Defining Moment: All in the Wall!
Jamie Whincup described it as one of the lowest experiences of Triple Eight in the modern era. In the pits with damage to be hurriedly repaired, pelting rain, a declining Championship, knowing an earlier stop could have saved it.
The race played out on the concrete-lined streets, but it was in the pit lane the fight was won.
James Courtney, then racing for Dick Johnson Racing, came into the 2010 grand finale with a 53-point lead over TeamVodafone’s Whincup.
Mark Winterbottom was also in the fight, but with a 203-point gap to Courtney, it would’ve taken a disaster.
Disaster struck.
Around the three quarter mark during Saturday's race, rain started to fall and of course all three contenders were on slick tyres.
Courtney was leading the race, Whincup snuck past but was unable to pull up the car at turn nine and surrendered the lead.
Both pitted – but refused to switch to wet weather tyres. DJR rookie Jonathon Webb made the change, and he was rewarded with a race win.
Meanwhile all three in battle continued to skate on the increasingly wet surface and it happened all at once – Winterbottom, Whincup and then Courtney all into the wall at the sweeper. To add insult to injury Whincup’s teammate Craig Lowndes pummeled straight into the back of the DJR #18.
Each limped back and it was a race within a race. The cars had to be repaired – or at least in a state to run – and get back out on track to classify and earn a handful of points.
The race wasn’t going to run the full distance and it looked as if the gap would remain the same.
But Courtney’s Jim Beam-backed Falcon nudged out of its pitbay smothered in race tape, passing Winterbottom in the spot directly ahead and cruising past Whincup at the top of pit lane, praising his team’s efforts over the radio.
He ended the day 15th, the last of the finishers. Whincup recorded a bitter DNF – his car did rejoin the race but was circulating so slowly he did not meet the required laptime to classify.
It meant Courtney would enter the final race with a 113-point lead. Winterbottom was now out of contention and recorded another DNF on Sunday.
Courtney suffered a wheel nut issue and had to climb from the back of the field, but the final race was comparatively uneventful and ultimately resulted in his first Championship win, topping Whincup by 95 points, the pair finishing 14th and ninth respectively.
“Relieved,” was Courtney’s first response to clinching the title.
“Today wasn’t without its dramas, I didn’t think this year was ever going to end. It just kept going and going with all the dramas, twists and turns…
“I can’t speak enough for the guys, the Championship belong to every one of them. It’s an amazing achievement. They are a tight bunch of guys so we stuck together. It’s great that a family owned team can topple the giants.”
Courtney however, left DJR after that race and began the new season with his #1 on the front of a Holden Racing Team Commodore.
And Whincup still seems to hold some bitterness about that weekend.
When asked about the race by v8supercars.com.au his first comment was: “I’m still – not angry – but I actually slowed the car up enough to get through the chicane, the turn three-four chicane where James went straight through.
“So he’s gone straight through the chicane, but then he just kept his foot in it and passed me into the next corner.
“You can’t pass someone by shortcutting the corner before and that was what really caused all the – he actually – I was going to slide into the wall without doubt.
“But the fact that me in the wall and him hitting it at the same time made it un-repairable…
“That certainly wasn’t a good experience for me, it was probably one of the lowest experiences of Triple Eight in the modern era, where we just couldn’t get the car fixed and back out.
“In saying that, we felt proud enough that we wanted to put the car together properly to get back out. There’s still debate whether the other car was put together properly – but you can debate that all you like. At the end of the day, we didn’t finish enough races and that’s what cost us.”
Dick Johnson believed the events of that day showed the true meaning of teamwork.
“That was without a doubt an extremely exciting event,” he said looking back on the race that ultimately led to the team’s Championship win.
“I didn’t like the carnage, but that’s when it comes down to teamwork. It’s the environment the people are in and the motivation they’ve got to put something together in a big hurry like they did at that event. It just shows you what the team’s all about.”
Whincup will yet again fight for a Championship on the streets of Sydney this weekend at the Sydney NRMA Motoring & Services 500, this time against teammate Craig Lowndes, with Winterbottom and FPR teammate Will Davison still in mathematical contention.
The man he battled with in 2010 will not be behind the wheel of his HRT Commodore, after suffering a fractured tibia at the last event in Phillip Island.
Who will hold the trophy aloft this year – join the conversation with #WHOWILLWIN and have your say.
Is this your favourite Championship defining moment?
“Sydney when it rained – that was awesome,” David Reynolds said. “I was at home watching it and I loved it, that was so cool.”
Do you agree with Reynolds? If the 2010 wet race was your favourite, vote and tell us why in 25 words or less and you could win a chequered flag signed by this year’s Champion.
For those who haven’t yet, secure your tickets to the Sydney NRMA Motoring & Services 500 now and be there to see who is victorious for 2013.
