Supercars: Shane van Gisbergen continues championship charge with Perth SuperNight win
In another emphatic display of speed from the V8 man of the moment, Shane van Gisbergen continued his championship charge by sprinting away in Perth.
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Shane van Gisbergen continued his championship charge by sprinting away to win the final race of the Perth SuperNight.
In another emphatic display of speed from the V8 man of the moment, van Gisbergen blasted his way past James Courtney to win his second race in two days and further extend his series lead.
On a day that began with a high-speed crash and continued when Cameron Waters was stripped of a win, van Gisbergen sprinted away from the field after a late safety car to win the second and final race of the day.
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“What an awesome weekend,” van Gisbergen said.
“I can’t thank the team enough. The car was absolutely brilliant. I had a good battle with Will (Davison) and then another good one with James.”
Out for revenge after Davison snuck under his guard to steal a controversial win in the earlier race, van Gisbergen was almost caught out by Courtney.
“It was pretty fun because I didn’t know Courtney was actually the leader until they told me,” Courtney said.
“I thought I was just racing Will so I had to take off and catch him when I found out.”
The second day of the Perth Super Night began with drama when Waters was controversially stripped of a race win after officials penalised him for making an illegal pass.
In a heartbreaking decision that cost the Ford driver the 6th win of his career, Waters was given a five second penalty for going outside the track limits to pass Will Davison.
Waters crossed the line first but was relegated to fourth position once the time penalty was applied.
The Tickford driver was so emotional that he could hardly speak after he was “robbed” of a win.
“I’m all for hard racing,” Waters said.
“I love that part of it. I’ve been racing for years and everyone’s been doing that (going past the kerb while turning onto the main straight). We are the first one to get a penalty for it.”
Shattered star stripped of win amid Supercars controversy
Cameron Waters was left fighting back tears after a five second penalty saw him stripped of a race win.
In a controversy that handed Will Davison his first win since 2016, Ford driver Waters was ruled to have cut a corner and subsequently hit with the win-costing penalty.
Waters crossed the line first but was pushed off the podium once the penalty was applied.
Waters stormed his way off the grid and was so emotional that he struggled to speak.
“I have been racing for years and everyone has been doing it,” Waters said.
“I am the only person that has ever gotten a penalty.”
Dick Johnson Racing driver Davison admitted he would have rather won his first race in six by crossing the line first.
Davison attempted to pass Waters but failed when the Ford driver went wide and over the kerb.
“You want to earn the win so it kind of feels weird not crossing the line first,” Davison said.
“But I feel like I did a really good move on Cameron on the kerb is a grey area. You can’t take advantage of it like he did.”
The race began in sensational circumstances when Scott Pye wreck his car in a spectacular high speed crash.
Pit surprise helps van Gisbergen monster Supercars rivals
The Shane van Gisbergen show continued in Perth when the V8 champion stormed home to claim his seventh win of the season.
On another night of domination for the Red Bull Ampol Racing driver, van Gisbergen mowed down Anton de Pasquale to deliver another defeat to Ford.
“I just have to thank the team because it is awesome to drive such a good car,” van Gisbergen said.
“It is great to come back and I am stoked to get a win. I had a really good time and I can’t wait to get back tomorrow.”
Losing out to both De Pasquale and Cameron Water in qualifying, van Gisbergen monstered his way past his Dick Johnson Racing rival on lap 44 before blitzing his way to the finish line.
“They were really fast at the start and I thought they were going to drive off,” van Gisbergen said.
“I was really surprised that they pitted that early. I decided to get going and it ended up working out well at the end.”
De Pasquale again failed to deliver after being given the fastest car over one lap.
The Ford driver made an error while being hunted by van Gisbergen and surrendered his winning chance.
“he obviously had a big tyre overlap on us and the pace was quite different,” De Pasquale said.
“We gave it a shot but grip prevails. We ended up getting a second and you have to be happy anytime you get a podium.
“I think it will be a little bit different tomorrow. We will tune the car up and see how we go. You obviously want to win races that you have led but we will get better. It is all good.”
De Pasquale gave himself the best possible chance of winning the race by winning yet another pole.
Following a dramatic first session fail by Chaz Mostert, De Pasquale struck late to prove he had the quickest car.
“I was pushing quite hard there,” De Pasquale said.
“It is a fine line at this track between putting together a good lap and pushing too hard and making a mistake. I was lucky that the guys gave me a good car.
“I am as hungry as everyone. We have been close but haven’t got the big one. We need to convert.”
Mostert was left scratching his head after a qualifying shocker put him out of contention.
Both he and fellow Walkinshaw Andretti United driver Nick Percat were knocked out in the first of the three qualifying sessions.
“Looks like qualifying will be a bit of a weakness here for us this weekend,” Mostert said.
“For whatever reason, the track this weekend is highlighting quite a big issue for us. We have worked really hard to turn it around but haven’t found an answer yet.
“Someone’s gotta finish 23rd and 25th sometimes … not an ideal day for us.”
‘Lap of the Gods’ hero to climb Mt Panorama again
Greg Murphy will get another shot at Mount Panorama glory with the Bathurst legend set to return for another 1000km fling.
Set to make a Bathurst comeback last season until Covid-19 ruled the “lap of the gods” driver out at the 11th hour, Murphy was on Saturday confirmed as a starter with Erebus Motorsport, who revealed they had been given another wildcard entry for this year’s race.
Murphy, who retired as full-time driver in 2012, will strap down with fellow Kiwi Richie Stanaway in an Erebus Motorsport built and prepared Holden Commodore.
A four-time winner and the man who etched his name into Bathurst folklore when he set the stunning time of 2.06.85 in a 2003 shootout lap that was became known as the “lap of the Gods”, Murphy said he and Stanaway would be working hard to find form before the race, which will be held on October 6.
“I don’t think I can put into words how important these test days will be for Richie and I,” Murphy said.
“They’re so critical for us. Parts of the puzzle have been underway for a while and now with Covid sort of out of the way, we can absolutely be set on some goals and plans, which will make a big difference.
“A lack of testing was the biggest thing for me last year that really had me questioning whether we were going to be able to do the event and do it justice.”
Murphy played down his chances after being announced for his return and will get his first chance to drive his Bathurst car during a test day in June.
“This initial test day will really just be about finding my feet again and getting some of the basics back into my brain,” Murphy said.
“I will then go away and think about it to prepare myself for the next test.
“I’d love to be able to turn up and be really comfortable straight away and feel really positive moving forward, but I’m also trying to be realistic.”
Set to pair up with the Kiwi legend, Stanaway said he was looking forward to strapping in with Murphy for the test season.
“Being two drivers who have been out of the car for a while, Murph and I are definitely going to use all three of our test days to make sure we’re as prepared as we can be,” Stanaway said.
“Going to Bathurst is tough at the best of times, even when racing full-time, so we’ll be focusing pretty hard on those test days to extract everything we can.
“For the first test day, it’s really going to be about getting comfortable in the car and getting to know the team.
“It’s always very important when you work with a new team to get to know everyone and figure out how everything works as every team does things slightly differently.
“Getting all of those teething problems out of the way means by the time we get to the second and the third day, we can hit the ground running with some more advanced work.
“Having the additional preparation time after last year’s delay has given me more time to train and I’ve also spent more time on my simulator to get the feel back.”
The entry will be sponsored by Boost Mobile, after the man who owns the company first floated the idea on social media.
“We were never going to give up and were always going to make it happen for Murph, Richie, and the Supercars fans,” Boost Mobile boss Pete Adderton said.
“The story is not over for Richie and Murph to take on the mountain and it’s something you don’t want to miss.
“Last year we jumped over every hurdle thrown at us and although in the end border restrictions made it impossible for 2021, the whole team at Erebus, Boost and the drivers were committed to making it work in 2022.
“The benefit of this year will be that Murph and Richie will have three test days prior to the big race which will allow them to finetune their skills and the set up with the team.
“This idea came to fruition because of the fans so we encourage everyone to come on the journey with us and celebrate Murph and Richie back at the mountain.”
Supercars feuds: Who has biggest target on their back?
Shane van Gisbergen can be revealed as V8’s most marked man with Cameron Waters leading a long list of drivers who are looking for a Supercar square-up.
With James Courtney declaring war on Chaz Mostert by calling him a V8 lawnmower after grassing the Holden driver at Australian GP, News Corp Australia can reveal the latest list of V8 feuds after secretly surveying the stars of the sport.
And it is Van Gisbgergen who has the biggest target on his back with several drivers privately gunning for fix-ups after racing incidents have left them seeing red.
“Who isn’t he feuding with?” said a leading driver. “He has fixed-up at least half the field since the season started.”
But they will have to catch him first.
“That’s the problem,” said another driver.
“You can’t touch him up if you can’t catch him. Half the reason that he has the biggest target on his back is that he is faster than everyone else.”
CAMERON WATERS and SHANE VAN GISBERGEN
Waters may be one of the few drivers fast enough to fire off a shot after the Tickford star showed his pace by claiming a pole in Tasmania.
Waters was left furious with the reigning champion after van Gisbergen stole the lead in the race that followed his qualifying win.
In a move that has made him Waters’ No. 1 target, van Gisbergen passed the Ford driver with a bump and ran in the first of the Tasmanian round to steal the lead.
The contact at the hairpin left Waters fuming.
And so did van Gisbergen’s post-race comments.
“What a great race,” van Gisbergen said.
“I was rubbing them up a bit, but that‘s what we’re here to do.”
WILL DAVISON and SHANE VAN GISBERGEN
Dick Johnson Racing do not need a reason to pick a fight with their rivals Red Bull – but they got one late last year when van Gisbergen sledged Will Davison in a post-race press conference at Sydney Motorsport Park.
In a jaw dropping statement that van Gisbergen later claimed “came out wrong”, the Holden star belittled Davison – who was sitting next to him – by inferring that he was not as good as fellow DJR driver Anton De Pasquale.
Will Davison refused to accept his apology and claimed his Holden rival had intentionally landed the “low blow”.
JAMES COURTNEY and CHAZ MOSTERT
Chaz Mostert will no doubt have James Courtney in his sights after the latter called him a lawnmower.
In the funniest sledge in recent memory, Ford’s Courtney posed up with a lawnmower that had Mostert’s name stuck on the front.
“I have photographic proof that he is indeed a lawnmower,” Courtney said after writing Mostert’s name on his lawnmower.
“It’s a bit less expensive than the one he used in Melbourne, but it does the job.
And after being attacked by Mostert in the press for causing the crash, Courtney also slammed the Bathurst champion as “immature and insecure”.
BRODIE KOSTECKI and EVERYONE
He might be fast — but apparently, he is not very popular.
A series of on-track incidents that have occurred over the past 18 months have made Brodie Kostecki a marked man.
“Everyone is pissed off with Brodie not just because he keeps on punting blokes but because he keeps on getting away with it,” said a driver.
“He never seems to cop a penalty.”
TIM SLADE and CAMERON WATERS
He might be gunning for van Gisbergen – but Cameron Waters is also a target in his own right.
Waters can expect heavy fire from Tim Slade the next time the pair get close after turning him into a punching bag in Tasmania earlier this year.
Slade will not die wondering after he was sent flying from the track at 250km/h following a touch.
“It was just a bonehead move,” Slade said following the racer.
“Fortunately I didn’t hit anything and do some serious damage.”
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