Winless Whincup Looks for Improvement
If past records are anything to go by, Jamie Whincup has his work cut out for him wresting the lead of the V8 Supercars Championship back from Red Bull Racing Australia teammate Craig Lowndes at this weekend’s Sargent Security Phillip Island 360.
The defending and four-time V8 Supercars Champion has not won a race at the fast and challenging seaside circuit since Triple Eight Race Engineering swapped from Ford Falcons to Holden Commodores in 2010.
Nor has Whincup managed to start from ARMOR ALL Pole Position in that period, except when the points were tallied up after the 2010 500km enduro qualifying races. Even then it was Steve Owen’s win in the co-driver race that really cemented pole.
By contrast Lowndes, who leads Whincup by six points in the title chase with 600 points, five races and two Championship events left to run, has an excellent recent record at Phillip Island, winning the 2010 and 2011 enduros with Mark Skaife.
And Pepsi Max Crew FPR drivers Mark Winterbottom and Will Davison – who run third and fourth in points and are still very much in contention for the title – shared the two sprint race wins there last year.
Whincup last tasted victory at Phillip Island in 2009 when he doubled up in a Ford Falcon FG on his way to his second Championship.
But since then it’s been a litany of problems including a tyre failure, a broken front splitter and even Davison taking him out last year that have kept him from that familiar position atop the podium.
“My run down at Phillip Island has been extremely difficult,” Whincup admitted to v8supercars.com.au. “We have just been out of luck so hopefully one of these years – maybe this year and I hope it is – we get a little bit back from what has happened over the other years.”
Whincup says he doesn’t regard the Island as a hoodoo track because he has always had competitive pace there.
“We have had great car speed down there so we are certainly not concerned about that. If we had a lack of pace or it was self-inflicted I would be concerned.”
It’s certainly not something that he’s focussing on as he heads into an encounter that will be crucial to determining the course of the Championship. Right now eight drivers are in with at least a theoretical shot at the title.
“I am as confident as the last five years I have gone down there. It’s a nice fast and smooth circuit like Texas where we were quick this year. I have got confidence we will be fast and making your car fast is eight-tenths of the job.”
Whincup goes into the penultimate Championship event – the grand finale is the Sydney 500 in early December – with several unknowns to deal with as this is the first time the new generation V8 Supercar has raced at Phillip Island and the debut comes soon after the track was resurfaced and caused all sorts of tyre havoc at the Australian motorcycle grand prix.
“Yes it is the first time down there with Car of the Future and all the information we have had previously with the old circuit is thrown out the window now it has been resurfaced. There is going to be a lot more grip and it is going to be a lot quicker.
“But it’s the same for everyone getting those extra difficulties, right so we are all equal again. So basically we are going to go down there and do the job we normally do; try and make the car quick and score some points.
“If we do a good job we will be up the front.”
Whincup played down the issues fighting his teammate for the Championship might create, considering the position has usually been reversed in recent years with Lowndes doing the chasing.
“To be honest with you we are getting on better than we ever have,” Whincup said. “We have a close bond at the moment. We are fully aware that FPR dominated last year’s event and might again this year, so if we are not careful we might have car five (Winterbottom) or car six (Davison) come and swamp both of us.”
The Sargent Security Phillip Island 360 begins this Friday, November 22, and runs until Sunday November 24 at the Victorian circuit. Tickets are still available for the event.
