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Ford Performance Racing (FPR) drivers
Mark Winterbottom and Steve Richards have finished 7th and 27th in today’s first
27 lap V8 Supercar race at Victoria’s Phillip Island Grand Prix Circuit.
The race followed the final qualifying session of the season
which saw 26 year old Winterbottom presented with the 2007 Armor All V8 Supercar
Pole Position Award after neither of his challengers, Holden drivers Garth
Tander and Todd Kelly, were able to get the top qualifying spot at Phillip
Island. It wasn’t the most successful of qualifying sessions for FPR either,
with Winterbottom 8th and Richards 12th on the starting grid for today’s
race.
After a great start, the race hadn’t reached the fourth corner
before Richards’ Castrol FPR Falcon was hit from behind, loosening some rear
bodywork and forcing the talented Victorian driver into the pits under the order
of a mechanical black flag on the fourth lap. This effectively ended any hope of
a points earning finish for Richards in the race. Winterbottom didn’t get the
start to the race that he wanted, running side by side with his team mate on the
first lap before slotting into 9th position when he made his compulsory pit stop
on the sixth lap. Consistent lap times kept the Orrcon Ford Credit FPR Falcon
driver in the hunt, passing Russell Ingall after a number of laps and then
engaging in a close race for position with Todd Kelly over 6th position. By the
end of the 27 lap race Winterbottom crossed the finish line in 7th place. The
need for a second pit stop to complete his compulsory tyre stop relegated
Richards to 27th place by the chequered flag.
#5 Mark Winterbottom - "The tyre life was too good, which
is quite an odd complaint for our cars but when you get behind another car and
you lose aerodynamics you can’t pass and when the car is on the balance of
understeer you tend to struggle. I bent the steering trying to pass Russell
Ingall and that put us out as well. We had a quick car today and we should have
had the pace that we had at the end of the race at the start of it. It is
difficult to keep on top of the changing circuit grip conditions that are caused
by the cars on the circuit before us. I am sure that we can improve the car for
tomorrow.”
#6 Steve Richards - "I was hit in the rear at the fourth
corner hairpin on the first lap - I don’t know who by, but it is very
disappointing to miss out on a result once again due to someone else’s mistake.
The car was very good in the race, we cured some of our practice and qualifying
issues and I am sure that we can progress from here in the remaining two
races.”
FPR Team Principal, Tim Edwards - “It was great to seal
the Pole position award today, but ultimately our disappointing qualifying had
knock on results in race one, as we shouldn’t have been back there dicing in
those positions. We seemed to have very good race pace and that is encouraging
for tomorrow, but we need to learn from today to ensure that we qualify well so
better end results come much easier.”
FPR will be back on the magnificent Phillip Island circuit for
two final V8 Supercar races of the season at 11:25am and 4:00pm
tomorrow.
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