Garth Tander now leads the V8 Supercar championship after winning at Winton on the weekend.
Driver error costs Winterbottom V8 lead.
Holden Racing Team's Garth Tander yesterday took over the V8 Supercar championship lead after another day of heartbreak for Ford star Mark Winterbottom at Winton Raceway.
The Ford Performance Racing (FPR) top-gun dramatically crashed out of contention in the final race after clawing his way to the front of the grid with the drive of the year in race two.
Winterbottom looked to have put his race one woes behind him when he blasted out of the blocks and took the race lead. But, once again, disaster struck for the man dubbed “Frosty”.
With only clear road in front of him, the Blacktown boy slewed into the kitty-litter after a wheel lock-up on turn one. He was smashed back into the mud by Holden's Todd Kelly after attempting to re-enter the track and was forced to sit helpless as his championship lead was lost to bitter rival Tander.
“I am very disappointed,” Winterbottom said after the race. “Not because I lost the championship lead but because I made a mistake. It was just driver error. I couldn't see Garth [Tander] there and when I turned in, it just locked the tyre. It was pretty tough conditions on cold tyres but you pride yourself on making no mistakes. You put a lot of pressure on yourself so you don't like to make errors.”
Earlier in the day Winterbottom was described by FPR boss Tim Edwards as a “true champion” after taking out second place in race two. To do so he showed amazing skill and speed to claw his way back from 21st position after a flat tyre ruined his first race.
But on a wild weekend of racing, Tander emerged from the carnage to take the round win and reclaim the championship lead.
“It has been a tough time for Holden fans lately so it is great to be up here,” Tander said. “The car was very good. We obviously had some problems with the steering in race one but it was very good during races two and three today. I knew if we could get some clear air than we could do the job. It is disappointing for Mark [Winterbottom]. But at the end of the day you have to stay on the track.”
In a chaotic start to race two, Supercheap Autos Russell Ingall, Tasman Motorsport's Jason Richards, HRTs Mark Skaife and Garry Rogers Motorsports (GRM) Michael Caruso all came to grief in a spectacular collision. All cars were unable to finish the race.
Team Vodafone driver Jamie Whincup finished the Winton round in second place after taking out race one, while Jim Beam's Will Davison finished third after winning race two.
Championship standings
Garth Tander (HRT) ........................ 1844
Mark Winterbottom (FPR) ............... 1832
Jamie Whincup (Team Vodafone) .... 1758
Rick Kelly (Toll HSV) ..................... 1506
Will Davison (DJR) ......................... 1426
Steven Richards (FPR) ................... 1383
Craig Lowndes(Team Vodafone) ...... 1365
James Courtney (SBR) ................... 1343
Lee Holdsworth (GRM) ................... 1200
Russell Ingall (Super Cheap Auto) ... 1189
