Lowndes/Fraser deliver best ever wildcard result
Triple Eight had success stories at both ends of pit lane at Mount Panorama on Sunday.
Shane van Gisbergen and Garth Tander delivered Triple Eight a record-equalling ninth Bathurst win.
Broc Feeney and Jamie Whincup were fifth despite Whincup being caught up in early incidents.
Craig Lowndes and Declan Fraser fielded a third Triple Eight car, and raced from 16th to eighth.
It marks the best ever result by a wildcard entry in the Great Race.
Ironically, it betters the 10th recorded by another Triple Eight wildcard.
In 2013, international stars Andy Priaulx and Mattias Ekstrom raced an XBOX Holden to 10th.
Lowndes and Fraser went two spots better, but like many others, their weekend wasn’t without incident.
Seven-time winner Lowndes went viral after he suffered a dramatic off in wet practice.
Lowndes bowled a wide heading to pit lane, and the #888 Supercheap Auto Holden surfed through major standing water.
The 48-year-old was unable to qualify the car in the top 10, and Lowndes started the race from 16th.
Whincup was caught up in an incident on Mountain Straight seconds after the start.
Lowndes was forced to check up behind his teammate, but managed to avoid further incident.
From there, the #888 Commodore was a factor in the top, with Fraser also leading the field to green early on.
Lowndes haunted the two Shell V-Power Mustangs late on, and the pressure saw Will Davison crash at Griffin’s Bend.
Lowndes, no stranger to history, was delighted with the result.
"We started the race with high hopes of being in the 10,” said Lowndes, who celebrated his 300th round.
"The car was really strong at the end of the race and to finish eighth, I’m really pleased with that.
“To be the highest-placed wildcard entrant ever at the Bathurst 1000 is really pleasing.
“For a one off event, I think that we achieved a great result.”
Lowndes and Fraser were managed by Roland Dane and engineered by Romy Mayer.
Dane added to his already burgeoning Bathurst CV, while Mayer was elated to score a top eight on her top engineer debut.
Perhaps most in the hot seat was Fraser, who was making his debut alongside one of Bathurst’s favourite sons.
However, the Super2 points leader delivered for his team on the day, and was excited to be at the helm while the #888 was at the front.
It came after Lowndes dragged the car from 16th to ninth by lap 5.
"I got in for my first stint and we were in a pretty good position as Craig had us inside the top 10 already,” he said.
"I got to lead my first ever Supercars race, even got to do my Safety Car [restart] and we sat comfortably my whole stint.
"I think I sat second or third for the whole stint and for me that was an awesome experience to be able to mix it with those guys.
"We still had fantastic pace at the end and brought it home in P8.
"It’s the highest ever position a wildcard has finished the Bathurst 1000.
"I just can’t thank Craig, Supercheap Auto, Triple Eight and everyone involved enough.
“It’s my first ever Bathurst 1000 and to come home in P8, I’m absolutely ecstatic and I can’t believe it."
Fraser's Super2 campaign will conclude at the VALO Adelaide 500 in December.
The Queenslander leads Zak Best by 75 points with 300 left on offer.
The 2022 Supercars season will continue at the Boost Mobile Gold Coast 500 on October 28-30.
