Winton wizards: Ford legends' joint record
The site of the upcoming Pizza Hut Winton SuperSprint was the scene of two Ford legends' dominance.
The next stop on the 2022 Repco Supercars Championship calendar was a stronghold of Glenn Seton and John Bowe.
Of active drivers, Mark Winterbottom has the most Winton wins with four.
It was Seton and Bowe who controlled the Benalla circuit in 1990s, with their records still intact after nearly 30 years.
Seton and Bowe won five races each at Winton Motor Raceway, and they are joint all-time leaders.
The two drivers combine for three championships and 71 race wins.
The Falcon legends are also responsible for the longest winning run by a single manufacturer at Winton with six.
Seton won both races at the 1993 event en route to his first championship, before he repeated the feat 12 months later.
Bowe’s first Winton victory came in 1988 aboard his Dick Johnson Racing Sierra. He also scored wins in Races 2 and 3 in the 1998 event.
He won both Winton races in 1995 en route to his own title, extending Ford’s winning run to six.
It came after Nissan, thanks to George Fury, Jim Richards and Mark Skaife, won five straight races between 1989 and 1992.
Winton made its championship debut in 1985, but Holden had to wait until 1997 to win a race.
Seton in 1993
It took Commodore drivers 12 years to break through at Winton courtesy of Larry Perkins.
Ford leads the head-to-head win tally over Holden 29 to 27, but Commodores took over the running after Seton and Bowe's run.
Holden drivers won 16 of 19 races between 1997 and 2002.
Perkins Engineering and Garry Rogers Motorsport led the way with five wins each.
Seton’s fifth and final Winton win in 2000.
It was bookended by victories for GRM drivers Garth Tander and Jason Bargwanna.
Bowe celebrates in 1998
In fact, Seton’s Sunday win at the turn of the century was his 40th and final career victory.
Seton scored his first career win in 1987 at Calder Park.
Winterbottom can at least match the two Ford heroes this weekend, which will feature three 36-lap sprints.
James Courtney has three wins, with Tim Slade and Fabian Coulthard scoring two each.
Will Davison (2008), Chaz Mostert (2015) and Shane van Gisbergen (2017) are all one-time winners.
The 2022 season will resume at Winton this weekend. Purchase your tickets now.
