| Whincup dominates at Desert 400 |
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| Monday, 01 March 2010 07:00 |
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The racing may have been during the day rather than at night and on a completely different, sandy and low grip track, but the result was the same as it was at Yas Marina with Team Vodafone’s Jamie Whincup dominating the two 200km races. Though the V8 Supercars had raced at the Bahrain International Circuit before, it was the first time that they had used the full 5.41km Grand Prix circuit, having used a shorter 3.6km layout previously. The decision to use the Grand Prix circuit made the event one of the longest tracks on the 2010 calendar, with lap times in excess of two minutes. Not long after the first practice sessions begun it became apparent that tyre wear would be the biggest issue to overcome at this track. Both tyres and the time taken to complete a lap were the two big concerns that the teams had to contend with in the twenty minute Friday qualifying session. Those that managed these perfectly made it through to the top ten shootout. It was an edge of the seat session as lap times began to drop. Right up until the last sector of Jamie Whincup’s flying lap it looked like Stone Brothers Racing’s Shane van Gisbergen would get his first pole position but Whincup was able to eclipse his time in the final sector and take his second pole of the season. Whincup had a perfect start in the first race and Ford Performance Racing’s Mark Winterbottom was past van Gisbergen before the first corner. A small number of cars were involved in a first lap incident and Steven Richards was in the garage by lap five with brake problems. As Whincup continued to build margin his team mate Lowndes passed Winterbottom for second during the first round of pit stops. However Winterbottom was able to get the place back only a few laps later. Steven Richards returned to the track as drivers began making their second pit stops. These stops set up a battle between van Gisbergen and Courtney for fifth position with the former driver prevailing after a number of overtaking moves from each. The tyre degradation was an issue for every driver in the field with lap times having dropped as much as four seconds at the end of the 37 laps. In the end it was another Team Vodafone podium with Whincup standing on the top step having led the race from start to finish and his team mate Lowndes on the third step, with Winterbottom in between them. The top two finishing positions were mirrored on the timesheets after Saturday’s twenty minute all-in qualifying session with Whincup taking another pole and Winterbottom in position two. Whincup had a very slow start in the second race and had slipped back to fifth by the first corner, while Winterbottom led the field. There was a mid-pack incident between a number of cars at this corner, which resulted in Garth Tander being spun around and Todd Kelly’s race ended. In the next few laps Whincup used turn one to pull a number of overtaking moves which saw him back up in second place before overtaking Winterbottom for the lead of the race on lap eight. Winterbottom was able to close the gap marginally after the two leaders pitted together and pushed hard to bring the margin down even further. Whincup was feeling the pressure and made a small off-track error but was still able to maintain the lead. Behind the leaders the big mover in the field, Shane van Gisbergen, who had qualified fourteenth overtook Fujitsu Racing’s Lee Holdsworth for third position. Whincup began to claw back some of his margin before he and Winterbottom again toured the pit lane at the same time. Still feeling the pressure Whincup stalled momentarily on leaving his pit bay but was still able to get out in front of Winterbottom and from there began to build margin. It looked like a safety car would be required in the dying laps of the race when Karl Reindler’s car, which was parked on the side of the track, caught fire, but officials were able to extinguish it. After fighting back from his first lap incident to run fifteenth Tander was taken out of the race after contact with Steven Richards. At the end of the second race it was another Whincup victory but Winterbottom made him earn it. In an identical podium to the second race at Abu Dhabi, van Gisbergen filled the third step of the podium. It was another great achievement for the youngest driver in the field who had taken two podiums, two lap records and a front row start in the first two rounds of the season. The 2010 Championship standings after the event mirrored this podium. The V8 Supercars will return to Australian soil for the next round of the Championship, the Clipsal 500. Traditionally held as the season opener this event is very popular with fans, teams and drivers. There will be little time for the teams to rest with less than two weeks before the V8 Supercars hit the street circuit. By Chelsea Woods http://www.girlracer.co.uk
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