Virgin Australia LASTCAR Championship: April 2014

Monday 28 April 2014

Todd Kelly takes stranglehold on 2014 Australian V8 LASTCAR series after trailing the field at Auckland

Todd Kelly picked up his 16^th last-place finish of his career when his #7 Jack Daniel's Kelly Racing Nissan Altima finished under power, 1 lap down in the shortened final race at Auckland. The finish came in Todd's 187^th start, giving Todd Kelly a stranglehold on the 2014 Australian V8 LASTCAR championship.

The last position traded places multiple times during the early laps. On lap 2 Craig Lowndes in the #888 Red Bull Racing Holden and Will Davison in the Unsponsored #9 Erebus Mercedes traded last place after lap 1 pit-stops, initially held by Will Davison before Lowndes was overtaken and seemed headed for his first last-place finish in more than 2 years. However continued pit-stops meant that Todd Kelly in the #7 Jack Daniels Nissan Alitma, Tim Slade in the #47 Supercheap Auto Holden, Dale Wood in the #21 Advam/GB Holden and Robert Dahlgren un the #34 Valvoline Volvo S60 all exchanged last place. After a second pit-stop and continued lack of pace, Craig Lowndes spent much of the mid portion of the race trailing the field however a combination of issues and pit-stops meant firstly Robert Dahlgren, then Todd Kelly wound up trailing the field, where he would stay until the end of the race.

A combination of a lack of pace and various issues left several high-profile drivers in the bottom five. Robert Dahlgren was second-last in the #34 Valvoline Volvo, Tim Slade in the #47 Supercheap Auto Holden and former championship leader Craig Lowndes in the #888 Red Bull Racing Holden.

The Bottom Five

Todd Kelly	68 Laps	Running
Robert Dahlgren	68 Laps	Running
Dale Wood	68 Laps	Running
Tim Slade	69 Laps	Running
Craig Lowndes	69 Laps	Running

Lastcar Standings

Holden: 7

Ford, Nissan: 4

Volvo: 2

Mercedes: 0

Todd Kelly: 4

Scott Pye, Dale Wood, David Wall, Tim Slade: 2

David Reynolds, Nick Percat, Garth Tander, Robert Dahlgren, Scott McLaughlin: 1

Blown tire leads to Back-to-back last-place finishes for Tim Slade

Tim Slade picked up his 3^rd last-place finish of his career when his #47 Supercheap Auto Racing Holden finished under power, on the lead lap in the 12^th race of the season. The finish came in Slade's 85^th start.

Early on Jason Bright in the #8 BOC Brad Jones Racing Holden crashed on the opening lap. After that incident Tim Slade then blew a tire, and in the resulting pit-stop his dropped to the rear of the field.

Rounding out the bottom five was Jason Bright after his lap 1 crash, Jack Perkins in the #18 Jeld-Wen Racing Ford, Robert Dahlgren in the #34 Valvoline Volvo and Dale Wood in the #21 Wilson Security racing Holden.

The bottom five

Tim Slade	35 Laps	Running
Jason Bright	35 Laps	Running
Jack Perkins	35 Laps	Running
Robert Dahlgren	35 Laps	Running
Dale Wood	35 Laps	Running

Lastcar Standings

Holden: 7

Ford: 4

Nissan: 3

Volvo: 2

Mercedes: 0

Todd Kelly: 3

Scott Pye, Dale Wood, David Wall, Tim Slade: 2

David Reynolds, Nick Percat, Garth Tander, Robert Dahlgren, Scott McLaughlin: 1

Contact and Suspension failure ends race 2 for Tim Slade

Tim Slade picked up his 2^nd last-place finish of his career when his #47 Supercheap Auto Holden retired with crash damage after 4 of the race's 35 laps. The finish came in Slade's 85^th start.

The field had contracted to 24 cars after David Wall and the #17 Walkinshaw Racing holden withdrew from the remainder of the event. The second sprint race was an initial arm wrestle between several drivers early on. On lap 3 Tim Slade was battling with Jason Bright in the #8 BOC Brad Jones Racing Holden. Slade nudged Bright, nearly spinning him out. Then heading into turn 5 Bright dived on Slade, and heading out of turn 6 Slade and Bright bumped repeatedly, eventually breaking the left-front suspension on the #47.

Rounding out the bottom five was Robert Dahlgren in the #34 Valvoline Volvo, who brought out the caution when he stopped at the exit of pit-lane with smoke pouring from his Volvo, Jack Perkins after a spin and a tire failure which left him 2 laps down, Dale Wood in the #21 Wilson Security Holden and Michael Caruso in the #36 Norton Hornet Nissan.

The bottom five

Tim Slade	4 Laps	Crash
Robert Dahlgren	10 Laps	Power Steering
Jack Perkins	33 Laps	Running
Dale Wood	35 Laps	Running
Michael Caruso	35 Laps	Running

Lastcar Standings

Holden: 6

Ford: 4

Nissan: 3

Volvo: 2

Mercedes: 0

Todd Kelly: 3

Scott Pye, Dale Wood, David Wall: 2

David Reynolds, Nick Percat, Garth Tander, Robert Dahlgren, Scott McLaughlin, Tim Slade: 1

David Wall trails field after Weekend-Ending Crash in race 1

David Wall picked up his 6^th last-place finish of his career when his #17 Wilson Security Holden was involved in a single-car crash after 1 of the race's 33 laps. The finish came in Wall's 37^th start.

David Wall was fighting near the mid-pack when he was hip-and-shouldered by Chaz Mostert in the #6 Pepsi Max ford falcon after Chaz had wheel-hopped the corner, sending Wall hard into the wall and ending the weekend for the #17 Wilson Security Holden.

Rounding out the bottom five was Jamie Whincup in the #1 Red Bull Racing Holden who suffered power steering dramas, Wall's team-mate Dale Wood in the #21 Wilson Security Holden after he broke an anti-rollbar, which speared his rear tire, Robert Dahlgren in the #34 Valvoline Volvo and Chaz Mostert in the #6 Pepsi Max ford.

Interesting Stat: All 3 of the Wilson Security Holden's, Scott Pye, Dale Wood, David Wall, have 2 last-place finishes. This has also resulted (although I don't have it listed) in Wilson Security Racing leading the team's championship.

The Bottom Five

David Wall	1 Lap	Crash
Jamie Whincup	26 Laps	Running
Dale Wood	32 Laps	Running
Robert Dahlgren	33 Laps	Running
Chaz Mostert	33 Laps	Running

Lastcar Standings

Holden: 5

Ford: 4

Nissan: 3

Volvo: 2

Mercedes: 0

Todd Kelly: 3

Scott Pye, Dale Wood, David Wall: 2

David Reynolds, Nick Percat, Garth Tander, Robert Dahlgren, Scott McLaughlin: 1

Saturday 12 April 2014

Well this is embarrassing

To anyone who reads this.

You may have noticed that I have removed references to Todd Kelly being the 2013 V8 LASTCAR champion.

This is because, when I took a look back at Racing Reference, I found that actually Alexandre Premat in the #34 Valvoline Racing holden is the V8 LASTCAR champion for 2013, and thus the defending champion.

Alexander Premat has 7 last-place finishes, the most recent being the first race at Winton when he crashed out on the opening lap.

So, yeah, I am sorry for misleading anyone and I will try not to make the same mistake again.

It will be good to know however that normal last-place reporting will resume in the Auckland round of the V8 Supercars championship on the ANZAC day weekend.

Monday 7 April 2014

Last Place arm wrestle ends after Dale Wood breaks in the final Winton race

Dale Wood picked up his 2^nd last-place finish of his career when his #21 Wilson Security Racing holden finished under power, 5 laps down in the third race at Winton and the 13^th* race of 2014. The finish came in Dlae Wood's 24^th start.

It was an arm wrestle in the early stages of the race for last. David Wall was initially trailing the field in the #17 Wilson Security holden, then Shane Van Gisbergen fell to the rear in the #97 VIP Petfoods Commodore when he pitted for handling woes. On lap 13 Garth Tander fell to the rear after making a pitstop. Rick Kelly then fell to the rear after being penalised for speeding in the pit-lane. Suddenly on lap 25, Dale Wood was pushed into the garage, sending him to the rear of the field.

Several Pit-Lane penalties resulted in a somewhat strange bottom five, consiting of Robert Dahlgren in the #34 Volvo Racing Volvo, Garth Tander in the SP Tools #2,David Wall in the #21 Wilson Security Holden and Jack Perkins in the Jeld-Wen Racing Ford Falcon.

Statistic:

Ford and Holden are now tied for the first position on the manufacturer's V8 LASTCAR standings with 4 last-place finishes each, Nissan is second on 3 last-place finishes, Volvo with 2 last-place finishes. Mercedes is the only manufacturer without any last-place finishes at the 13* race mark of the 2014 V8 LASTCAR series

The bottom five

Dale Wood	62 Laps	Running
Robert Dahlgren	66 Laps	Running
Garth Tander	66 Laps	Running
David Wall	67 Laps	Running
Jack Perkins	67 Laps	Running

Lastcar Standings

Ford, Holden: 4

Nissan: 3

Volvo: 2

Mercedes: 0

Todd Kelly: 3

Scott Pye, Dale Wood: 2

David Reynolds, David Wall Nick Percat, Garth Tander, Robert Dahlgren, Scott McLaughlin: 1

*I count the non-championship round at Albert Park, which a lot of people don't seem to do.

Electrical Woes leaves McLaughlin trailing field in second Winton race

Scott McLaughlin picked up his 3^rd last place finish of his career when his #33 Volvo Racing Volvo finished under power, three laps down in the second race at Winton and the 12^th of the year. The finish came in Scott McLaughlin's 22^nd start.

Robert Dahlgren was initially trailing the field for the second race in a row, but it was his team-mate Scott McLaughlin who suddenly pulled into the garage from the lead with an Electrical issue. They solved it and got McLaughlin back down, but several laps down.

Rounding out the bottom five is Scott McLaughlin's team-mate Robert Dahlgren, making it two races in a row where Volvo have finished bottom two, Todd Kelly in the #7 Nissan Altima, Russell Ingall in the #23 Repair Management Australia Holden and Garth Tander in the #2 SP Tools Holden Commodore

The bottom five

Scott McLaughlin	31 Laps	Running
Robert Dahlgren	34 Laps	Running
Todd Kelly	34 Laps	Running
Russell Ingall	34 Laps	Running
Garth Tander	34 Laps	Running

Lastcar Standings

Ford: 4

Nissan: 3

Holden: 3

Volvo: 2

Mercedes: 0

Todd Kelly: 3

Scott Pye: 2

David Reynolds, David Wall, Dale Wood, Nick Percat, Garth Tander, Robert Dahlgren, Scott McLaughlin: 1

Gearbox Dramas end Dahlgren's race before it begins

Robert Dahlgren picked up his 1^st Last Place finish of his career when his #34 Gary Rodgers Valvoline Volvo retired with Gearbox dramas before the start of the race. The finish came in Dahlgren's 4^th start.

Robert Dahlgren has struggled in his first season in V8 Supercars, finishing most of his race's in the bottom five. Dahlgren didn't even make the start of the race, coming into the pit-lane when everyone was lining up in the grid.

Rounding out the bottom five was Scott McLaughlin who struggled early, pulling into the garage with engine woes and although he made it back out, he only made a few corners before the engine completely failed, bringing out the first safety-car of the race. James Courtney and Tim Slade, who were part of a four-car accident on lap 19 and Nick Percat who tangled with David Reynolds on the same lap, with the former 2

Statistic:

The last time a non-Australian or New Zelander finished last in this series was frenchman Alexandre Premat when he crashed on the opening lap of the second Winton race last year.

The bottom five

Robert Dahlgren	0 Laps	Gearbox
Scott McLaughlin	6 Laps	Engine
James Courtney	19 Laps	Crash
Tim Slade	19 Laps	Crash
Nick Percat	31 Laps	Running

Lastcar Standings

Ford: 4

Nissan: 3

Holden: 3

Volvo: 1

Mercedes: 0

Todd Kelly: 3

Scott Pye: 2

David Reynolds, David Wall, Dale Wood, Nick Percat, Garth Tander, Robert Dahlgren: 1

How Juniorgeneric defines a Last-Place finisher

Australian V8 LASTCAR'S Official Definition of a "Last-Place Finisher" (LPF)

For the purposes of the Australian V8 LASTCAR championship rankings and statistics, a "Last-Place Finisher" (LPF) is a driver(s) who, after qualifying for a V8 Supercars Championship Points-Paying race, the result must be confirmed from official sources, or unofficial sources failing that. Only one driver (or two in a endurance race) can be classified as the LPF for that race.

Meeting those requirements, the LPF can be any driver classified as such for any reason, including, but not limited to.
1) A "did not start" although it should be noted that there is a difference between my definition of "did not start" and Brock Beard's definition of "Did not Start".
For example, in Bathurst 2015 Chazz Mostert and Cameron Waters' #6 Pepsi Max Ford had a huge accident during practice that injured Mostert and all but wrote off the car. Car #6 was withdrawn, and therefore I don't count Mostert and Waters as finishing last. Under Brock Beard's definition, however, Mostert and Waters would have finished last instead of David Wall and Chris Pither.
2) An entrant who encounters an event once the race has started which prevents the driver(s) from finishing ahead of any other qualified entrants, including both DNFs and drivers who finish under power but laps down*

*Only when all the cars in the race are running ahead of the LPF

3) A decision to “start and park” the driver’s entry (Extremely rare in V8 Supercars)
(4) a disqualification handed down by V8 Supercars and/or track officials that subsequently classifies the driver(s) in the final position behind the unofficial LPF.

Australian V8 LASTCAR shall not consider the LPF as anything else, including but not limited too
1) Any DNQ's
2) Any driver's who's car withdrew before the race start.
3)The lowest-ranked driver who finishes the race under power (unless all cars finished under power, actually quite common in V8 Supercars)
4) A driver(s) who finished last initially, however post-race disqualifications usurped the spot.
5) A driver(s) who may be catagorised as finishing last for exhibition events (I may bring these back at some point in the near future, I need more accurate numbers for the events before I start them up again)
6) Anything in non-V8 Supercar Main game (again, insufficent historical data)
7) A driver who was running last when the checkered flag fell, however because they greeted the checkered flag but a drive who was in front of them at the end of the race, however was not running at the end of the race. In that instance the driver who doesn't finish the race will fall behind the driver whom is still running at the end of the race.

In the rare event where official results or a preponderance of unofficial results are later updated with more accurate information about who was the LPF for that event, Australian V8 LASTCAR rankings and statistics shall be updated to reflect that change.