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John Bowe's mid-season report card - Part 3

24 Jul 2017
Supercars Hall of Famer runs the rule over the Supercars field
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Garth Tander – Wilson Security Racing GRM

Qual average: 14.2Best race result: 3rdChampionship position: 8th

Garth is driving very well and the whole team has shown its strength and dedication to the cause with what they’ve done this year, changing from Volvo to Holden in a short space of time.

As a race driver there is none better out there than Garth. There’s a few there with him, but he’s lost nothing of his craft from where he was when he won the championship.

They’re still chasing the qualifying speed with the car, but to have been top 10 in the championship pretty much all year is very impressive.

James Moffat – Wilson Security Racing GRM

Qual average: 16.8Best race result: 4thChampionship position: 11th

James has well and truly lifted his game this year and he hasn’t been far away from Garth, if not ahead of him on occasion.

For whatever reason the Volvo confused him. It just didn’t suit the way he likes to drive the car, so the move to Holden has been a real positive for him.

He’s needed to step up as well. James Golding is waiting in the wings at GRM and is a talent, no question. But he might have to wait a bit longer than he wants to.

Chaz Mostert – Supercheap Auto Racing (PRA)

Qual average: 5.6Best race result: 1stChampionship position: 5th

Chaz this year is back to his best. There were plenty of people questioning him last year when he’d come back from the accident and wasn’t winning.

He’s a very flamboyant, naturally gifted driver and he’s been one of the most impressive this year, there’s no doubt about it.

Having Adam De Borre back has clearly been very important. That bond with your engineer can be your saviour or destruction. It’s rejuvenated Chaz.

Cameron Waters – Monster Energy Racing (PRA)

Qual average: 9.5Best race result: 4thChampionship position: 9th

Last year I think Cameron had a typical rookie season, full of ups and downs, but he’s clearly lifted his game this year.

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It didn’t help him that Prodrive had a bit of a slump last year. A couple of missing tenths with the car can make a big difference to where you qualify.

Prodrive has bounced back and Cam is making the most of it. He’s fast and he doesn’t bow to anybody, which I like as well. He races as hard as anyone out there.

Mark Winterbottom – The Bottle-O Racing (PRA)

Qual average: 8.4Best race result: 2ndChampionship position: 6th

It’s been up and down for Mark. He’s had a tough year in terms of consistency but it’s not like he’d forgotten how to drive early in the season.

Finding set-ups is a very personal thing with each driver and engineer in a big team. He’s got very good team-mates so when his car isn’t quite there it gets shown up.

But he’s a champion driver and he’s shown that he’s still right there. In Townsville he was the best of the rest behind the big two teams in both races.

Jason Bright – MEGA Racing (PRA)

Qual average: 16.1Best race result: 6thChampionship position: 21st

Jason has been a bit hot and cold and it’s another one that’s hard to understand without seeing all the data and knowing everything that goes on behind the scenes.

He showed in Townsville that he’s still capable of putting it in the top 10 if everything is going well. If you’re qualifying outside the top 10 it’s very hard to get results.

It’s been a difficult start to the year but I wouldn’t underestimate his potential. People are quick to write off anyone over 40, but I think that’d be foolish with someone of Brighty’s calibre.

Will Davison - Tekno Autosports

Qual average: 14.9Best race result: 5thChampionship position: 13th

Will is another with runs on the board as a championship-calibre driver, but it’s clearly been a tough season for him.

They had a horror run of first lap incidents early on and then, in from view, have struggled being a one-car team with the amount of development going on in the big teams.

He’s still as dedicated a driver as you’ll ever find. He’s capable of winning races, but there’s a risk that he will get forgotten a little bit with the way the bigger teams are going at the moment.

Check back to Supercars.com tomorrow for the final instalment of John Bowe's mid-season Supercars report card.

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