Supercars

The Triple Eight driver left his run late in the half-hour session, only jumping to the top with a green tyre run right at the flag. A 1m08.070s on that final lap was enough to edge Ford rival Cam Waters out to top spot, the margin between the title contenders just 0.08s. Tim Slade was initially fastest when the chequered flag came out, only to be bumped back to third by Whincup and Waters. Still, it was an impressive comeback in the spare Blanchard Racing Team chassis off the back of his heartbreaking crash at Bathurst last month. "It's a good way to start," said Blanchard. "[There's] a few little things to fix up, but it's a good start. "You can't tell the difference [to the Bathurst car]. I never through it was going to be an issue, jumping into another chassis. This car is exactly how the guys want everyone, it's kind of like the #1 BRT chassis. If anything it should be better." Read Also: Supercars to celebrate Indigenous Round in Darwin Gold … [Read more...] about Sandown Supercars: Whincup fastest in first practice

The Aussie category is set to follow the lead of major ball codes the Australian Football League and the National Rugby League and dedicate a round to celebrating Indigenous culture. The Darwin Triple Crown, to be held at the Hidden Valley circuit in mid-June, is the preferred event for the Indigenous Round, with the idea having originally come from Northern Territory Major Events. The theme will add to a bumper Darwin event that has a unique undercard featuring a drag racing meet on the Friday night and a round of the Australian Superbike Championship across the weekend. Supercars teams will be encouraged to run Indigenous-inspired liveries and the series will work with local communities on a number of appropriate activations. "We're working with the promoter for Darwin to become out Indigenous round," confirmed Supercars Chief Operating Officer Shane Howard. "We're working through a number of activations with the promoter, which I think is a really cool thing to … [Read more...] about Supercars to celebrate Indigenous Round in Darwin

The Kiwi made steady progress throughout the race, making up four spots on the opening lap-and-a-half before Bryce Fullwood's trip into the Turn 4 wall prompted an early caution. When the race went green again on Lap 7 he continued his march forward, making up plenty of positions as cars around him pitted, while also pulling off impressive moves on the likes of Jack Le Brocq and Will Davison. Van Gisbergen was then the last in the field to make his stop, waiting until there was just 11 laps left. He then had the best tyre condition for a storming run home, quickly clearing the likes of Anton De Pasquale and Mark Winterbottom as he set his sights on the top three. His big break came with two laps to go, when Chaz Mostert, Cam Waters and Jamie Whincup found themselves in a three-way fight for the lead into Turn 1. That slowed them up enough for van Gisbergen to not only join the battle but pass both Whincup and Mostert with a spectacular lunge into Turn 4. He then … [Read more...] about Sandown Supercars: Injured van Gisbergen takes incredible win

Shane van Gisbergen won from 17th on the grid , an ATCC/Supercars record for single-driver races at Sandown, despite having broken his collarbone less than a fortnight ago. The key to his win was an overcut strategy, van Gisbergen waiting until the 25th of 36 laps to make his mandatory stop. That gave him the best tyre condition for the run home, his cause helped by Chaz Mostert – who was on an undercut strategy after a poor start from pole – holding the lead pack up on his tyres that had been fitted on Lap 8. Mostert playing road block helped van Gisbergen climb onto the back of the lead group that also included Cam Waters and Jamie Whincup to set up a wild four-way battle for the lead that went down to the last lap. According to van Gisbergen the critical moment was his ballsy pass on both Whincup and Mostert into Turn 2/3 on the second-last lap. "I had a good first lap, saved the tyres and then started picking guys off," he said. "Everyone ran a bit … [Read more...] about Contenders react to wild Supercars race

The Kiwi, nursing a freshly broken collarbone, completed his clean sweep for the weekend with a clinical performance in full wet conditions. Apart from a few corners of pressure from teammate Jamie Whincup on the opening lap, van Gisbergen was untroubled across the 36-lap journey. There was a brief period mid-way through the first stint when second-placed Brodie Kostecki turned van Gisbergen's four-second gap into a three-second gap. The leader quickly responded, though, pulling the gap out to 4.4s before taking his mandatory service on Lap 26. The second stint was then a breeze for van Gisbergen, who managed to gap and crossed the line almost 15s clear of the field. "It's unreal," said van Gisbergen. "The car has been awesome. It's awesome to race in front of fans again in Melbourne. I'm hurting, but [the collarbone] was okay." Kostecki finished a fine second place to bank his first podium finish in Supercars. The Erebus rookie made impressive progress in … [Read more...] about Sandown Supercars: Van Gisbergen keeps perfect run alive