|
Surfers Paradise home race
unkind to SBR
Round 11, Coffee Club V8
Supercar Challenge, Nikon Indy
300, Surfers Paradise, QLD
|
|
Stone Brothers Racing
had an unkind conclusion
to its home race at the
4.4km Surfers Paradise
Street Circuit this
afternoon with both its
BF Ford Falcons unable
to finish the third and
final race.
JELD-WEN Motorsport’s
James Courtney finished
the Coffee Club V8
Supercar Challenge in
14th place for the
round, with SP Tools
Racing’s Shane van
Gisbergen in 21st place.
Courtney
made a good start to the
27 lap race, moving up
one spot to run tenth
after the first lap.
On lap six, Courtney
radioed to his crew that
his engine was down on
power and when he
entered the pits for his
compulsory stop on lap
nine, it became clear
that the JELD-WEN
Motorsport driver would
take no further part in
the race.
The SBR team’s woes
continued when
Courtney’s team-mate, SP
Tools Racing’s Shane van
Gisbergen clashed with
Jack Perkins at turn
three on lap 12.
The young Kiwi driver
reported damage to his
steering after the
incident and when he
tried to rejoin the race
his BF Falcon turned
sharply to the right,
hitting the wall and
finishing his race.
Luck did not run
Courtney’s way in this
morning’s race either,
the JELD-WEN Motorsport
driver crossing the line
in 11th position after
starting ninth.
Courtney slotted into
the queue at the first
chicane and ran in ninth
place until he took a
pit option to complete h
is compulsory pit stop
on lap eight.
A safety car period was
called one lap later
when an incident between
Greg Murphy and Fabian
Coulthard blocked the
track at turn 12. The
safety car prompted the
remaining cars to take
their stops, the
strategy working to
their advantage as they
jumped up the order,
pushing Courtney to 13th
position.
The JELD-WEN Motorsport
driver was able to grab
back a couple of places
in the closing laps to
be 11th at the flag.
Van Gisbergen had a
better race in terms of
positions gained but
struggled with lack of
grip in the SP Tools
Racing Falcon much of
the 27 lap race.
The 19-year-old started
17th courtesy of some
post-race drive-through
penalties applied
overnight, and van
Gisbergen took advantage
of his good fortune,
moving his way into 15th
position at the safety
car restart on lap 14.
The SP Tools Racing
driver held his position
in the closing laps,
moving up to 13th place
by the line courtesy of
a spin by Cameron
McConville and a
retiring Paul Dumbrell.
This round’s
disappointing result for
Courtney has seen him
slip one place in the V8
Supercar drivers
championship standings
to eighth. Van Gisbergen
is in 15th position.
SBR remains fifth in the
V8 Supercar teams
championship.
SBR will now return
directly to the workshop
to prepare the JELD-WEN
Motorsport and SP Tools
Racing Falcons for round
12 of the V8 Supercar
Championship Series in
Bahrain 6-8 November
2008.
James Courtney, #4,
JELD-WEN Motorsport
“I got a good start to
the final race today. We
got squeezed at the
first chicane and had no
where to go but once we
settled into the queue
the JELD-WEN Falcon was
going pretty good.
“Not far into the race
we lost power and it
seems that it was
something pretty
terminal in the engine
department.
“It hasn’t been a great
weekend for us; we’ll
head back to the SBR
workshop tonight, see
what the problem is then
get on with it and see
what Bahrain brings.”
Shane van Gisbergen,
#9, SP Tools Racing
“We had a pretty
terrible race this
afternoon.
“Jack (Perkins) and I
were racing and we had a
touch in the corner. I
felt the steering go
straight away but I
thought it was only bent
at first.
“I tried to get the SP
Tools Falcon back to the
pits but there was more
damage than I thought
and it turned hard into
the wall and did more
damage to the car.
“We have a really tight
turnaround to get the
cars ready for Bahrain
and I’ve created more
work for them. I will
certainly owe them a
drink or two once we get
through this week.”
Meeting Points
1. Jamie Whincup 300 pts
2. Garth Tander 276 pts
3. Mark Winterbottom 258
pts
4. Todd Kelly 218 pts
5. Russell Ingall 202
pts
6. Craig Lowndes 180 pts
7. Steven Johnson 178
pts
8. Will Davison 168 pts
9. Lee Holdsworth 168
pts
10. Seven Richards 154
pts
14. James Court ney
104 pts
21. Shane van Gisbergen
80 pts
Drivers Championship
Points
1. Jamie Whincup 2616
pts
2. Mark Winterbottom
2514 pts
3. Garth Tander 2510 pts
4. Craig Lowndes 2103
pts
5. Will Davison 2033 pts
6. Steven Richards 1988
pts
7. Rick Kelly 1940 pts
8. James Courtney
1906 pts
9. Russell Ingall 1606
pts
10. Steven Johnson 1649
pts
15. Shane
van Gisbergen 1240 pts
Team
Championship Points
1. Team Vodafone 4383
pts
2. Ford Performance
Racing 4342 pts
3. Toll Holden Racing
Team 3732 pts
4. Jim Beam Racing 3402
pts
5. Stone Brothers
Racing 3194 pts
Race 3
1. Jamie Whincup
2. Garth Tander
3. Mark Winterbottom
4. Rick Kelly
5. Todd Kelly
6. Russell Ingall
7. Steven Johnson
8. Steven Richards
9. Craig Lowndes
10. Will Davison
DNF Shane van
Gisbergen
DNF James Courtney &n
bsp;
Race 2
1. Jamie Whincup
2. Garth Tander
3. Mark Winterbottom
4. Lee Holdsworth
5. Steven Johnson
6. Rick Kelly
7. Todd Kelly
8. Russell Ingall
9. Craig Lowndes
10. Will Davison
11. James
Courtney
13. Shane Van Gisbergen |
