2001 V8 Supercar season
Encyclopedia
The 2001 Shell Championship Series was a motor racing competition for V8 Supercars. The championship, which was the third Shell Championship Series, began on 25 March 2001 at Phillip Island and ended on 2 December at Sandown
Sandown
Sandown is a seaside resort town and civil parish on the southeast coast of the Isle of Wight, England, neighbouring the town of Shanklin to the south. Sandown Bay is the name of the bay off the English Channel which both towns share, and it is notable for its long stretch of easily accessible...

 after 13 rounds. The same events also determined the winner of the 2001 Australian Touring Car Championship
Australian Touring Car Championship
The Australian Touring Car Championship is a touring car racing award held in Australia since 1960. The series itself is no longer contested, but the title lives on, with the winner of the V8 Supercar Championship Series awarded the trophy and title of Australian Touring Car Champion.-History:The...

 as awarded by the Confederation of Australian Motor Sport
Confederation of Australian Motor Sport
The Confederation of Australian Motor Sport , has been the governing body of Australian motorsport since 1953. It is affiliated with the Federation Internationale de l'Automobile ....

.

Driver changes

  • After racing for the Holden Racing Team
    Holden Racing Team
    The Holden Racing Team is a Melbourne based motor racing team. HRT is the most successful V8 Supercar racing team in the history of the category, having won the drivers championship six times, and the series signature race the Bathurst 1000 seven times...

     since 1994, Craig Lowndes
    Craig Lowndes
    Craig Lowndes is a multi-championship winning Australian racing driver. He is a three-time V8 Supercar champion and five-time winner of Australia's most famous motor race, the Bathurst 1000...

     in enticed to race for a newly created Ford team formed from the formerly Holden aligned Gibson Motor Sport
    Gibson Motor Sport
    Gibson Motor Sport was an Australian motor racing team. Originally established by Howard Marsden as the in-house factory Nissan motorsport operation, the team later passed into the ownership of Fred Gibson., who had won the 1967 Bathurst 500 as a driver, sharing with Harry Firth. In 1993 the team...

     and acquired privateers front runner Rodney Forbes as a team mate. In between Channel Ten commentary commitments, Neil Crompton
    Neil Crompton
    Neil Crompton is a well-known V8 Supercars presenter and commentator for Australia's Channel Seven, having previously worked in a similar role at Network Ten...

     joins the team for the enduros.
  • Jason Bright
    Jason Bright
    Jason Bright is an Australian racing driver currently competing in the V8 Supercar series.-Australia:...

     replaces Lowndes in the number 2 Holden Racing Team
    Holden Racing Team
    The Holden Racing Team is a Melbourne based motor racing team. HRT is the most successful V8 Supercar racing team in the history of the category, having won the drivers championship six times, and the series signature race the Bathurst 1000 seven times...

     car.
  • Rookie Marcos Ambrose
    Marcos Ambrose
    Marcos Ambrose is a championship winning Australian racing car driver. He currently drives the #9 Stanley Black & Decker Ford Fusion for Richard Petty Motorsports in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series...

     and V8 Lites series driver David Besnard
    David Besnard
    David Besnard, , in Sydney, Australia is a professional race car driver. Starting in Karts in 1981, he quickly proceeded into Formula Ford in 1995. After initial success, he had a major accident at Eastern Creek Raceway and broke his leg. In 1996 he made a comeback and won the Australian title...

     join the series with Stone Brothers Racing
    Stone Brothers Racing
    Stone Brothers Racing is an Australian motor racing team competing in the International V8 Supercars Championship, formed in 1998 by experienced New Zealand-born motorsport veterans, Ross Stone and Jim Stone after buying out their partner in their previous racing team...

    . Tony Longhurst
    Tony Longhurst
    Tony Longhurst is an Australian former racing driver and Australian Champion water skier. He is most noted for his career in the Australian Touring Car Championship and V8 Supercar series....

     finds a drive with Rod Nash Racing
    Rod Nash Racing
    Rod Nash Racing is a V8 Supercar racing entity, owned by Rod Nash. Nash continues to own a V8 Supercar Racing Entitlement Contract and his #55 runs on the flanks of the Ford Performance Racing Ford FG Falcon....

     and joining HRT for the long distance races, while Craig Baird
    Craig Baird
    Craig George Baird MNZM is a race car driver. Baird is a very successful driver in his homeland, winning three consecutive New Zealand Formula Atlantic championship titles , and then four consecutive New Zealand Touring Car Championship titles .Since then Baird has raced in Australian Super...

     sits idle until the enduros.
  • Sacked Gibson Motor Sport
    Gibson Motor Sport
    Gibson Motor Sport was an Australian motor racing team. Originally established by Howard Marsden as the in-house factory Nissan motorsport operation, the team later passed into the ownership of Fred Gibson., who had won the 1967 Bathurst 500 as a driver, sharing with Harry Firth. In 1993 the team...

     driver Greg Murphy
    Greg Murphy
    Greg Murphy is a racing driver, best known as a four-time winner of the Bathurst 1000. Greg Murphy joined Jeremy Clarkson and Richard Hammond presenting Top Gear, when it had its first international Live show at ASB Showgrounds in Auckland from February 12 - 15th 2009, and again when the show...

     joins the former Holden Young Lions
    Holden Young Lions
    Holden Young Lions has been an identity utilised by several Australian V8 Supercar racing teams since its first appearance in 1997. The identity has always been seen as an official extension of Holden's more official racing identities associated with the Holden Racing Team although most often is...

     squad taking with him sponsor Kmart, joining Todd Kelly
    Todd Kelly
    Todd Kelly is a V8 Supercar racing driver, currently living in Melbourne, Victoria. He is the older brother of former V8 Supercar and Bathurst 1000 champion, Rick Kelly. He drove for the Holden Racing Team from 2003 until 2007, and Jack Daniel's Racing in 2008...

     at the team.
  • Fellow superseded GMS driver Steven Richards
    Steven Richards
    Steven Richards is a New Zealand racing driver, currently competing in the with the team. He previously raced in the V8 Supercar series for Ford Performance Racing....

    , joins Ford Tickford Racing
    Glenn Seton Racing
    Glenn Seton Racing was a V8 Supercar racing team that competed in the V8 Supercar series in Australia.Glenn Seton formed his own team in 1989, using Ford Sierras. Seton had been a protege of the works Nissan team, and took the Peter Jackson cigarette sponsorship of that team with him. Former F1...

    .
  • As part of a franchise deal arrangement the Holden Young Lions
    Holden Young Lions
    Holden Young Lions has been an identity utilised by several Australian V8 Supercar racing teams since its first appearance in 1997. The identity has always been seen as an official extension of Holden's more official racing identities associated with the Holden Racing Team although most often is...

     identity passes to privateer outfit Romano Racing who run Paul Romano.
  • Cameron McConville
    Cameron McConville
    Cameron 'Cam' McConville is an Australian racing driver and motorsport media personality. While retired from full-time competition McConville still races occasionally and is an indemand endurance event co-driver. McConville spent 14 years as a professional driver, ten of those in the largest...

     joins the re-launched Lansvale Racing Team
    Lansvale Racing Team
    Lansvale Racing Team, also known as Lansvale Smash Repairs Racing was an Australian motor racing team that competed in Australian touring car events in the 1980s and 1990s...

     as a lead driver while owners Steve Reed and Trevor Ashby continue to share a car.

Team changes

  • Gibson Motor Sport
    Gibson Motor Sport
    Gibson Motor Sport was an Australian motor racing team. Originally established by Howard Marsden as the in-house factory Nissan motorsport operation, the team later passed into the ownership of Fred Gibson., who had won the 1967 Bathurst 500 as a driver, sharing with Harry Firth. In 1993 the team...

     changes from Holden
    Holden
    GM Holden Ltd is an automaker that operates in Australia, based in Port Melbourne, Victoria. The company was founded in 1856 as a saddlery manufacturer. In 1908 it moved into the automotive field, before becoming a subsidiary of the U.S.-based General Motors in 1931...

     to Ford
  • Larkham Motor Sport
    Larkham Motor Sport
    Larkham Motor Sport was a motorsport team contesting the V8 Supercar Championship. The team ceased operations at the end of 2005, with the owner Mark Larkham selling the team to WPS Racing.- History :...

     has ICS as their new sponsor, replacing Mitre 10
    Mitre 10
    Mitre 10 is the trading name of retail and trade hardware store chains, over 700 locations throughout of Australia. Operations are based on a co-operative system where the store owners are members of the national group and each has voting rights...

  • Romano Racing becomes Holden Young Lions
    Holden Young Lions
    Holden Young Lions has been an identity utilised by several Australian V8 Supercar racing teams since its first appearance in 1997. The identity has always been seen as an official extension of Holden's more official racing identities associated with the Holden Racing Team although most often is...

     and gets an ex-HRT VX Commodore

Cars

Ford will continue with the AU Falcon that the majority of Ford teams run. Holden have released a new VX Commodore after the VT Commodore. Some Holden teams still run the VT and some own the old VS Commodore.

Race formats

  • 2 45 minute races (around 100 km) will replace the 3 20 minute sprint races. There will also be a compulsory pit stop that has to be taken within a certain time of the race
  • There will be a Top 10 or Top 15 Shootout for all rounds during the season that will alternate from round to round. This involves a single lap around the circuit for the Top 10/15 qualifiers in qualifying. The winner of the shootout wins 18 bonus points
  • 2 events will involve the 3 20 minute sprint races. This will happen at Round 6 and 7 at Barbagello Raceway and Calder Park Raceway. There will be no compulsory pit stops
  • At 3 events, there will be 3 races over the weekend, this will happen at Hidden Valley, Pukekoke Park Raceway and Sandown

Special events

Round 2-Clipsal 500 at Adelaide. This involves 2 250 km races over 78 laps of the Adelaide Street circuit. The winner of the event is the driver who wins the second race and not the driver who collects the most points. The second race involves double points over the first race. There are 2 compulsory pit stops in each race, 1 stop for tyres and 1 stop for fuel.

Round 5-GMC 400 at Canberra. This involves 2 100 km races and 1 200 km race over 25 and 50 laps of the Canberra Street Circuit. The winner of the event is the driver who collects the most points over the weekend. The 2nd race of the weekend will involve a reverse grid of the entire field. The 3rd race grid will be a culmination of the points of race 1 and race 2 put together. In the first 2 races there will be only 1 compulsory stop for tyres. In the 3rd race, there will be 1 stop for tyres and 1 stop for fuel.

Round 9-VIP Petfoods Queensland 500 at Queensland Raceway. This is the first of the double driver endurance events. This race is held over 161 laps over 500 km. The race will involve driver changes and fuel and tyre stops will have to happen at the same time.

Round 11-V8 Supercar 1000 at Bathurst. Known as "The Great Race", Bathurst is the event that all the drivers want to win. It is again a double driver event and will involve driver changes at pit stops. The race is held over 161 laps over 1000 km. This season is the first time that the event isn't the last round of the championship.

Television coverage

Channel 10 broadcasted the coverage for the 5th year since 1997 when they took over from Channel 7. Neil Crompton hosted the coverage for regular rounds with Barry Sheene
Barry Sheene
Barry Stephen Frank Sheene MBE was a British World Champion Grand Prix motorcycle road racer.-Early life:...

. Bill Woods hosted the coverage at special events while Leigh Diffey hosted the coverage at the last 2 rounds. Matthew White hosted the coverage at Winton for the only time in the 2001 season. Neil Crompton, Barry Sheene and Mark Oastler commentated for most of the season with Leigh Diffey coming in from Bathurst onwards. Greg Rust and Grant Denyer
Grant Denyer
Grant Denyer is an Australian television reporter, personality and motor racing driver.-Television career:In 1997, Denyer began his career in the media, he gained a position at Prime Television in Wagga Wagga as a news reporter and journalist...

 were the pit lane reporters after Greg was commentator for the 2000 championship.

Teams and drivers

The following drivers and teams competed in the 2001 Shell Championship Series. The series consisted of 11 rounds of single driver racing and two rounds (the Queensland 500 and the Bathurst 1000) of endurance racing with each car driven by two drivers.
Team Make Model Car # Drivers Endurance Event Drivers
Holden Racing Team
Holden Racing Team
The Holden Racing Team is a Melbourne based motor racing team. HRT is the most successful V8 Supercar racing team in the history of the category, having won the drivers championship six times, and the series signature race the Bathurst 1000 seven times...

VX Commodore
Holden VX Commodore
The Holden VX Commodore, Berlina and Calais range of full-size cars were the eleventh instalment of Holden Commodore, a model manufactured by Holden, the Australian subsidiary of General Motors...

1   Mark Skaife
Mark Skaife
Mark Stephen Skaife OAM is an Australian motor racing driver. Skaife is a five time winner of the V8 Supercar Championship Series, including its predecessor the Australian Touring Car Championship. He is also a six-time winner of Australia's most prestigious domestic motor race, the Bathurst 1000...

  Tony Longhurst
Tony Longhurst
Tony Longhurst is an Australian former racing driver and Australian Champion water skier. He is most noted for his career in the Australian Touring Car Championship and V8 Supercar series....


  Tomas Mezera
Tomas Mezera
Tomas Mezera, born November 5, 1958, in Czechoslovakia and now resides in Queensland, Australia. Mezera is best known as an Australian racing driver. Mezera's sporting career began as a downhill skier in his native Czechoslovakia, before he emigrated to Australia to be a ski instructor.-Formula...

2   Jason Bright
Jason Bright
Jason Bright is an Australian racing driver currently competing in the V8 Supercar series.-Australia:...

255   Rick Kelly
Rick Kelly
Rick Kelly is a current V8 Supercar racing driver, currently living in Melbourne, Victoria. He is the younger brother of former Bathurst 1000 champion, Todd Kelly...

Lansvale Racing Team
Lansvale Racing Team
Lansvale Racing Team, also known as Lansvale Smash Repairs Racing was an Australian motor racing team that competed in Australian touring car events in the 1980s and 1990s...

VX Commodore
Holden VX Commodore
The Holden VX Commodore, Berlina and Calais range of full-size cars were the eleventh instalment of Holden Commodore, a model manufactured by Holden, the Australian subsidiary of General Motors...

3   Cameron McConville
Cameron McConville
Cameron 'Cam' McConville is an Australian racing driver and motorsport media personality. While retired from full-time competition McConville still races occasionally and is an indemand endurance event co-driver. McConville spent 14 years as a professional driver, ten of those in the largest...

  Rick Bates
VS Commodore
Holden VS Commodore
The Holden VS Commodore, released in 1995, was the ninth model of the Holden Commodore, a large car built by Holden, the Australian subsidiary of General Motors. The VS Commodore served as a mechanical update of the second generation architecture, destined to assist sales before the all-new VT model...


VX Commodore
Holden VX Commodore
The Holden VX Commodore, Berlina and Calais range of full-size cars were the eleventh instalment of Holden Commodore, a model manufactured by Holden, the Australian subsidiary of General Motors...

23   Steve Reed
  Trevor Ashby
Stone Brothers Racing
Stone Brothers Racing
Stone Brothers Racing is an Australian motor racing team competing in the International V8 Supercars Championship, formed in 1998 by experienced New Zealand-born motorsport veterans, Ross Stone and Jim Stone after buying out their partner in their previous racing team...

AU Falcon
Ford AU Falcon
The Ford AU Falcon and Fairmont are the first of the sixth generation series of the Ford Falcon, a full-size car produced by Ford Australia...

4   Marcos Ambrose
Marcos Ambrose
Marcos Ambrose is a championship winning Australian racing car driver. He currently drives the #9 Stanley Black & Decker Ford Fusion for Richard Petty Motorsports in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series...

  Greg Crick*
  Wayne Wakefield**
9   David Besnard
David Besnard
David Besnard, , in Sydney, Australia is a professional race car driver. Starting in Karts in 1981, he quickly proceeded into Formula Ford in 1995. After initial success, he had a major accident at Eastern Creek Raceway and broke his leg. In 1996 he made a comeback and won the Australian title...

  Matthew White
Glenn Seton Racing
Glenn Seton Racing
Glenn Seton Racing was a V8 Supercar racing team that competed in the V8 Supercar series in Australia.Glenn Seton formed his own team in 1989, using Ford Sierras. Seton had been a protege of the works Nissan team, and took the Peter Jackson cigarette sponsorship of that team with him. Former F1...

AU Falcon
Ford AU Falcon
The Ford AU Falcon and Fairmont are the first of the sixth generation series of the Ford Falcon, a full-size car produced by Ford Australia...

5   Glenn Seton
Glenn Seton
Glenn Seton is an Australian racing driver.Seton, father of Courtney and Aaron Seton and husband to Jayne Seton, retired from full time racing after the 2005 V8 Supercar season, and is only one of five drivers to have competed in over 200 rounds in the series. The other drivers are Dick Johnson ,...

  Dean Canto
Dean Canto
Dean Justin Canto is a multiple-championship winning Australian motor racing driver. Best noted as a V8 Supercar driver, Canto was the inaugural winner of the second-tier V8 Supercar development series in 2000, and the first to become a multiple-champion five years later...


  Jim Richards
Jim Richards (race driver)
Jim Richards is a New Zealand racing driver who has spent most of his racing life in Australia. While retired from professional racing, Richards continues to compete in the historic category Touring Car Masters while running a team in the Australian GT Championship...

6   Steven Richards
Steven Richards
Steven Richards is a New Zealand racing driver, currently competing in the with the team. He previously raced in the V8 Supercar series for Ford Performance Racing....

00 Motorsport
Gibson Motor Sport
Gibson Motor Sport was an Australian motor racing team. Originally established by Howard Marsden as the in-house factory Nissan motorsport operation, the team later passed into the ownership of Fred Gibson., who had won the 1967 Bathurst 500 as a driver, sharing with Harry Firth. In 1993 the team...

AU Falcon
Ford AU Falcon
The Ford AU Falcon and Fairmont are the first of the sixth generation series of the Ford Falcon, a full-size car produced by Ford Australia...

7   Rodney Forbes   David Parsons
00   Craig Lowndes
Craig Lowndes
Craig Lowndes is a multi-championship winning Australian racing driver. He is a three-time V8 Supercar champion and five-time winner of Australia's most famous motor race, the Bathurst 1000...

  Neil Crompton
Neil Crompton
Neil Crompton is a well-known V8 Supercars presenter and commentator for Australia's Channel Seven, having previously worked in a similar role at Network Ten...

Perkins Motorsport VX Commodore
Holden VX Commodore
The Holden VX Commodore, Berlina and Calais range of full-size cars were the eleventh instalment of Holden Commodore, a model manufactured by Holden, the Australian subsidiary of General Motors...

8   Russell Ingall
Russell Ingall
Russell Ingall is an Australian V8 Supercar driver. Ingall won the V8 Supercar Championship for the first time in 2005, he was also the Championship runner up in 1998, 1999 and 2001. Ingall has also won the Bathurst 1000 motor race twice, in 1995 and 1997...

  Luke Youlden
Luke Youlden
Luke Youlden is an Australian motor racing driver. He is the son of two-time Australian Production Car champion Kent Youlden. Youlden has been a V8 Supercar endurance co-driver for various teams since 2001 but has never raced in the series full-time...


  Adam Macrow
Adam Macrow
Adam Macrow is a professional race car driver now living in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia. Starting in Karts in 1985 winning two National titles and ten Victorian titles...

11   Larry Perkins
Larry Perkins
Larry Clifton Perkins is a former racing driver and V8 Supercar team owner from Australia.-Career:...

Larkham Motor Sport
Larkham Motor Sport
Larkham Motor Sport was a motorsport team contesting the V8 Supercar Championship. The team ceased operations at the end of 2005, with the owner Mark Larkham selling the team to WPS Racing.- History :...

AU Falcon
Ford AU Falcon
The Ford AU Falcon and Fairmont are the first of the sixth generation series of the Ford Falcon, a full-size car produced by Ford Australia...

10   Mark Larkham
Mark Larkham
Mark Larkham is a retired Australian racing driver, former racing team owner and television commentator.-Open wheelers:...

  Wayne Gardner
Wayne Gardner
Wayne Michael Gardner OAM is a former Grand Prix motorcycle road racer and touring car racer. His most notable achievement was winning the 1987 500 cc Motorcycle World Championship, becoming the first Australian to win motorcycling's premier class...

Imrie Motor Sport VX Commodore
Holden VX Commodore
The Holden VX Commodore, Berlina and Calais range of full-size cars were the eleventh instalment of Holden Commodore, a model manufactured by Holden, the Australian subsidiary of General Motors...

14   Greg Ritter
Greg Ritter
Greg Ritter is an Australian racing driver. He was the winner of the 1999 Australian Formula Ford Championship. and shared the winning drive at the 2004 Betta Electrical 500-Career results:-External links:*...


  Tomas Mezera
Tomas Mezera
Tomas Mezera, born November 5, 1958, in Czechoslovakia and now resides in Queensland, Australia. Mezera is best known as an Australian racing driver. Mezera's sporting career began as a downhill skier in his native Czechoslovakia, before he emigrated to Australia to be a ski instructor.-Formula...


  Christian D'Agostin
  Tony Ricciardello
Tony Ricciardello
Tony Ricciardello, , is a multiple-championship winning Australian race car driver.Son of Sports Sedan racer and team owner Basil Ricciardello, Tony was brought up into the Western Australian racing scene...


  James Brock
  Steve Owen
K-mart Racing Team VX Commodore
Holden VX Commodore
The Holden VX Commodore, Berlina and Calais range of full-size cars were the eleventh instalment of Holden Commodore, a model manufactured by Holden, the Australian subsidiary of General Motors...

15   Todd Kelly
Todd Kelly
Todd Kelly is a V8 Supercar racing driver, currently living in Melbourne, Victoria. He is the older brother of former V8 Supercar and Bathurst 1000 champion, Rick Kelly. He drove for the Holden Racing Team from 2003 until 2007, and Jack Daniel's Racing in 2008...

  Rick Kelly
Rick Kelly
Rick Kelly is a current V8 Supercar racing driver, currently living in Melbourne, Victoria. He is the younger brother of former Bathurst 1000 champion, Todd Kelly...


  Nathan Pretty
51   Greg Murphy
Greg Murphy
Greg Murphy is a racing driver, best known as a four-time winner of the Bathurst 1000. Greg Murphy joined Jeremy Clarkson and Richard Hammond presenting Top Gear, when it had its first international Live show at ASB Showgrounds in Auckland from February 12 - 15th 2009, and again when the show...

McDougall Motorsport VT Commodore
Holden VT Commodore
The Holden VT Commodore, Berlina, and Calais are the tenth iteration of the Holden Commodore, a full-size car built by Holden, the Australian subsidiary of General Motors...

16   Dugal McDougall   Andrew Miedecke
Dick Johnson Racing
Dick Johnson Racing
Dick Johnson Racing is Australia's oldest operating motor racing team. Founded by Dick Johnson, the team has won seven Australian Touring Car Championship titles and has taken three victories in Australia's hallmark race, the Bathurst 1000...

AU Falcon
Ford AU Falcon
The Ford AU Falcon and Fairmont are the first of the sixth generation series of the Ford Falcon, a full-size car produced by Ford Australia...

17   Steven Johnson
Steven Johnson (motor racing)
Steven Johnson is an Australian V8 Supercar racing driver. He is the son of former racer and now team-owner Dick Johnson. He has competed full-time for Dick Johnson Racing since 2000...

  Greg Ritter
Greg Ritter
Greg Ritter is an Australian racing driver. He was the winner of the 1999 Australian Formula Ford Championship. and shared the winning drive at the 2004 Betta Electrical 500-Career results:-External links:*...


  Paul Stokell
Paul Stokell
Paul Stokell is an Australian racing driver. Despite never making a significant impact in touring car racing, Stokell has been a race and championship winning driver in open wheel and sportscar racing consistently since the early 1990s and remains so today have won the Australian Mini Challenge in...

*
  Cameron McLean**
18   Paul Radisich
Paul Radisich
Paul Radisich is a New Zealand racing driver of Croat origin. He has competed in saloon cars for many years - both European-style tourers and the V8 Supercars of Australia and New Zealand.-Early years:...

Eastern Creek Kart Racing EL Falcon
Ford EL Falcon
The Ford EL Falcon is a full-size car that was manufactured by the Ford Motor Company of Australia between 1996 and 1998. The EL Falcon served as the final chapter of the fifth generation "E-series" architecture, which began with the EA of 1988. Ford discontinued the car in 1998, and replaced it...

20   Gary Holt   Kevin Mundy
Brad Jones Racing
Brad Jones Racing
Brad Jones Racing is an Australian motor racing team centred around brothers Kim and Brad Jones and is based in Albury, New South Wales. Presently the team compete in the V8 Supercar Series, which they joined in 2000. Recently they have also returned to the Australian Formula Ford Championship...

AU Falcon
Ford AU Falcon
The Ford AU Falcon and Fairmont are the first of the sixth generation series of the Ford Falcon, a full-size car produced by Ford Australia...

21   Brad Jones John Cleland
John Cleland (racing driver)
John Cleland . is a retired Scottish auto racing driver. He raced autocross and hillclimb in the 1970s, before achieving success in British Production Car and Thundersaloon championships, before joining Vauxhall for the 1989 British Touring Car Championship...

Team Kiwi Racing
Team Kiwi Racing
Team Kiwi Racing was a V8 Supercar team that competed in the Australian V8 Supercar series. The team has since returned at much reduced scale, in New Zealand running in domestic one-make series racing...

VX Commodore
Holden VX Commodore
The Holden VX Commodore, Berlina and Calais range of full-size cars were the eleventh instalment of Holden Commodore, a model manufactured by Holden, the Australian subsidiary of General Motors...

 
VT Commodore
Holden VT Commodore
The Holden VT Commodore, Berlina, and Calais are the tenth iteration of the Holden Commodore, a full-size car built by Holden, the Australian subsidiary of General Motors...

021   Jason Richards
Jason Richards
Jason Richards is a motor racing driver, currently on break from full time racing due to his fight with cancer, whilst still providing full engineering support for Brad Jones Racing in the Australian touring car series, V8 Supercar.-Early career:Richards started his motor racing career at the age...

777   Angus Fogg
Angus Fogg
Angus Fogg is a New Zealand racecar driver who competes in the NZV8's.-New Zealand V8 Championship:Angus Fogg joined the NZ V8 Championship for the 2003-04 season after taking a year off from motorsport...

Romano Racing VT Commodore
Holden VT Commodore
The Holden VT Commodore, Berlina, and Calais are the tenth iteration of the Holden Commodore, a full-size car built by Holden, the Australian subsidiary of General Motors...

24   Paul Romano   Owen Kelly
Terry Wyhoon Racing AU Falcon
Ford AU Falcon
The Ford AU Falcon and Fairmont are the first of the sixth generation series of the Ford Falcon, a full-size car produced by Ford Australia...

25   Terry Wyhoon
  Rod Salmon
Paul Morris Motorsport VT Commodore
Holden VT Commodore
The Holden VT Commodore, Berlina, and Calais are the tenth iteration of the Holden Commodore, a full-size car built by Holden, the Australian subsidiary of General Motors...

29   Paul Morris
Paul Morris (motorsport)
Paul Morris is a V8 Supercar racecar driver.-Early career:Paul Morris started his motor racing career at the age of 19 in 1987, driving in the Queensland Gemini Series. He won Rookie of the Year in his debut season, and won the state championship the following year. He spent the next three years...

  Ashley Stitchbury**
VX Commodore
Holden VX Commodore
The Holden VX Commodore, Berlina and Calais range of full-size cars were the eleventh instalment of Holden Commodore, a model manufactured by Holden, the Australian subsidiary of General Motors...

67 Matt Neal
Matt Neal
Matthew Neal is a British motor racing driver. He won the British Touring Car Championship in 2005, 2006 and 2011. He has also won a European Touring Car Championship race. He is 6' 6" tall, making him almost entirely unable to race single-seaters...


  Paul Morris
Paul Morris (motorsport)
Paul Morris is a V8 Supercar racecar driver.-Early career:Paul Morris started his motor racing career at the age of 19 in 1987, driving in the Queensland Gemini Series. He won Rookie of the Year in his debut season, and won the state championship the following year. He spent the next three years...

Steven Ellery Racing
Steven Ellery Racing
Steven Ellery Racing was a motorsport team contesting the V8 Supercar Championship. The team ceased operations at the end of 2004, with the owner Steven Ellery joining Triple 8 Racing for the 2005 Season- History :...

AU Falcon
Ford AU Falcon
The Ford AU Falcon and Fairmont are the first of the sixth generation series of the Ford Falcon, a full-size car produced by Ford Australia...

31   Steven Ellery
Steven Ellery
Steven Ellery is a retired Australian racing driver.Since 1994 Ellery has made 120 championship starts. He has recorded three podium finishes at the Bathurst 1000. Ellery has not raced full time in the series since the end of the 2005. season.-Career results:-References:...

  Geoff Brabham
Geoff Brabham
Geoff Brabham is an Australian racing driver. He is the son of three-time Formula One World Champion Jack Brabham. Brabham spent the majority of his racing career in the United States. He raced successfully in CART early in his career. In ten appearances in the Indianapolis 500, with a best result...

Tomas Mezera Motorsport VT Commodore
Holden VT Commodore
The Holden VT Commodore, Berlina, and Calais are the tenth iteration of the Holden Commodore, a full-size car built by Holden, the Australian subsidiary of General Motors...

32   Tomas Mezera
Tomas Mezera
Tomas Mezera, born November 5, 1958, in Czechoslovakia and now resides in Queensland, Australia. Mezera is best known as an Australian racing driver. Mezera's sporting career began as a downhill skier in his native Czechoslovakia, before he emigrated to Australia to be a ski instructor.-Formula...

Garry Rogers Motorsport
Garry Rogers Motorsport
Garry Rogers Motorsport is an Australian motor racing team presently competing in V8 Supercar.-The early years:Garry Rogers Motorsport has its origins in Garry Rogers' own exploits in Sports Sedans during the late 1960s and the 1970s. In the mid-1970s Rogers got more serious, running a BDA Escort...

VX Commodore
Holden VX Commodore
The Holden VX Commodore, Berlina and Calais range of full-size cars were the eleventh instalment of Holden Commodore, a model manufactured by Holden, the Australian subsidiary of General Motors...

34   Garth Tander
Garth Tander
Garth Tander is a multiple-championship winning Australian motor racing driver. Since 1998 Tander has been a competitor in touring car racing series V8 Supercar Championship Series. Tander was the 2007 series champion for the HSV Dealer Team and is a three-time winner in Australia's most...

  Paul Dumbrell
Paul Dumbrell
Paul Dumbrell , is an Australian racing driver who currently drives for Rod Nash Racing in the V8 Supercar Championship Series...


  Leanne Ferrier
Leanne Tander
-Leanne Tander is an Australian racecar driver having raced cars such as Formula Ford, Formula 3 and V8 Supercars.- Career :...

35   Jason Bargwanna
Jason Bargwanna
Jason Bargwanna is an Australian racing driver who competes in the V8 Supercar Championship Series.-Career history:Bargwanna commenced his racing career in the late 1980s, initially competing in the Formula Vee category...

Scotty Taylor Racing VS Commodore
Holden VS Commodore
The Holden VS Commodore, released in 1995, was the ninth model of the Holden Commodore, a large car built by Holden, the Australian subsidiary of General Motors. The VS Commodore served as a mechanical update of the second generation architecture, destined to assist sales before the all-new VT model...

37   Bill Attard
  Roger Hurd
Paragon Motorsport AU Falcon
Ford AU Falcon
The Ford AU Falcon and Fairmont are the first of the sixth generation series of the Ford Falcon, a full-size car produced by Ford Australia...

40   Cameron McLean   Neal Bates
Neal Bates
Neal Bates is an Australian rally and racing car driver. Throughout his career Bates has been associated with Toyota in the Australian Rally Championship and for 19 years his Neal Bates Motorsport outfit ran Toyota's official rally program in Australia...

*
Paul Weel Racing AU Falcon
Ford AU Falcon
The Ford AU Falcon and Fairmont are the first of the sixth generation series of the Ford Falcon, a full-size car produced by Ford Australia...

43   Paul Weel
Paul Weel
Paul Weel born 27 July 1979 in Geelong, Victoria, was an Australian V8 Supercar racing driver. He raced 12 seasons in V8 Supercars with a best finish of 3rd in Adelaide 2003. His best enduro finish was a 5th at the 2002 Queensland 500 and best Bathurst finish was 8th in 1999...

  Tim Leahey
RPM International Racing AU Falcon
Ford AU Falcon
The Ford AU Falcon and Fairmont are the first of the sixth generation series of the Ford Falcon, a full-size car produced by Ford Australia...

45   Dean Canto
Dean Canto
Dean Justin Canto is a multiple-championship winning Australian motor racing driver. Best noted as a V8 Supercar driver, Canto was the inaugural winner of the second-tier V8 Supercar development series in 2000, and the first to become a multiple-champion five years later...

  Phillip Scifleet
Phillip Scifleet
Phillip Scifleet, born 4 May 1977, is an Australian race driver. Starting in Karts in 1993 winning the Australian Formula A Seeries in 1994 before moving up into the cars for the Australian Suzuki GTi Cup in 1995. Then he moved into Formula Ford in 1996, winning the New South Wales Championship. In...


  Aaron McGill*
  Christian D'Agostin**
John Faulkner Racing VT Commodore
Holden VT Commodore
The Holden VT Commodore, Berlina, and Calais are the tenth iteration of the Holden Commodore, a full-size car built by Holden, the Australian subsidiary of General Motors...

46   John Faulkner
John Faulkner (racing driver)
John Murray Faulkner, born 24 August 1952, in Palmerston North, New Zealand, is a retired racing driver. Faulkner spent the majority in sedan based classes, initial small touring cars, Ford Escorts and Capris initially before joining Toyota Team Australia's team of factory supported Toyota Corolla...

  Craig Baird
Craig Baird
Craig George Baird MNZM is a race car driver. Baird is a very successful driver in his homeland, winning three consecutive New Zealand Formula Atlantic championship titles , and then four consecutive New Zealand Touring Car Championship titles .Since then Baird has raced in Australian Super...

*
  Peter Doulman**
Melbournes Cheapest Cars VT Commodore
Holden VT Commodore
The Holden VT Commodore, Berlina, and Calais are the tenth iteration of the Holden Commodore, a full-size car built by Holden, the Australian subsidiary of General Motors...

48   Eddie Abelnica
Clive Wiseman Racing VT Commodore
Holden VT Commodore
The Holden VT Commodore, Berlina, and Calais are the tenth iteration of the Holden Commodore, a full-size car built by Holden, the Australian subsidiary of General Motors...

50   Tyler Mecklem
  Michael Donaher
  Layton Crambrook
M3 Motorsport VT Commodore
Holden VT Commodore
The Holden VT Commodore, Berlina, and Calais are the tenth iteration of the Holden Commodore, a full-size car built by Holden, the Australian subsidiary of General Motors...

52   Peter Doulman
Rod Nash Racing
Rod Nash Racing
Rod Nash Racing is a V8 Supercar racing entity, owned by Rod Nash. Nash continues to own a V8 Supercar Racing Entitlement Contract and his #55 runs on the flanks of the Ford Performance Racing Ford FG Falcon....

VT Commodore
Holden VT Commodore
The Holden VT Commodore, Berlina, and Calais are the tenth iteration of the Holden Commodore, a full-size car built by Holden, the Australian subsidiary of General Motors...

54   Tony Longhurst
Tony Longhurst
Tony Longhurst is an Australian former racing driver and Australian Champion water skier. He is most noted for his career in the Australian Touring Car Championship and V8 Supercar series....

  Rod Nash
  Tony Ricciardello
Tony Ricciardello
Tony Ricciardello, , is a multiple-championship winning Australian race car driver.Son of Sports Sedan racer and team owner Basil Ricciardello, Tony was brought up into the Western Australian racing scene...

Sieders Racing Team EL Falcon
Ford EL Falcon
The Ford EL Falcon is a full-size car that was manufactured by the Ford Motor Company of Australia between 1996 and 1998. The EL Falcon served as the final chapter of the fifth generation "E-series" architecture, which began with the EA of 1988. Ford discontinued the car in 1998, and replaced it...

56   Luke Sieders
Halliday Motor Sport AU Falcon
Ford AU Falcon
The Ford AU Falcon and Fairmont are the first of the sixth generation series of the Ford Falcon, a full-size car produced by Ford Australia...

61   Ross Halliday   Greg Crick**
Paul Little Racing
Paul Little Racing
Paul Little Racing, commonly known as Toll Racing, after its sponsor, Toll Holdings, was a motorsport team contesting the V8 Supercars championship...

AU Falcon
Ford AU Falcon
The Ford AU Falcon and Fairmont are the first of the sixth generation series of the Ford Falcon, a full-size car produced by Ford Australia...

75   Anthony Tratt   Alan Jones
Matthew White Racing VS Commodore
Holden VS Commodore
The Holden VS Commodore, released in 1995, was the ninth model of the Holden Commodore, a large car built by Holden, the Australian subsidiary of General Motors. The VS Commodore served as a mechanical update of the second generation architecture, destined to assist sales before the all-new VT model...

76   Matthew White
V8 Racing VS Commodore
Holden VS Commodore
The Holden VS Commodore, released in 1995, was the ninth model of the Holden Commodore, a large car built by Holden, the Australian subsidiary of General Motors. The VS Commodore served as a mechanical update of the second generation architecture, destined to assist sales before the all-new VT model...

77   Steve Williams
Miller Racing VS Commodore
Holden VS Commodore
The Holden VS Commodore, released in 1995, was the ninth model of the Holden Commodore, a large car built by Holden, the Australian subsidiary of General Motors. The VS Commodore served as a mechanical update of the second generation architecture, destined to assist sales before the all-new VT model...

84   Daniel Miller
Harris Racing AU Falcon
Ford AU Falcon
The Ford AU Falcon and Fairmont are the first of the sixth generation series of the Ford Falcon, a full-size car produced by Ford Australia...

88   Craig Harris   Dale Brede*
  Michael Simpson**
Ric Shaw Motorsport VS Commodore
Holden VS Commodore
The Holden VS Commodore, released in 1995, was the ninth model of the Holden Commodore, a large car built by Holden, the Australian subsidiary of General Motors. The VS Commodore served as a mechanical update of the second generation architecture, destined to assist sales before the all-new VT model...

90   Ric Shaw
  Mike Conway
GM Motorsport VS Commodore
Holden VS Commodore
The Holden VS Commodore, released in 1995, was the ninth model of the Holden Commodore, a large car built by Holden, the Australian subsidiary of General Motors. The VS Commodore served as a mechanical update of the second generation architecture, destined to assist sales before the all-new VT model...

111   Phonsy Mullan
Power Racing AU Falcon
Ford AU Falcon
The Ford AU Falcon and Fairmont are the first of the sixth generation series of the Ford Falcon, a full-size car produced by Ford Australia...

500   Alan Heath   Dale Brede**
Briggs Motor Sport
Briggs Motor Sport
Briggs Motor Sport was an Australian motor racing team which has represented Queensland based businessman John Briggs in motor racing. The team has competed in Sports Sedans, Formula Holden and most publicly as a touring car team competing in the V8 Supercar Championship Series...

AU Falcon
Ford AU Falcon
The Ford AU Falcon and Fairmont are the first of the sixth generation series of the Ford Falcon, a full-size car produced by Ford Australia...

600   John Bowe
John Bowe (racing driver)
John Bowe is an Australian racing driver, presently racing a 1969 Ford Mustang in the historic series, Touring Car Masters....


  Simon Wills
Prancing Horse Racing AU Falcon
Ford AU Falcon
The Ford AU Falcon and Fairmont are the first of the sixth generation series of the Ford Falcon, a full-size car produced by Ford Australia...

888   Mark Noske
Mark Noske
Mark Noske is an Australian V8 Supercar driver. Noske has never placed higher than third in a national event, but has placed third four times in such events.-Formula Racing:...

**
  Craig Baird
Craig Baird
Craig George Baird MNZM is a race car driver. Baird is a very successful driver in his homeland, winning three consecutive New Zealand Formula Atlantic championship titles , and then four consecutive New Zealand Touring Car Championship titles .Since then Baird has raced in Australian Super...

**


* = Drove in Queensland 500
Queensland 500
The Queensland 500 was originally a V8 Supercar endurance touring car race held from 1999 to 2002. The race was held at Queensland Raceway near Ipswich. It replaced the Sandown 500 when it relinquished its role as the two-driver warm up event for the Bathurst 1000...

 only

** = Drove in Bathurst 1000
Bathurst 1000
The Bathurst 1000 is a touring car race held annually at Mount Panorama Circuit in Bathurst, New South Wales, Australia...

 only

Race Calendar

The 2001 Shell Championship Series consisted of 13 rounds which included 7 pit-stop rounds of two or three races, two sprint races, two 2-driver races and 2 1-driver races endurance races.
Rd. Race Title Circuit City / State Date Winner Team Report
1   Phillip Island Phillip Island Grand Prix Circuit
Phillip Island Grand Prix Circuit
The Phillip Island Grand Prix Circuit is a motor racing racing circuit on Phillip Island, Victoria, Australia. The circuit was opened in 1956.-Road circuit:...

Phillip Island, Victoria
Victoria (Australia)
Victoria is the second most populous state in Australia. Geographically the smallest mainland state, Victoria is bordered by New South Wales, South Australia, and Tasmania on Boundary Islet to the north, west and south respectively....

24 - 25 Mar Mark Skaife
Mark Skaife
Mark Stephen Skaife OAM is an Australian motor racing driver. Skaife is a five time winner of the V8 Supercar Championship Series, including its predecessor the Australian Touring Car Championship. He is also a six-time winner of Australia's most prestigious domestic motor race, the Bathurst 1000...

Holden Racing Team
Holden Racing Team
The Holden Racing Team is a Melbourne based motor racing team. HRT is the most successful V8 Supercar racing team in the history of the category, having won the drivers championship six times, and the series signature race the Bathurst 1000 seven times...

2   Clipsal
Clipsal
Clipsal is an Australian brand of electrical accessories. The main factory was located at Bowden, but it was announced in 2008 that a move would be made to a new site, located at Gepps Cross. The move took place in 2009. Clipsal also boasts smaller factories in Nuriootpa, Strathalbyn and Wingfield...

 500
Adelaide 500
The Adelaide 500 is an annual motor racing event for V8 Supercars, held on the streets of the east end of Adelaide, South Australia on a shortened form of the Adelaide Street Circuit, the former Australian Grand Prix track...

Adelaide Street Circuit
Adelaide Street Circuit
The Adelaide Street Circuit is a temporary street circuit in the East Parklands adjacent to the central business district of the city of Adelaide in South Australia....

Adelaide
Adelaide
Adelaide is the capital city of South Australia and the fifth-largest city in Australia. Adelaide has an estimated population of more than 1.2 million...

, South Australia
South Australia
South Australia is a state of Australia in the southern central part of the country. It covers some of the most arid parts of the continent; with a total land area of , it is the fourth largest of Australia's six states and two territories.South Australia shares borders with all of the mainland...

6 - 8 Apr Jason Bright
Jason Bright
Jason Bright is an Australian racing driver currently competing in the V8 Supercar series.-Australia:...

Holden Racing Team
Holden Racing Team
The Holden Racing Team is a Melbourne based motor racing team. HRT is the most successful V8 Supercar racing team in the history of the category, having won the drivers championship six times, and the series signature race the Bathurst 1000 seven times...

report
2001 Clipsal 500
The 2001 Clipsal 500 was the third running of the Adelaide 500 race. Racing was held form Friday 6 April until Sunday 8 April 2001. The race was held for V8 Supercars and was Round 2 of the 2001 Shell Championship Series.-Format:...

3   Eastern Creek Eastern Creek Raceway
Eastern Creek Raceway
Eastern Creek International Raceway is a motorsports circuit located on Brabham Drive, Eastern Creek , New South Wales, Australia, adjacent to the Western Sydney International Dragway. It was built and is owned by the New South Wales Government and is operated by the...

Sydney
Sydney
Sydney is the most populous city in Australia and the state capital of New South Wales. Sydney is located on Australia's south-east coast of the Tasman Sea. As of June 2010, the greater metropolitan area had an approximate population of 4.6 million people...

, New South Wales
New South Wales
New South Wales is a state of :Australia, located in the east of the country. It is bordered by Queensland, Victoria and South Australia to the north, south and west respectively. To the east, the state is bordered by the Tasman Sea, which forms part of the Pacific Ocean. New South Wales...

28 - 29 Apr Mark Skaife
Mark Skaife
Mark Stephen Skaife OAM is an Australian motor racing driver. Skaife is a five time winner of the V8 Supercar Championship Series, including its predecessor the Australian Touring Car Championship. He is also a six-time winner of Australia's most prestigious domestic motor race, the Bathurst 1000...

Holden Racing Team
Holden Racing Team
The Holden Racing Team is a Melbourne based motor racing team. HRT is the most successful V8 Supercar racing team in the history of the category, having won the drivers championship six times, and the series signature race the Bathurst 1000 seven times...

4   Hidden Valley Hidden Valley Raceway
Hidden Valley Raceway
Hidden Valley Raceway is part of the Hidden Valley Motorsports Complex from Darwin, Northern Territory, Australia. The race track is used as a round of the V8 Supercar series...

Darwin
Darwin, Northern Territory
Darwin is the capital city of the Northern Territory, Australia. Situated on the Timor Sea, Darwin has a population of 127,500, making it by far the largest and most populated city in the sparsely populated Northern Territory, but the least populous of all Australia's capital cities...

, Northern Territory
Northern Territory
The Northern Territory is a federal territory of Australia, occupying much of the centre of the mainland continent, as well as the central northern regions...

12 - 13 May Marcos Ambrose
Marcos Ambrose
Marcos Ambrose is a championship winning Australian racing car driver. He currently drives the #9 Stanley Black & Decker Ford Fusion for Richard Petty Motorsports in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series...

Stone Brothers Racing
Stone Brothers Racing
Stone Brothers Racing is an Australian motor racing team competing in the International V8 Supercars Championship, formed in 1998 by experienced New Zealand-born motorsport veterans, Ross Stone and Jim Stone after buying out their partner in their previous racing team...

5   GMC 400
Canberra 400
The Canberra 400, also known as both the GMC 400, Stegbar Canberra 400 and in its infancy, National Capital 100 was a V8 Supercar race run on the streets of Australia's capital, Canberra.- Getting Started :...

Canberra Street Circuit
Canberra 400
The Canberra 400, also known as both the GMC 400, Stegbar Canberra 400 and in its infancy, National Capital 100 was a V8 Supercar race run on the streets of Australia's capital, Canberra.- Getting Started :...

Canberra
Canberra
Canberra is the capital city of Australia. With a population of over 345,000, it is Australia's largest inland city and the eighth-largest city overall. The city is located at the northern end of the Australian Capital Territory , south-west of Sydney, and north-east of Melbourne...

, Australian Capital Territory
Australian Capital Territory
The Australian Capital Territory, often abbreviated ACT, is the capital territory of the Commonwealth of Australia and is the smallest self-governing internal territory...

9 - 10 June Steven Johnson Dick Johnson Racing
Dick Johnson Racing
Dick Johnson Racing is Australia's oldest operating motor racing team. Founded by Dick Johnson, the team has won seven Australian Touring Car Championship titles and has taken three victories in Australia's hallmark race, the Bathurst 1000...

6   Barbagallo Barbagallo Raceway
Barbagallo Raceway
Barbagallo Raceway is a motorsport circuit located in Wanneroo, approximately north of Perth in Western Australia.The circuit was originally known as Wanneroo Park and the first race meet took place in March 1969. Initially the major race per year was a 6 hour Le Mans style race for sedans and...

Perth
Perth, Western Australia
Perth is the capital and largest city of the Australian state of Western Australia and the fourth most populous city in Australia. The Perth metropolitan area has an estimated population of almost 1,700,000....

, Western Australia
Western Australia
Western Australia is a state of Australia, occupying the entire western third of the Australian continent. It is bounded by the Indian Ocean to the north and west, the Great Australian Bight and Indian Ocean to the south, the Northern Territory to the north-east and South Australia to the south-east...

22 - 24 June Paul Radisich
Paul Radisich
Paul Radisich is a New Zealand racing driver of Croat origin. He has competed in saloon cars for many years - both European-style tourers and the V8 Supercars of Australia and New Zealand.-Early years:...

Dick Johnson Racing
Dick Johnson Racing
Dick Johnson Racing is Australia's oldest operating motor racing team. Founded by Dick Johnson, the team has won seven Australian Touring Car Championship titles and has taken three victories in Australia's hallmark race, the Bathurst 1000...

7   Calder Park Calder Park Raceway
Calder Park Raceway
Calder Park Raceway is a motor racing circuit in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia. The complex includes a drag strip, a road circuit with several possible configurations, and the "Thunderdome", a high-speed banked oval equipped to race either clockwise or counter-clockwise .-History:Calder Park...

Melbourne
Melbourne
Melbourne is the capital and most populous city in the state of Victoria, and the second most populous city in Australia. The Melbourne City Centre is the hub of the greater metropolitan area and the Census statistical division—of which "Melbourne" is the common name. As of June 2009, the greater...

, Victoria
Victoria (Australia)
Victoria is the second most populous state in Australia. Geographically the smallest mainland state, Victoria is bordered by New South Wales, South Australia, and Tasmania on Boundary Islet to the north, west and south respectively....

14 - 15 July Paul Morris Paul Morris Motorsport
8   Oran Park Oran Park Raceway
Oran Park Raceway
Oran Park Raceway was a motor racing circuit at Narellan in southwestern Sydney, New South Wales, Australia which was operational from 1962 to 2010....

Sydney
Sydney
Sydney is the most populous city in Australia and the state capital of New South Wales. Sydney is located on Australia's south-east coast of the Tasman Sea. As of June 2010, the greater metropolitan area had an approximate population of 4.6 million people...

, New South Wales
New South Wales
New South Wales is a state of :Australia, located in the east of the country. It is bordered by Queensland, Victoria and South Australia to the north, south and west respectively. To the east, the state is bordered by the Tasman Sea, which forms part of the Pacific Ocean. New South Wales...

28 - 29 July Mark Skaife
Mark Skaife
Mark Stephen Skaife OAM is an Australian motor racing driver. Skaife is a five time winner of the V8 Supercar Championship Series, including its predecessor the Australian Touring Car Championship. He is also a six-time winner of Australia's most prestigious domestic motor race, the Bathurst 1000...

Holden Racing Team
Holden Racing Team
The Holden Racing Team is a Melbourne based motor racing team. HRT is the most successful V8 Supercar racing team in the history of the category, having won the drivers championship six times, and the series signature race the Bathurst 1000 seven times...

9   VIP Petfoods Queensland 500
Queensland 500
The Queensland 500 was originally a V8 Supercar endurance touring car race held from 1999 to 2002. The race was held at Queensland Raceway near Ipswich. It replaced the Sandown 500 when it relinquished its role as the two-driver warm up event for the Bathurst 1000...

Queensland Raceway
Queensland Raceway
Queensland Raceway nicknamed "the paperclip" is a motor racing circuit located near Ipswich in Queensland, Australia.The circuit plays host to V8 Supercars, the Australian Superbike Championship, Drifting as well as club level racing and ride days....

Willowbank, Queensland
Willowbank, Queensland
-External links:*...

24 - 26 Aug Paul Radisich
Paul Radisich
Paul Radisich is a New Zealand racing driver of Croat origin. He has competed in saloon cars for many years - both European-style tourers and the V8 Supercars of Australia and New Zealand.-Early years:...


Steven Johnson
Dick Johnson Racing
Dick Johnson Racing
Dick Johnson Racing is Australia's oldest operating motor racing team. Founded by Dick Johnson, the team has won seven Australian Touring Car Championship titles and has taken three victories in Australia's hallmark race, the Bathurst 1000...

report
2001 VIP Petfoods Queensland 500
The 2001 VIP Petfoods Queensland 500 was an endurance race for V8 Supercars held at Queensland Raceway, Ipswich, Queensland, Australia on 26 August 2001. The programmed race distance was 161 laps however the race was stopped due to heavy rain and results were declared as at the completion of 156...

10   Winton Winton Motor Raceway
Winton Motor Raceway
Winton Motor Raceway is a Motor Racing track in Winton, near Benalla, Victoria, Australia.-History:The Benalla Auto Club began planning for a permanent racing track around 1958. In 1960 it was decided to build the track at Winton Recreation Reserve and was completed in twelve months...

Benalla
Benalla, Victoria
Benalla is a city of just over 9,000 people located just off the Hume Freeway in north-eastern Victoria, Australia, about southwest of Wangaratta. Its Local Government Area is the Rural City of Benalla.- Overview :...

, Victoria
Victoria (Australia)
Victoria is the second most populous state in Australia. Geographically the smallest mainland state, Victoria is bordered by New South Wales, South Australia, and Tasmania on Boundary Islet to the north, west and south respectively....

8 - 9 Sep Russell Ingall
Russell Ingall
Russell Ingall is an Australian V8 Supercar driver. Ingall won the V8 Supercar Championship for the first time in 2005, he was also the Championship runner up in 1998, 1999 and 2001. Ingall has also won the Bathurst 1000 motor race twice, in 1995 and 1997...

Castrol Perkins Racing
11   V8 Supercar
V8 Supercar
V8 Supercars is a touring car racing category based in Australia and run as an International Series under Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile regulations...

 1000
Bathurst 1000
The Bathurst 1000 is a touring car race held annually at Mount Panorama Circuit in Bathurst, New South Wales, Australia...

Mount Panorama Circuit
Mount Panorama Circuit
Mount Panorama Circuit is a motor racing track located in Bathurst, New South Wales, Australia. It is the home of the Bathurst 12 Hour motor race, held each February, and the Bathurst 1000 motor race, held each October...

Bathurst
Bathurst, New South Wales
-CBD and suburbs:Bathurst's CBD is located on William, George, Howick, Russell, and Durham Streets. The CBD is approximately 25 hectares and surrounds two city blocks. Within this block layout is banking, government services, shopping centres, retail shops, a park* and monuments...

, New South Wales
New South Wales
New South Wales is a state of :Australia, located in the east of the country. It is bordered by Queensland, Victoria and South Australia to the north, south and west respectively. To the east, the state is bordered by the Tasman Sea, which forms part of the Pacific Ocean. New South Wales...

4 - 7 Oct Mark Skaife
Mark Skaife
Mark Stephen Skaife OAM is an Australian motor racing driver. Skaife is a five time winner of the V8 Supercar Championship Series, including its predecessor the Australian Touring Car Championship. He is also a six-time winner of Australia's most prestigious domestic motor race, the Bathurst 1000...


Tony Longhurst
Tony Longhurst
Tony Longhurst is an Australian former racing driver and Australian Champion water skier. He is most noted for his career in the Australian Touring Car Championship and V8 Supercar series....

Holden Racing Team
Holden Racing Team
The Holden Racing Team is a Melbourne based motor racing team. HRT is the most successful V8 Supercar racing team in the history of the category, having won the drivers championship six times, and the series signature race the Bathurst 1000 seven times...

report
2001 V8Supercar 1000
The 2001 V8 Supercar 1000 was the fifth running of the Australia 1000 race, first held after the organisational split over the Bathurst 1000 that occurred in 1997...

12   Boost Mobile
Boost Mobile
Boost Mobile is a brand of wireless prepay service run by Sprint Nextel, operating within the Sprint Prepaid Group along with Virgin Mobile USA, Assurance Wireless, and payLo by Virgin Mobile. Boost Mobile uses GSMand iDEN networks...

 V8 International
Pukekohe Park Raceway
Pukekohe Park Raceway
Although Pukekohe Park Raceway is better known internationally as a motor racing circuit, it is primarily a horse racing circuit in New Zealand. It is located south of Auckland City in the North Island. The track is now owned by Pukekohe Park Limited...

Pukekohe
Pukekohe
Pukekohe is a town in the Auckland Region of the North Island of New Zealand. Located at the southern edge of the Auckland Region, it is approximately 50 kilometres south of Auckland City, between the southern shore of the Manukau Harbour and the mouth of the Waikato River. The hills of Pukekohe...

, New Zealand
New Zealand
New Zealand is an island country in the south-western Pacific Ocean comprising two main landmasses and numerous smaller islands. The country is situated some east of Australia across the Tasman Sea, and roughly south of the Pacific island nations of New Caledonia, Fiji, and Tonga...

09 - 11 Nov Greg Murphy
Greg Murphy
Greg Murphy is a racing driver, best known as a four-time winner of the Bathurst 1000. Greg Murphy joined Jeremy Clarkson and Richard Hammond presenting Top Gear, when it had its first international Live show at ASB Showgrounds in Auckland from February 12 - 15th 2009, and again when the show...

K-mart Racing Team
13   Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...

n V8 Ultimate
Grand Finale (V8 Supercars)
The Grand Finale was a V8 Supercar event held at Oran Park Raceway in Sydney, Australia. As the name implies, it was the final round of the season....

Sandown International Raceway Melbourne
Melbourne
Melbourne is the capital and most populous city in the state of Victoria, and the second most populous city in Australia. The Melbourne City Centre is the hub of the greater metropolitan area and the Census statistical division—of which "Melbourne" is the common name. As of June 2009, the greater...

, Victoria
Victoria (Australia)
Victoria is the second most populous state in Australia. Geographically the smallest mainland state, Victoria is bordered by New South Wales, South Australia, and Tasmania on Boundary Islet to the north, west and south respectively....

1 - 2 Dec Todd Kelly
Todd Kelly
Todd Kelly is a V8 Supercar racing driver, currently living in Melbourne, Victoria. He is the older brother of former V8 Supercar and Bathurst 1000 champion, Rick Kelly. He drove for the Holden Racing Team from 2003 until 2007, and Jack Daniel's Racing in 2008...

K-mart Racing Team

Drivers Championship

EWLINE
Pos Driver Penalty Rd 1 Rd 2 Rd 3 Rd 4 Rd 5 Rd 6 Rd 7 Rd 8 Rd 9 Rd 10 Rd 11 Rd 12 Rd 13 Pts
1 Mark Skaife
Mark Skaife
Mark Stephen Skaife OAM is an Australian motor racing driver. Skaife is a five time winner of the V8 Supercar Championship Series, including its predecessor the Australian Touring Car Championship. He is also a six-time winner of Australia's most prestigious domestic motor race, the Bathurst 1000...

30 288 340 262 218 282 252 108 286 264 228 552 240 188 3478
2 Russell Ingall
Russell Ingall
Russell Ingall is an Australian V8 Supercar driver. Ingall won the V8 Supercar Championship for the first time in 2005, he was also the Championship runner up in 1998, 1999 and 2001. Ingall has also won the Bathurst 1000 motor race twice, in 1995 and 1997...

156 464 93 176 190 189 228 179 333 273 314 125 155 2875
3 Jason Bright
Jason Bright
Jason Bright is an Australian racing driver currently competing in the V8 Supercar series.-Australia:...

80 235 468 237 222 214 157 200 199 264 205 133 181 184 2819
4 Greg Murphy
Greg Murphy
Greg Murphy is a racing driver, best known as a four-time winner of the Bathurst 1000. Greg Murphy joined Jeremy Clarkson and Richard Hammond presenting Top Gear, when it had its first international Live show at ASB Showgrounds in Auckland from February 12 - 15th 2009, and again when the show...

201 210 213 211 77 209 127 75 288 231 432 288 162 2724
5 Steven Johnson
Steven Johnson (motor racing)
Steven Johnson is an Australian V8 Supercar racing driver. He is the son of former racer and now team-owner Dick Johnson. He has competed full-time for Dick Johnson Racing since 2000...

153 455 108 72 294 176 230 204 370 161 59 164 92 2532
6 Todd Kelly
Todd Kelly
Todd Kelly is a V8 Supercar racing driver, currently living in Melbourne, Victoria. He is the older brother of former V8 Supercar and Bathurst 1000 champion, Rick Kelly. He drove for the Holden Racing Team from 2003 until 2007, and Jack Daniel's Racing in 2008...

163 334 136 106 119 174 47 187 288 90 432 155 248 2479
7 Paul Radisich
Paul Radisich
Paul Radisich is a New Zealand racing driver of Croat origin. He has competed in saloon cars for many years - both European-style tourers and the V8 Supercars of Australia and New Zealand.-Early years:...

133 65 201 58 232 288 208 120 370 161 59 110 104 2109
8 Marcos Ambrose
Marcos Ambrose
Marcos Ambrose is a championship winning Australian racing car driver. He currently drives the #9 Stanley Black & Decker Ford Fusion for Richard Petty Motorsports in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series...

200 243 165 232 146 82 194 66 82 201 30 232 213 2086
9 Steve Ellery 132 220 54 118 187 104 156 126 232 148 333 126 137 2073
10 Garth Tander
Garth Tander
Garth Tander is a multiple-championship winning Australian motor racing driver. Since 1998 Tander has been a competitor in touring car racing series V8 Supercar Championship Series. Tander was the 2007 series champion for the HSV Dealer Team and is a three-time winner in Australia's most...

104 238 108 84 288 108 150 146 144 109 356 142 70 2047
11 Craig Lowndes
Craig Lowndes
Craig Lowndes is a multi-championship winning Australian racing driver. He is a three-time V8 Supercar champion and five-time winner of Australia's most famous motor race, the Bathurst 1000...

238 213 172 32 180 188 123 219 16 51 192 125 242 1991
12 Steven Richards
Steven Richards
Steven Richards is a New Zealand racing driver, currently competing in the with the team. He previously raced in the V8 Supercar series for Ford Performance Racing....

191 284 77 172 205 134 148 105 33 105 304 50 104 1912
13 Tony Longhurst
Tony Longhurst
Tony Longhurst is an Australian former racing driver and Australian Champion water skier. He is most noted for his career in the Australian Touring Car Championship and V8 Supercar series....

57 256 108 62 36 102 80 102 262 29 552 168 80 1894
14 Larry Perkins
Larry Perkins
Larry Clifton Perkins is a former racing driver and V8 Supercar team owner from Australia.-Career:...

93 264 72 156 134 49 86 54 333 66 314 132 103 1856
15 Jason Bargwanna
Jason Bargwanna
Jason Bargwanna is an Australian racing driver who competes in the V8 Supercar Championship Series.-Career history:Bargwanna commenced his racing career in the late 1980s, initially competing in the Formula Vee category...

105 248 62 134 136 88 64 90 144 126 356 124 144 1821
16 Glenn Seton
Glenn Seton
Glenn Seton is an Australian racing driver.Seton, father of Courtney and Aaron Seton and husband to Jayne Seton, retired from full time racing after the 2005 V8 Supercar season, and is only one of five drivers to have competed in over 200 rounds in the series. The other drivers are Dick Johnson ,...

150 304 142 132 172 94 78 120 33 75 304 94 102 1800
17 Paul Morris
Paul Morris (motorsport)
Paul Morris is a V8 Supercar racecar driver.-Early career:Paul Morris started his motor racing career at the age of 19 in 1987, driving in the Queensland Gemini Series. He won Rookie of the Year in his debut season, and won the state championship the following year. He spent the next three years...

66 76 141 72 166 68 274 99 195 184 252 22 86 1701
18 Brad Jones 81 84 144 104 94 64 70 123 40 54 480 72 132 1542
19 Mark Larkham
Mark Larkham
Mark Larkham is a retired Australian racing driver, former racing team owner and television commentator.-Open wheelers:...

54 160 69 165 178 50 127 51 143 87 84 96 62 1326
20 Paul Weel
Paul Weel
Paul Weel born 27 July 1979 in Geelong, Victoria, was an Australian V8 Supercar racing driver. He raced 12 seasons in V8 Supercars with a best finish of 3rd in Adelaide 2003. His best enduro finish was a 5th at the 2002 Queensland 500 and best Bathurst finish was 8th in 1999...

78 32 105 102 112 102 76 81 216 93 132 100 78 1307
21 Cameron McConville
Cameron McConville
Cameron 'Cam' McConville is an Australian racing driver and motorsport media personality. While retired from full-time competition McConville still races occasionally and is an indemand endurance event co-driver. McConville spent 14 years as a professional driver, ten of those in the largest...

54 Ret 75 96 122 134 134 163 112 21 276 48 40 1275
22 John Bowe
John Bowe (racing driver)
John Bowe is an Australian racing driver, presently racing a 1969 Ford Mustang in the historic series, Touring Car Masters....

54 108 209 59 232 120 76 84 108 102 118 1270
23 David Besnard
David Besnard
David Besnard, , in Sydney, Australia is a professional race car driver. Starting in Karts in 1981, he quickly proceeded into Formula Ford in 1995. After initial success, he had a major accident at Eastern Creek Raceway and broke his leg. In 1996 he made a comeback and won the Australian title...

57 4 45 177 64 58 102 242 96 84 60 52 112 1153
24 Jason Richards
Jason Richards
Jason Richards is a motor racing driver, currently on break from full time racing due to his fight with cancer, whilst still providing full engineering support for Brad Jones Racing in the Australian touring car series, V8 Supercar.-Early career:Richards started his motor racing career at the age...

DNQ 136 DNQ 68 110 64 42 75 160 69 204 108 110 1146
25 Cameron McLean 108 Ret 144 132 20 114 52 57 Ret 105 396 1128
26 Anthony Tratt 9 180 60 44 96 52 50 DNPQ 128 114 216 72 44 1065
27 Paul Romano 30 104 27 68 100 30 36 192 72 240 60 10 969
28 Tomas Mezera
Tomas Mezera
Tomas Mezera, born November 5, 1958, in Czechoslovakia and now resides in Queensland, Australia. Mezera is best known as an Australian racing driver. Mezera's sporting career began as a downhill skier in his native Czechoslovakia, before he emigrated to Australia to be a ski instructor.-Formula...

48 176 DNQ 50 57 262 133 94 78 898
29 Rodney Forbes 66 Ret DNS 68 142 70 78 69 Ret 30 144 116 70 853
30 John Faulkner 51 252 42 34 52 48 DNQ 48 56 63 Ret 70 94 810
31 Dugal McDougall 54 88 108 42 22 32 DNPQ 176 57 156 46 781
32 Dean Canto
Dean Canto
Dean Justin Canto is a multiple-championship winning Australian motor racing driver. Best noted as a V8 Supercar driver, Canto was the inaugural winner of the second-tier V8 Supercar development series in 2000, and the first to become a multiple-champion five years later...

DNQ 92 42 DNQ 30 DNPQ 200 379 743
33 Trevor Ashby 51 208 33 74 264 630
34 Greg Ritter
Greg Ritter
Greg Ritter is an Australian racing driver. He was the winner of the 1999 Australian Formula Ford Championship. and shared the winning drive at the 2004 Betta Electrical 500-Career results:-External links:*...

DNQ 128 72 396 596
35 Jim Richards
Jim Richards (race driver)
Jim Richards is a New Zealand racing driver who has spent most of his racing life in Australia. While retired from professional racing, Richards continues to compete in the historic category Touring Car Masters while running a team in the Australian GT Championship...

200 379 579
36 Geoff Brabham
Geoff Brabham
Geoff Brabham is an Australian racing driver. He is the son of three-time Formula One World Champion Jack Brabham. Brabham spent the majority of his racing career in the United States. He raced successfully in CART early in his career. In ten appearances in the Indianapolis 500, with a best result...

232 333 565
37 John Cleland
John Cleland (racing driver)
John Cleland . is a retired Scottish auto racing driver. He raced autocross and hillclimb in the 1970s, before achieving success in British Production Car and Thundersaloon championships, before joining Vauxhall for the 1989 British Touring Car Championship...

40 480 520
38 Angus Fogg
Angus Fogg
Angus Fogg is a New Zealand racecar driver who competes in the NZV8's.-New Zealand V8 Championship:Angus Fogg joined the NZ V8 Championship for the 2003-04 season after taking a year off from motorsport...

52 160 204 48 464
39 Owen Kelly 192 240 432
40 Steve Reed 50 116 264 430
41 Simon Wills 108 118 76 114 416
42 Rick Bates 112 276 388
43 Tim Leahey 216 132 348
44 Alan Jones 128 216 344
45 Tyler Mecklem DNQ 180 12 32 112 DNQ 336
46 Andrew Miedecke 176 156 332
47 Rick Kelly
Rick Kelly
Rick Kelly is a current V8 Supercar racing driver, currently living in Melbourne, Victoria. He is the younger brother of former Bathurst 1000 champion, Todd Kelly...

Ret 228 80 308
48 Matthew White 51 24 DNQ 38 96 60 16 285
49 Ashley Stichbury 252 252
50 Alan Heath 56 180 236
51 Dale Brede 48 180 228
Nathan Pretty 228
53 Wayne Gardner
Wayne Gardner
Wayne Michael Gardner OAM is a former Grand Prix motorcycle road racer and touring car racer. His most notable achievement was winning the 1987 500 cc Motorcycle World Championship, becoming the first Australian to win motorcycling's premier class...

143 84 227
54 Neil Crompton
Neil Crompton
Neil Crompton is a well-known V8 Supercars presenter and commentator for Australia's Channel Seven, having previously worked in a similar role at Network Ten...

16 192 208
55 Phillip Scifleet
Phillip Scifleet
Phillip Scifleet, born 4 May 1977, is an Australian race driver. Starting in Karts in 1993 winning the Australian Formula A Seeries in 1994 before moving up into the cars for the Australian Suzuki GTi Cup in 1995. Then he moved into Formula Ford in 1996, winning the New South Wales Championship. In...

32 168 200
56 Matt Neal
Matt Neal
Matthew Neal is a British motor racing driver. He won the British Touring Car Championship in 2005, 2006 and 2011. He has also won a European Touring Car Championship race. He is 6' 6" tall, making him almost entirely unable to race single-seaters...

DNS 195 195
57 Tony Ricciardello
Tony Ricciardello
Tony Ricciardello, , is a multiple-championship winning Australian race car driver.Son of Sports Sedan racer and team owner Basil Ricciardello, Tony was brought up into the Western Australian racing scene...

24 120 32 180
58 James Brock 104 66 Ret 170
59 Christian D'Agostin DNQ 168 168
Paul Dumbrell
Paul Dumbrell
Paul Dumbrell , is an Australian racing driver who currently drives for Rod Nash Racing in the V8 Supercar Championship Series...

168 Ret
Leanne Ferrier
Leanne Tander
-Leanne Tander is an Australian racecar driver having raced cars such as Formula Ford, Formula 3 and V8 Supercars.- Career :...

168 Ret
62 Michael Donaher 15 152 Ret 167
63 Adam Macrow
Adam Macrow
Adam Macrow is a professional race car driver now living in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia. Starting in Karts in 1985 winning two National titles and ten Victorian titles...

88 72 160
Luke Youlden
Luke Youlden
Luke Youlden is an Australian motor racing driver. He is the son of two-time Australian Production Car champion Kent Youlden. Youlden has been a V8 Supercar endurance co-driver for various teams since 2001 but has never raced in the series full-time...

88 72
65 Rod Nash 120 36 156
66 Layton Crambrook 152 Ret DNQ 152
67 Craig Harris 48 96 144
David Parsons Ret 144
69 Ross Halliday 116 Ret 116
70 Steve Owen 104 Ret 104
71 Michael Simpson 96 96
72 Garry Holt 48 45 Ret 93
73 Greg Crick 82 Ret 82
74 Paul Stokell
Paul Stokell
Paul Stokell is an Australian racing driver. Despite never making a significant impact in touring car racing, Stokell has been a race and championship winning driver in open wheel and sportscar racing consistently since the early 1990s and remains so today have won the Australian Mini Challenge in...

72 72
75 Eddie Abelnica 57 57
76 Craig Baird
Craig Baird
Craig George Baird MNZM is a race car driver. Baird is a very successful driver in his homeland, winning three consecutive New Zealand Formula Atlantic championship titles , and then four consecutive New Zealand Touring Car Championship titles .Since then Baird has raced in Australian Super...

56 Ret 56
77 Peter Doulman 48 DNPQ Ret 48
78 Daniel Miller 42 42
79 Rod Salmon 16 24 40
Terry Wyhoon 16 24
81 Aaron McGill 32 32
82 Wayne Wakefield 30 30
Pos Driver Penalty Rd 1 Rd 2 Rd 3 Rd 4 Rd 5 Rd 6 Rd 7 Rd 8 Rd 9 Rd 10 Rd 11 Rd 12 Rd 13 Pts


Phillip Island, Victoria

Mark Skaife get off to the best start possible as he collects the maximum amount of points at Phillip Island with Craig Lowndes 2nd on his debut for Ford thanks to the fastest pit stops over the weekend by his pit crew. Jason Bright comes 3rd on his comeback to the sport.

Adelaide, South Australia

At the next round at Adelaide, Bright wins the round and the double points race after coming from the back of the field after an accident on lap 1, leaving him at the top of the championship. Mark Skaife has a shocker as he came fourth after being spun by Paul Radisich in Race 1 and has another spin in Race 2 leaving him ninth. Craig Lowndes won the Saturday race but tangled with Skaife in Race 2 leaving his car disabled and left him falling behind in the championship. Paul Radisich had the fastest car on the weekend but an axle broke in race 1 and steering damage left him wounded in the championship. Russell Ingall has a good weekend with a third and a second place. There was big controversy over the race officials as rule breaking went unpunished. They were being watched at Eastern Creek.

Eastern Creek, New South Wales

Craig Lowndes and Marcos Ambrose came first and second in the first race but got penilised because of incidents. Craig passed under a Yellow Flag that he could not see and Marcos made an illegal pass on Greg Murphy. This left Greg Murphy 1st on the grid for Race 2 and Mark Skaife second who started tenth in race 1 after he spun in the shootout. Greg Murphy lost his lead to Skaife after he was given a stop-go penalty for jumping the start, but there was more controversy after he didn't come to a complete stop. He got away with it but the rules were changed for the next round. Mark Skaife duly took out the race and round with team mate Jason Bright second but still leading the championship. Greg Murphy came third for the round even with the penalty.

Hidden Valley, Northern Territory

The next round at Hidden Valley turned out to be the car breaker of the year, with Greg Murphy and Russell Ingall having mechanical problems while leading within sight of the flag in Race 3 and 2 respectively. Mark Skaife had a stop-go penalty for jumping the start in Race 1 which left him 12th but still recovered to win Race 3 and come third in the round. Jason Bright had another solid weekend coming second and extending his championship lead over his team mate. But it was Marcos Ambrose who kept his nose clean over the weekend to take the round win in only his fourth championship round.

Canberra, ACT

The GMC 400 was the turning point of the season for Mark Skaife as he comes 3rd on the weekend and overtakes team-mate Jason Bright who had a difficult weekend. The DJR cars were the cars to have earlier in the weekend as Paul Radisich
Paul Radisich
Paul Radisich is a New Zealand racing driver of Croat origin. He has competed in saloon cars for many years - both European-style tourers and the V8 Supercars of Australia and New Zealand.-Early years:...

 and Steven Johnson
Steven Johnson (motor racing)
Steven Johnson is an Australian V8 Supercar racing driver. He is the son of former racer and now team-owner Dick Johnson. He has competed full-time for Dick Johnson Racing since 2000...

 finish 1-2 in Qualifying but Radisich spun out in his shootout lap leaving him 15th and Steven Johnson claiming his first pole position in the series. New for the championship is the pit lane speed limiters restricted to 40 km/h and only 1 pit bay per team. Steven Johnson wins the first race from Craig Lowndes who was advantaged bt a clear pit lane. Mark Skaife finishes 3rd after starting 5th. Marcos Ambrose retires from the race with a broken driveshaft and will start from the back of the grid. The 2nd race is a reverse grid with Steve Reed and Steven Richards starting on the front row. Steven Richards wins from Marcos Ambrose who has a brilliant race which he started from the back but in race 3 he will have to start from the back again. Mark Skaife has a difficult race when he ran into the back of Rodney Forbes in a concertina effect and finished 24th and will start 10th in race 3. The race 3 grid is decided by an aggregate of points accumalated in race 1 and 2 which means that the front row is Craig Lowndes
Craig Lowndes
Craig Lowndes is a multi-championship winning Australian racing driver. He is a three-time V8 Supercar champion and five-time winner of Australia's most famous motor race, the Bathurst 1000...

 and Paul Radisich. Mark Skaife wins the race with Garth Tander 2nd and Steve Johnson 3rd. Craig Lowndes was leading until asafety car came out with a pit stop still to go. He eventually retired with fuel pressure problems. Steve Johnson wins the round with Garth tander second and Mark Skaife 3rd.

Barbagallo, Western Australia

Paul Radisich dominates the weekend as he wins the shootout and Race 1,2 and 3. Mark Skaife consolidates his championship lead with 2nd in all 3 races with Greg Murphy 3rd on the weekend. Russell Ingall saw his chance of a podium dashed when he jumped the start in Race 3 and finished 4th overall.

Calder Park, Victoria

Paul Morris won his first ever V8 Supercar event as the Big Kev Racer was on the pace from the start of the weekend. Mark Skaife started on Pole but a poor start left him vulnerable to Steven Johnson, who he tapped to give him the lead, but he was issued with a stop-go penalty giving Johnson the lead he never relinquished. Paul Morris came 2nd and Marcos Ambrose 3rd. Paul Morris reverted to blocking in the final 2 races to win both, Russell Ingall finished 2nd in race 2 with Jason Bright
Jason Bright
Jason Bright is an Australian racing driver currently competing in the V8 Supercar series.-Australia:...

 3rd and in race 3, Paul Radisich finished 2nd with Russell Ingall 3rd. Overall for the weekend, Steven Johnson finished 2nd with Russell Ingall 3rd. Mark Skaife finished 14th overall after a spin in race 3.

Oran Park, New South Wales

Mark Skaife comes back froma difficult Calder with a win in both races after starting 2nd. Craig Lowndes claims the pole, but finished 2nd in race 1 and 8th in race 2 after a spin by Garth Tander
Garth Tander
Garth Tander is a multiple-championship winning Australian motor racing driver. Since 1998 Tander has been a competitor in touring car racing series V8 Supercar Championship Series. Tander was the 2007 series champion for the HSV Dealer Team and is a three-time winner in Australia's most...

 but still finishes 3rd overall. David Besnard has a fantastic round as he finishes 3rd and 2nd for a 2nd overall as team mate Marcos Ambrose
Marcos Ambrose
Marcos Ambrose is a championship winning Australian racing car driver. He currently drives the #9 Stanley Black & Decker Ford Fusion for Richard Petty Motorsports in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series...

struggles to get to grips with the track.

Queensland 500, Queensland

The 1st 2 driver enduro threw up plenty of thrills and spills and a dramatic ending. The heavans opened causing a huge thunder storm as Steven Johson and Paul Radisich win the race in the gravel trap but was lucky as the red flag came out , putting the result to the previous lap. Russell Ingall and Larry Perkins finish 2nd and Todd Kelly and Greg Murphy 3rd. Mark Skaife and Jason Bright finish 4th even though they had oil on the screen for some of the race.

Winton, Victoria

Russell Ingall put his championship fight another step further as he takes his first round win of the season and also claims his first pole poistion of his career. Greg Murphy wins Race 1 but a slow pit-stop in Race 2 puts him 6th but still finished 2nd overall for the weekend. Mark Skaife finished 3rd overall for the weekend after starting 15th after a horror qualifying.
Marcos Ambrose was the fastest ford over the weekend as he passed car after car after he ran off road on the first corner.

V8 Supercar 1000, Bathurst, New South Wales

Mark Skaife put one hand on the championship after his win at Bathurst with Tony Longhurst. the drive of the day went to Brad Jones and John Cleland who started 21st and finished 2nd even despite radio dramas that meant that Cleland didn't come in under safety car. They lost out by a couple of seconds. Todd Kelly and Greg Murphy finished 3rd after running in the top 3 all day. They could have won if Todd didn't spin on a slippy track coming into the last pitstio at the chase. Russell Ingall overtook Jason Bright into 2nd place of the championship when Jason didn't finish with Tomas Mezera. Russell and Larry Perkins led coming into the final pitstop but Larry crashed when coming into the pit lane; damaging the front spoiler. They eventually finished 8th. Pole position man Marcos Ambrose went back though the field until he over cooked it coming into pit land at the first pit stop and got stuck in the gravel. He eventually retired. Greg Ritter and Cameron McLean finished 4th after a great race with a fast car. Paul Radisich and Steven Johnson retired with an engine failure during a safety car.

Pukekohe, New Zealand

In the first ever overseas event for the series, Greg Murphy collected maximum points on home turf. Mark Skaife collects the championship in the first race when he finished ahead of Russell Ingall who had a number of problems with the gearbox. Marcos Ambrose finished 3rd but didn't have the pace of the leading Holdens.

Sandown, Victoria

Todd Kelly wins his first ever championship round after a win in race 2 and other consistent race results. Mark Skaife wins the first race in dry conditions, but struggled in the wet conditions and eventually retired from race 3 after contact with Steven Richards. Craig Lowndes won the 3rd race from Marcos Ambrose.

Overall

Mark Skaife wins the series for the 4th time ahead of Russell Ingall. Jason Bright comes 3rd ahead of Greg Murphy. The first Ford driver is Steven Johnson. Todd Kelly comes 6th after his strong final round ahead of Paul Radisich who had some strong rounds. Marcos Ambrose collected the rookie of the year award after coming 8th but would regret the endurance races where he only collected 112 pts. Steve Ellery is the first driver from a single car team, placing 9th and Garth Tander eventually finishes 10th after a tough year. Craig Lowndes is 11th in his first year for Ford.

Controversy

At round 2 of the season in Adelaide, there were a number of incidents that went unpunished by race directors. The most notable was when Paul Radisish hit Mark Skaife in the braking area at turn 4. Race control explained that Mark Skaife was holding Radisich up so there was no penalty. There was a number of other offences as well. At the restarts, there were a number of cars 5 car lengths behind the car in front which should mean a stop-go penalty but these incidents went unpunished. The pit -lane was also the scene of controversy as wheelnuts and other parts of cars rolled out into the fast lane, most notably from the Holden Racing Team pit but again, these went unpunished. The only incident that was penalised was Jason Bargwanna spinning John Bowe at the final corner. At the next round at Eastern Creek, the officials said they would be a lot tougher on offenders.

External links

The source of this article is wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.  The text of this article is licensed under the GFDL.
 
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