Milestones, weather and tyre curveballs: The Sandown Prebrief

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The Repco Supercars Championship heads to Victoria for this weekend’s ninth round of the 2022 season – the Penrite Oil Sandown SuperSprint.

It will be the 52nd ATCC/Supercars round at the Melbourne circuit.

Event track action will be spread over three days, with Supercars featuring each day. Click HERE to purchase your event tickets.

The August 19-21 event will be headlined by Races 24, 25, and 26 of the 2022 Repco Supercars Championship.

The historic Melbourne circuit requires superior horsepower to drag race the two main straights and packs a whopping 13 corners into just over a minute lap.

Supercars will be running on the Dunlop Super Soft tyre for the weekend, with the potential for degradation around the large kerbs at Turns 2 and 3 a headache for teams.

After eight rounds Shane Van Gisbergen remains the man to beat with a 393-point lead over Tickford Racing’s Cam Waters.

Sandown belonged to van Gisbergen last year, the 2021 champion swept the weekend while incredibly nursing a broken collarbone.

As the Red Bull Ampol Racing driver continues his championship charge, who is set to shine in Sandown?

Before the cars hit the track, Supercars.com takes a look at the key storylines of the Penrite Oil Sandown SuperSprint.

Super Soft debut

The Dunlop Super Soft tyre will make its Sandown International Raceway debut this weekend.

The change to the tyre regulations was announced in July.

Sandown becomes the sixth different circuit in 2022 to use Dunlop’s softest compound.

Super Soft tyres allow for considerably faster lap times but degrade at a quicker rate.

Tyre life will be a key consideration at Sandown, which features large kerbs at Turns 2 and 3.

Locking is also an issue into Turn 1, which is at the end of the long pit straight.

Given the long straights and high speeds, vibrations will also be a factor.

Superhuman SVG Sandown repeat?

Shane van Gisbergen heads to Sandown with a healthy championship lead over closest rival Waters.

The reigning champion displayed his rain mastery last time out at The Bend Motorsport Park, sweeping all three races in mixed conditions.

Sandown marks the return to the circuit which hosted one of van Gisbergen’s most remarkable record-breaking weekends.

Van Gisbergen defied incredible odds to extend his unbeaten win tally in 2021, winning all three races at the iconic Melbourne venue.

Just two weeks after he suffered a mountain bike accident, the Red Bull Ampol Racing driver recorded his fifth consecutive victory of the season, while astonishingly nursing a broken collarbone.

Starting Saturday’s opening race from 17th the wet-weather master carved his way through the field, taking the lead from Waters on the last lap.

The fast Kiwi then claimed both poles and dual race wins on Sunday, crossing the line 15-seconds ahead of Brodie Kostecki.

One year on and 14 wins in the bag this season, can SVG repeat his Sandown success?

Wet weather whammy

The presence of wet weather threatens to shake up the Penrite Oil Sandown SuperSprint.

Drivers and teams are bracing to be greeted with mixed weather conditions in Melbourne.

Rain lashed Sandown Raceway last March when Supercars last raced at the historic venue.

Races 4 and 5 featured classic wet weather drama and were headlined by standout performances from van Gisbergen and Kostecki.

Friday’s dual practice sessions have the highest chance of seeing rain, with 70 percent forecast with a high of 15 degrees Celsius.

There’s a 50 percent chance of rain on Saturday before the temperatures fall to 5 degrees on Sunday morning.

Milestone man Holdsworth

Lee Holdsworth will celebrate his 500th race start at Sandown on Saturday.

The 2021 Bathurst winner will become just the 11th driver in ATCC/Supercars history to reach the milestone.

The Victorian finished third in the 2019 Sandown 500 alongside Thomas Randle.

Holdsworth already has a podium to his name this season, claiming his first silverware for Penrite Racing at Albert Park in April.

Celebrating his 500th race this weekend in front of family, Holdsworth will be keen to deliver a haul of championship points.

Tight at the top

Despite van Gisbergen skipping away with the points lead, there is plenty to play for at the top end of the championship.

Cam Waters and Anton De Pasquale are two points apart, with Will Davison 66 points behind Waters.

Chaz Mostert rounds out the top five in the points standings after a sour end to his weekend at Tailem Bend.  

Mostert finished on the podium in the first two races in South Australia but came together with Davison in the finale.

Mostert is 197 points behind Will Davison, but just 77 points ahead of sixth place Broc Feeney.

Feeney is 83 points ahead of David Reynolds, with eighth place Brodie Kostecki just 69 points ahead of Andre Heimgartner.

Tim Slade rounds out the top ten on 1003 points.

From there, James Courtney is just two points behind in tenth, who in turn is just 62 points ahead of Mark Winterbottom.

There are just 195 points separating the Tickford Racing veteran in tenth to Todd Hazelwood in 16th.

A Sandown race win is worth 150 points.

With just 195 points separating Courtney in tenth to Todd Hazelwood in 16th, the door is open for a new driver to force their way into the top ten in Victoria.

Cars will hit the track at the Penrite Oil Sandown SuperSprint on Friday. Purchase your tickets now.