This is the golden age of V8 Supercars.

After 15 years in the north we are still getting record crowds.

That was the first place where V8 Supercars had government support and the result has been fantastic for the local economy, tourism and also for the infrastructure of that track. It's now a permanent world-class venue.

And that record crowd of almost 50,000 - half the population of the city - was entertained by some of the best racing witnessed in some years. Earlier this season there were a few races that boiled down to economy runs, but even then we had some spectacular close finishes.

And at better than the third-way mark we have one of the tightest battles for the championship among the top three - although I still think I'm in with a good chance in fourth. I'm just whittling away at those points each round.

But most importantly the racing over the past few rounds has just got better and better. The cars are super-fast and reliable and there are heaps of teams with good prospects.

From the front to the back of the grid there is usually only about 1.5 seconds in lap time differences. In my time in V8 Supercars I can't remember a better time in competition.

You've got multiple teams winning races, but even the battles for the minor places are highly competitive. On track there are groups of cars fighting it out for every position. I found this out when I got shunted to the back of the field at Darwin and had to fight my way through. Everyone is trying 110 per cent no matter where they are in the field.

I think the officials have just about perfected the race formula with the soft and hard tyre combinations. The soft tyres are giving us grip that means a difference in road speed that leads to lots of passing. Also the tyre degradation means the fast cars slow down and then others pass them. The race result isn't being set from who pits first and has the shortest pitstop.

In some years past the only passing we ever saw was in pit lane. Now there is actual overtaking in these races. Something V8 Supercars should look at is having maybe two or more soft compound tyres. They could have a compound suitable for the cold tracks such as Tasmania and hotter places like Darwin and Townsville where they have a slightly harder soft tyre.

That way the tyre degradation would remain similar. The only downside is the higher cost in developing those tyres, but it would stop some of the processional races where it's all about fuel economy.

There is also an argument now about whether with the 18-inch wheel in the Car of the Future from next year we should have a super-soft tyre. Now that would make for excellent racing. 

However, we don't want too much grip which can destroy race tracks.