How Waters, SVG can end a five-year DJR streak

Cam Waters and Shane van Gisbergen are best positioned to end Shell V-Power Racing Team’s pole award grasp.

The 2022 ARMOR ALL Pole Champion Award will be settled at the VALO Adelaide 500.

The winning driver will also take home $10,000.

Shell V-Power drivers have won the award in each season dating back to 2017.

Scott McLaughlin won four years in a row between 2017 and 2020, before Anton De Pasquale won last year.

Will Davison can help the Shell V-Power team extend its winning run to six years in Adelaide.

However, Waters and van Gisbergen can also win it — and it could go down to the final day.

Waters and Davison are on nine poles apiece, with van Gisbergen on seven.

The award has been shared just once, when Mark Skaife and Marcos Ambrose ended the year level in 2002.

The odds are in Waters and Davison’s favour, but champion-elect van Gisbergen is a force in Adelaide.

Van Gisbergen has taken a record-equalling eight Adelaide poles. Davison has one — way back in 2011 — while Waters has none.

Waters’ best Adelaide qualifying performance is third for the 2020 Sunday race.

Van Gisbergen (2016) and Davison (2012) have previously won the ARMOR ALL Pole Champion Award.

Waters has yet to win the award, but topped the Super2 pole charts in 2014 and 2015.

Waters, Davison and van Gisbergen combine for 25 of the season’s 32 poles, including 10 of the last 11.

The outlier in that period was David Reynolds, who took a second pole of 2022 in the Saturday Gold Coast Shootout.

De Pasquale, who won the 2021 award, hasn’t taken a pole position since Perth’s night race in April.

Brodie Kostecki (Sydney) and Tickford wildcard Zak Best (Tailem Bend) are the other pole winners in 2022.

The Adelaide race grids will both be decided by qualifying and a Top Ten Shootout.

2022 ARMOR ALL Pole Positions*

9: Cam Waters, Will Davison7: Shane van Gisbergen3: Anton De Pasquale2: David Reynolds1: Brodie Kostecki, Zak Best

ARMOR ALL Pole Champion Award winners

1999: Mark Skaife2000: Craig Lowndes2001: Mark Skaife2002: Mark Skaife, Marcos Ambrose2003: Marcos Ambrose2004: Mark Skaife2005: Craig Lowndes2006: Mark Skaife2007: Mark Winterbottom2008: Jamie Whincup2009: Jamie Whincup2010: Jamie Whincup2011: Jamie Whincup2012: Will Davison2013: Jamie Whincup2014: Jamie Whincup2015: Chaz Mostert2016: Shane van Gisbergen2017: Scott McLaughlin2018: Scott McLaughlin2019: Scott McLaughlin2020: Scott McLaughlin2021: Anton De Pasquale

*Correct to Boost Mobile Gold Coast 500