Townsville titan: The final full-time win of a great
Garth Tander is the defending Bathurst 1000 winner and a current commentary whiz, and is one of only five drivers to have won multiple races in Townsville.
The venue of next weekend’s NTI Townsville 500 was the site of Tander’s final win as a solo driver, all the way back in 2014.
He later added a Sandown victory in 2016 before combining with Shane van Gisbergen to win in Surfers Paradise (2019) and Bathurst (2020).
However, for a driver who boasts 56 race wins, a series title and four Bathurst crowns, his Townsville win in 2014 will remain his final major feat as a solo driver.
It came in the second race of the weekend, and after he and then Holden Racing Team teammate James Courtney wasted an all-HRT front row.
Tander became became the 11th different winner in 21 races in 2014, earning his 53rd career victory.
At the time, it was the lowest grid spot (11th) for a winner in Townsville history, before van Gisbergen won from 12th last year.
The HRT duo ran one-two in the opening stages, and that wouldn’t change for the rest of the 44-lap sprint.
It was a resurgent performance from Tander, who hadn’t won since Phillip Island the previous season.
It came after he signed a two-year extension with HRT, which would end at the end of 2016 before a return to Garry Rogers Motorsport.
At the time of the win, Tander felt had much more left in him.
"I will be going a lot more than another two years… I don't see any reason not to go a lot more than another two years,” he said after the race.
"I don't feel that I need to prove to other people that I am worthy of a spot.
"I think I have the runs on the board and I continue to put the runs on the board.
"Numbers say that, you can't deny age, you can't deny the date. How long have I been racing? 16 or 17 years, I won't be racing another 16 or 17 years, it's just the nature of the sport.
“When I've got a car capable of fighting to the death with I will continue to fight.”
Tander signalled to his rivals that he was far from a spent force; his comments came full circle in 2019, when he was selected by Triple Eight to be van Gisbergen’s co-driver.
It paid dividends on the Gold Coast, before the duo combined on the mountain last year to solidify Tander’s legendary status.
"We knew what the end result was going to be but I just wanted to send a small message to [Jamie Whincup] and his team boss [Roland Dane] that I'm not forgotten about yet.
"It's probably the most I have been tested in my career. But I had and have some good people around me to help me with that.
"A lot of people said I had forgotten how to drive. You don't forget how to drive."
The Repco Supercars Championship field will return to North Queensland for the NTI Townsville 500 across July 9-11. Tickets are available here.
The event will be broadcast live on Foxtel and will be streamed on Kayo, and will be broadcast live and free on Seven.
