Yes, I know I haven't posted my points in ages...I have them updated but just haven't been bothered to putting them up here yet, will probably just put 'my' Chasers and say who's 13th some time this week.
Anyway, for the first time in 25 years, a driving pairing has won the Bathurst 1000 three years on the trot.
Craig Lowndes and Jamie Whincup were the guys who did it, and in doing so, remain the only drivers to win the Peter Brock trophy as that got introduced in 2006 after the tragic loss of Brock in a rough time for Australian icons since Steve Irwin moved on a month or so before that.
Lowndes taking the chequered flag at Bathurst.
The duo were the guys to beat ever since the track opened on Thursday. The other driver pairings who were hoping to displace the #888 Vodafone Falcon from the top step of the podium included Mark Skaife and Garth Tander (#1 HRT Commodore), James Courtney and David Besnard (#4 Jeld-Wen Falcon), Greg Murphy (who I think still hasn't forgiven NASCAR driver, Marcos Ambrose, for the collision in 2005 which took them both out of this race) and Jason Richards (#3 Sprint Gas Commodore), Steven Richards and Mark Winterbottom (#6 FPR Falcon).
But it wasn't smooth sailing for the 2006 V8 champion, Rick Kelly, as his teammate, Paul Radisich, had a massive shunt and hobbled away with a broken ankle. Kelly was able to jump into the sister HSV Commodore, replacing an ill David Reynolds who was to partner Paul Dumbrell in the #15 Autobarn Commodore.
Tander took the pole from Winterbottom, Courtney and Kelly were on row two with Lowndes and Murphy taking up row three. The start saw Skaife creep forward before stalling and having to rejoin rear of the field....then, to make matter worse, he had jumped the start and got a penalty as a result. Lowndes and Murphy made contact on the run up to turn 2 as they attempted to go three-wide with Courtney, the contact damaged Murphy's steering while Lowndes got away relatively unscathed.
The #888 Falcon took the lead at the first round of pitstops and never looked back. Despite the late rush of safety cars, the duo appeared in complete control leaving the best battle on the track between Richards, Murphy and Courtney. Richards battled a majorly loose car, dirt-tracking his way around most of the 6.21km track and Murphy got by on lap 157 while Courtney slipped past on the penultimate lap.
However, no one had an answer for Lowndes and Whincup as they became the first driver pairing in 25 years to win this race three years in a row.
Final results of the Supercheap Auto Bathurst 1000: 1 - Craig Lowndes and Jamie Whincup (#888 Ford Falcon) 2 - Greg Murphy and Jason Richards (#3 Holden Commodore) 3 - David Besnard and James Courtney (#4 Ford Falcon) 4 - Steven Richards and Mark Winterbottom (#6 Ford Falcon) 5 - Brad Jones and Max Wilson (#14 Holden Commodore) 6 - Will Davison and Steven Johnson (#17 Ford Falcon) 7 - Dean Canto and Luke Youlden (#5 Ford Falcon) 8 - Jack Perkins and Nathan Pretty (#11 Holden Commodore) 9 - Jason Bright and Adam Macrow (#25 Ford Falcon) 10 - Fabian Coulthard and Alex Davison (#111 Ford Falcon)
For those who want to know how Boris Said did on his first visit to the track, his #67 Supercheap Commodore covered 140 of the 161 laps before having to retire...love to tell you what happened but since I missed the entire race weekend, I have no idea. My plan was to watch Lowe's, have the V8 website giving me updates of Bathurst and washing it all down with the F1 race at Fuji but I got asked out to a Thanksgiving dinner with my girlfriend's family instead...she owes me a real good Christmas present now I tell you!
Congrats to Craig and Jamie on their impressive win. Well done to you for penning an article about a race you didn't see and my condolences for missing Bathurst, a fantastic night at Lowe's and the Fuji Grand Prix. Dude, I really hope she's saving up good. Lol
Thanks for the update Tez, I had missed the last race and this one. I hope to catch the highlites at least. Maybe they will show what happen to Boris, Like I said before, funny how the COT does look close to the V8 supercar.
Cheers
The Boris Said/Matt Neal car was in the wars all race. First it had a trip through the gravel in the chicane after Conrod, then a Valvoline car punted it off at the last corner later on, which I think ended it's race.
Tez is a rare creature; an Australian who was living in New Zealand before moving to Canada. He's also a Civil Engineer who is hoping to spend his Monday to Friday sitting in front of a computer surfing the inter...uh, working hard for an Engineering Consultant or Contractor when he finds a job. His heart is torn between his two loves; F1 and NASCAR.
Due to his high interest in those, his blogs will likely focus on them with the occasional foray into sports that don't get much (if any) mention on this website. All blogs and/or comments will more than likely have his usual dollop of sarcasm and general Aussie spin on them.
Amazingly, he also managed to score 2 MiB nominations on consecutive days (August 5 & 6, 2007) after announcing he had been keeping track of them...he's considering hiding under his bed as a result.
