pointy end’ of the field.

    Davison took the #22 Commodore to fourth overall in the non-championship event at Albert Park and is feeling more comfortable as the season progresses.

    “It definitely hasn’t been a great start but the Grand Prix was a step in the right direction and we’re finding a bit of form,” says last year’s series runner-up.

    “For me personally, things have been bad. I haven’t forgotten how to drive! I’m keen to get a result on the board, but the last few races have been great for our team overall and that’s important. The guys have done a great job and clearly Garth has got the car going well.

    “We’ve changed a few combinations this year with personnel, the cars are a bit different and for whatever reason, I’ve lost my way a little bit. But I’ve worked really hard since the Grand Prix to get ready for New Zealand and get that points tally rolling along.

    “We need to start getting some momentum to build on. Our pace was good in Hamilton last year and it’s a place which really rewards drivers. You can be quite brave to get a good lap time there but you need the car working well on the different surfaces that make up the track and the grip levels that come from them.”

    Both Tander and Davison will hit the track in Hamilton on Friday for practice before a pair of 200-kilometre, 59-lap races on Saturday and Sunday – the seventh and eighth races of the 2010 V8 Supercar Championship Series.

    www.hrt.com.au
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  29. #119
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    Apr 2008
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    Toll Holden Racing Team to commemorate ANZAC legend www.hrt.com.au

    Toll Holden Racing Team V8 Supercar stars Garth Tander and Will Davison will pay tribute to the spirit of the ANZACs ahead of this weekend’s ITM 400, laying a wreath at the Hamilton War Memorial tomorrow (Thursday) at 10am (New Zealand time).

    The ANZAC legend was born out of the courage and sacrifice of members of the Australian and New Zealand Army Corps (ANZAC) that fought at Gallipoli in Turkey during World War I.

    ANZAC Day is commemorated in both Australia and New Zealand on April 25 each year and now honours all those that died and served in all military operations for the two countries. It is also recognised in the Cook Islands, Niue, Samoa and Tonga.

    This year, ANZAC Day falls just one week after the V8 Supercar Championship Series’ annual NZ round.

    “There is an intense and healthy rivalry between Australians and New Zealanders when it comes to sport, including V8 Supercars, but we will always be proudly and inextricably linked through the bravery of the original ANZACs, and all those that have followed in serving our countries since,” Tander said.

    “Will and I are truly honoured to be able to give tribute to those who have paid the ultimate price to allow us our freedoms.”

    Following the ceremony, Tander and Davison will join with members of the Hamilton Returned and Services Association (RSA)* for a quiet lemonade and traditional game of two up.

    In addition to the drivers laying the wreath, each member of the Toll Holden Racing Team will wear a red ANZAC poppy throughout the race weekend.
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  30. #120
    Join Date
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    good on you guys, remembering the ANZACS.
    CAVALLINO RAMPANTE PER SEMPRE

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