Frosty clear about target amid 600th celebrations

Getting strong results in Perth remains at the forefront of Mark Winterbottom’s mind amid the fanfare of his 600th race celebrations.

Saturday's race at the Bosch Power Tools Perth SuperSprint will be Winterbottom’s 600th Supercars Championship career start.

He becomes the third driver to reach 600 ATCC/Supercars Championship race starts, behind Craig Lowndes and Garth Tander.

It has been a topsy-turvy start to 2023 for the Team 18 veteran, who has raced towards the front but without luck.

Notably, he crashed out of a top-five position at Albert Park after contact with James Golding, leading to his first DNF in three years.

It’s Winterbottom’s longevity that has taken him to 600 starts, but his consistency has been a hallmark of his career.

Winterbottom has finished 570 of his 599 career races — a finish rate of 95.15 per cent.

He has also finished all 43 of his starts in Perth, and three more finishes would help him tie his own record from Tasmania (46 from 46).

However, given his speed at Albert Park and a liking to his new Team 18 Camaro Supercar, Winterbottom suggested elusive silverware is well and truly within reach.

Winterbottom last won a race in 2016, and stood on a podium in 2018.

"I go to Perth trying to get a result. That’s what I go there for. But, I think we've got a good opportunity,” he said.

"We're going okay at the moment and I think as the year goes on we're going to get better and better.

“I think the Grand Prix result-wise was a bad weekend. But I look at the positives and I think, we're very fast, we topped practice, we’re very fast in qualifying.

"We were a bit unlucky with weather, but we were top five pace in qualifying and most sessions we went out.

“We got beaten up a bit, but the goal is to go to Perth, use what we've done well, fix what we didn't do well, and work for a result."

Winterbottom suggested he is more at one with his Gen3 Camaro than his previous Gen2 car.

The new cars are more centred on engineering, meaning Winterbottom is able to determine what he needs to be competitive, and communicate to his team.

The 2015 champion says he is “close” to having a good qualifying car, but needs more performance in the races.

“I’m really in sync with the car, which is a good feeling,” he said.

"I think, I was quite disconnected from the previous car where this one, I really know what I want and what I'm after.

"It's very clear to me where our weakness is and we've got a great group of guys and girls that are working hard trying to fix that weakness.

Winterbottom has a great record in Perth

"So it's not like the old car where you had to develop something, we've all got the same tools underneath us. I think a qualifying car is close for me from the last round, but the race car is our focus."

Team 18 is celebrating Winterbottom’s milestone with the #600 on the rear quarter of the car, as well as a number change for the weekend.

Winterbottom maintained he was proud of the number, but reiterated it would mean much more if he could strike gold on race day.

"600 race starts is something I'm pretty proud of,” he said.

"To be in the game for such a long time and have people believe in you, sponsors, team owners, and the crew around you and all that sort of side is a pretty special moment.

“I'll be very grateful when that 600th race starts, but I'll enjoy it even more if we get a good result."

Tickets for this weekend’s Bosch Power Tools Perth SuperSprint are on sale on Supercars.com and Ticketek.com.