The closest Super2 margins heading into the final round

Zak Best holds a slender 30-point lead over Kai Allen with one round remaining in the 2023 Dunlop Series, making for a thrilling VAILO Adelaide 500 finale.

Best has led since Race 2 at the season-opening Thrifty Newcastle 500, with the margin fluctuating all season, reaching a high of 84 points at Sandown.

Ahead of one of the most anticipated Super2 finales ever, Supercars.com lists the closest margins between the top two heading into the final round, and what transpired.

2004: Luke Youlden led Andrew Jones by 10 points

The tightest series in the history of the second-tier series saw the two two tied on points at the end of the final race. Brad Jones Racing driver Andrew Jones was adjudged champion on a countback as he won two rounds to rival Luke Youlden's none. Owen Kelly won seven races, more than any other driver, but was undone by poor results in other races. Youlden entered the Mallala finale 10 points ahead. Jones finished second, third and second, with Youlden third, sixth and third.

2005: Dean Canto led Warren Luff by 20 points

Dean Canto won five of the first six rounds heading to the Phillip Island finale, but the ultra-consistent Warren Luff kept him honest all season. Canto led Luff by just 20 points heading to the final round. Canto finished second in both races, which were won by the next season’s champion, Adam Macrow. With Luff fourth and third, Canto won the title by 30 points.

2000: Dean Canto led Matthew White by 23 points

The inaugural season went down to the wire, with Dean Canto leading Matthew White by 23 points heading to the Mallala finale. Canto bookended Race 2 victory with finishes of second in Races 1 and 3, with White 31 points behind in the final standings after finishes of third, second and third.

2001: Paul Dumbrell led David Parsons by 30 points

The 2001 title also went down to the wire, and the champion came from third to steal the crown. Paul Dumbrell led David Parsons by 30 points, with Simon Wills down in third. Wills won all three races to clinch the title, with Dumbrell second, 17th and fifth. Parsons was fifth, fifth and sixth, and dropped to third. Wills won the title by 82 points, with Parsons 104 points down in third.

2012: Scott McLaughlin led Nick Percat by 32 points

In the 'golden generation' season of 2012, Scott McLaughlin led Nick Percat by 32 points heading to Sydney Olympic Park, and clinched the title with finishes of first and second. Percat suffered a DNF in the first race and dropped to fourth by the end of the weekend, with Scott Pye and Chaz Mostert moving up to second and third. Mostert was 96 points behind McLaughlin, but 50-point penalties due to incidents with Percat (Queensland Raceway) and Andrew Jones (Winton) cost him the crown.

2018: Chris Pither led Paul Dumbrell by 32 points

It was a season for the veterans in 2018, with Chris Pither leading Paul Dumbrell by 32 points heading to the Newcastle finale. Kiwi Pither would win the title with second in Race 1 in Newcastle after Race 2 was cancelled. Dumbrell, meanwhile, was fifth. It came after a Dumbrell DNF and dramatic end to the Bathurst race turned the title fight on its head. The finale was red-flagged and not restarted after a crash for Kristian Lindbom moved concrete walls, handing Pither victory over Dumbrell by 59 points.

Dunlop Series action at the VAILO Adelaide 500 will commence on Thursday November 23.