Holdsworth: DNF in final Gold Coast race 'sad end'

Lee Holdsworth is confident Penrite Racing will have his car ready as new for his final full-time starts.

Holdsworth’s final race on the Gold Coast streets met an “unfortunate” end after an early crash.

The #10 Penrite Ford was in the train of cars implicated in the lap 4 beach chicane crash.

Holdsworth picked up heavy front-end damage and quickly stopped his car.

It marked his first DNF of 2022, having completed all 31 starts prior to Sunday’s race.

“It’s a sad end to our weekend,” he said.

"It was unfortunate to get caught up in someone else's incident so early in the race.

"The previous two laps the group in front were driving erratic so I could it brewing.

“But when it did the track was blocked and it’s done a fair bit of damage to our car.

“We’ll have it back and ready to go at Adelaide for my final full-time Supercars round.”

Holdsworth entered Sunday’s action just 28 points from the top 10.

However, the DNF saw the margin to 10th blow out to 110 points.

With 300 points on offer in Adelaide, Holdsworth’s top 10 chances are far from over.

The 39-year-old finished on the Adelaide podium in 2008 and 2009 for Garry Rogers Motorsport.

Like Surfers Paradise, Adelaide’s streets offer a high attrition rate.

The last thing Holdsworth wants in his full-time swansong is another crash, given his team is also in a tight points fight.

Penrite Racing is just 70 points ahead of Erebus Motorsport in the teams’ championship standings.

On the lap 4 incident, Holdsworth said: “There were cars going left, right, every which way.

“I thought I was clear, I dodged a few cars on the exit there of the back chicane.

“Courtney all of a sudden came to a stop and went up on two wheels and I ploughed underneath him.

“Bit of a shame, unfortunately that’s the way it is with these tyre bundles around here.”

The 2022 Repco Supercars Championship will conclude on the Adelaide streets in December.