Repco Australia Superlastcar Championship

Sunday, 4 March 2018

Transaxle failure leaves Whincup last at Adelaide

Screenshotted from Supercars, edited by me.

Jamie Whincup picked up his 8th last-place finish of his career when his #1 Red Bull Holden Racing Team Holden retired with a Transaxle failure after 30 of the race's 78 laps. The finish came in Whincup’s 436th start.

Jamie Whincup has entered his 17th season in Supercars as one of, if not the, most successful driver in Supercars history with 7 Championships, 108 race wins and 72 pole positions. He led Practice 1, fell to 16th in Practice 2, rose to 6th in Practice 3, qualified third in the second qualifying session, and lined up second for the race.

Tim Blanchard in the #21 Cooldrive Distribution Holden started the race in the rear, however by turn 1 Jack LeBrocq in the #19 SS Signs Holden had fallen to the rear, then Simona De Silvestro in the #78 Harvey Norman/LD Super UHD TV Nissan fell to the rear. Le Brocq and Silvestro swapped last twice during the lap, until Will Davison in the #230 Milwake Tools/23Red Holden dropped to the rear during his first lap pitstop.

Davison held last until Lap 8 when Nick Percat in the #8 Blackwoods – Rock Your Weld Holden pitted, falling to the rear in the process. Percat held last until lap 13 when Todd Hazelwood in the #35 Bigmate/Optus Holden pitted, falling to the rear. Hazelwood held last until lap 15 when Tim Blanchard in the #21 Cooldrive Distribution Holden pitted with Engine issues, dropping 1 lap Continued Engine problems put Blanchard in the garage on lap 26, dropping a further 4 laps.

Blanchard held last until lap 30 when Lee Holdsworth in the #18 Preston Hire/Fuchs Holden, who had pulled off with Engine issues, fell behind Blanchard. The engine issue cost Holdsworth 9 laps. Around then Jamie Whincup in the #88 Red Bull Holden Racing Team Holden came into contention, a Transaxle failure on lap 31 sent him to the garage, He fell behind Blanchard on lap 36 and Holdsworth on Lap 40.

Splitting Whincup and Holdsworth was Andre Heimgartner in the #7 Plus Fitness Nissan, car #7 pulled into the garage with engine issues on lap 57, dropping behind Blanchard on lap 62, and Holdsworth on lap 65, eventually returning to the track on lap 69, 12 laps down. Heimgartner returned to the garage on lap 72, then returned to the track on lap 76, 17 laps down, desperate to be classified, which they were. Rounding out the bottom five was Jack LeBrocq in the #19 SS Signs Holden after a mid-race drive-through penalty for jumping too far over the kerbs at Turn 2 too many times.

The Bottom Five

Jamie Whincup	30 Laps	Transaxle
Andre Heimgartner	61 Laps	Running
Lee Holdsworth	70 Laps	Running
Tim Blanchard	71 Laps	Running
Jack LeBrocq	77 Laps	Running

Driver’s Championship

Pos	Driver’s Name	Last	Bottom 3	Bottom 5
1T	James Golding	1	1	1
1T	Jamie Whincup	1	1	1
2	Tim Blanchard	0	1	2
3T	Richie Stanaway	0	1	1
3T	Andre Heimgartner	0	1	1
3T	Lee Holdsworth	0	1	1
4T	Rick Kelly	0	0	1
4T	Todd Hazelwood	0	0	1
4T	Jack LeBrocq	0	0	1

Team’s Championship

Pos	Team Name	# Drivers	Last	Bottom 3	Bottom 5
1T	Gary Rodgers Motorsport	2	1/2	1/2	1/2
1T	Red Bull Holden Racing	2	1/2	1/2	1/2
2	Preston Hire Racing	1	0	1	1
3	Brad Jones Racing	3	0	1/3	2/3
4	Nissan Motorsports	4	0	1/4	2/4
5	Tickford Racing	4	0	1/4	1/4
6T	Matt Stone Racing	1	0	0	1
6T	Tekno Autosports	1	0	0	1

Manufacturer’s Championship

Manufacturer	# Drivers	Last	Bottom 3	Bottom 5
Holden	14	2/14	4/14	6/14
Ford	8	0	1/8	2/8
Nissan	4	0	1/4	2/4

Turn 5 Rookie collision leaves Golding last at Adelaide

Original by Supercars, edited by me.

James Golding picked up the 1^st last-place finish of his career when his #34 Wilson Security Ford was involved in a 4-car crash that ended his race after 55 of the race’s 78 laps. The finish came in Golding’s 13th start,

This is Golding's first full-time season with Gary Rodgers Motorsports, one of five rookies to run their first full-time season.

Golding was slowest in 1st Practice but jumped to 18th in Practice 2. Golding qualified 25th and was 19th in final practice.

Jack LeBrocq in the #19 SS Signs Holden started the race in the rear, however, by Turn 1 James Golding in the #34 Wilson Security Holden had fallen to the rear. By turn 8, Rick Kelly in the #15 Castrol/Sengled Nissan hit the wall at turn 3, damaging the right-rear Wishbone on car #15, sending him to the garage and to the rear, losing 13 laps in repairs.

Fabian Coulthard in the #12 Shell V-Power Ford attempted a pass on Richie Stanaway in the #56 Mega Bulk Fuels/Tickford Ford, but coming into turn 14, Coulthard rode over the right-rear of Stanaway's car, damaging the left-front of Coulthard's car, dropping 3 laps in repairs. The chaos of the following lap would eventually lift Coulthard out of the bottom five.

At turn 5, James Golding in the #34 Wilson Security Holden, Todd Hazelwood in the #35 Bigmate/Optus Ford and Richie Stanaway in the #56 Mega Bulk Fuels/Tickford Ford all tangled. Golding hit the rear of Stanawy, spinning both him and Hazelwood into the tires. Golding then slams into the left-rear of Hazelwood’s car, breaking the Wishbone on the left-rear of Hazelwood’s car and terminally damaging Golding’s car, also leaving Stanaway in the tire barrier, causing the second safety car of the race. Stanaway would go on to DNF after a Drivetrain failure on the last lap. Hazelwood would lose 3 laps in repairs and would finish between Rick Kelly and Coulthard.

Splitting Stanaway and Golding was Tim Blanchard in the #21 Cooldrive Distribution Holden was nudged by Simona De Silvestro in the #78 Harvey Norman/LG Super UHD TV Nissan into the wall at turn 8 on lap 59, triggering the third safety car of the race. Blanchard dropped to 2nd last on lap 71. This happened despite Simona De Silvestro being ahead at the 150m board before Turn 8, meaning De Silvestro should have had right of way.

The Bottom Five

James Golding	55 Laps	Crash
Tim Blanchard	58 Laps	Crash
Richie Stanaway	77 Laps	Drivetrain
Rick Kelly	65 Laps	Running
Todd Hazelwood	75 Laps	Running

Driver’s Championship

Driver’s Name	Last	Bottom 3	Bottom 5
James Golding	1	1	1
Tim Blanchard	0	1	1
Richie Stanaway	0	1	1
Rick Kelly	0	0	1
Todd Hazelwood	0	0	1

Team’s Championship

Team Name	# Drivers	Last	Bottom 3	Bottom 5
Gary Rodgers Motorsport	2	1/2	1/2	1/2
Brad Jones Racing	3	0	1/3	1/3
Tickford Racing	4	0	1/4	1/4
Matt Stone Racing	1	0	0	1
Nissan Motorsports	4	0	0	¼

Manufacturer’s Championship

Manufacturer	# Drivers	Last	Bottom 3	Bottom 5
Holden	14	1/14	2/14	2/14
Ford	8	0	1/8	2/8
Nissan	4	0	0	1/4

Friday, 16 February 2018

2018 Supercars Rookie Report.

There are five drivers making their full-time debut in the Virgin Australia Supercar championship. This is going to be very interesting year, so I’m going to briefly summarise who the rookies are, and who I think are contenders, dark horse(s) and pretenders in the race for the 2018 Rookie of the Year.

#1: Richie Stanaway

Original by Supercars, edited by me

The first rookie we're going to talk about is Richie Stanaway. A driver from New Zealand, he will be driving the #56 Ford FG X Falcon for Tickford Racing, replacing the retired Jason Bright. Stanaway is 26 years old and has experience in other motorsports including 24 hours of Le Mans, Grand-Am Sports Cars and Weathertech Sports Cars.

Stanaway has been VERY impressive in the rain, and while racing for Tickford he's going to be a definite challenge for Rookie of the Year in 2018.

That is, if the next two don't have anything to say about it.

#2: Todd Hazelwood

Original by Supercars, edited by me.

The second rookie we're going to talk about is Todd Hazelwood. A driver from Adelaide, South Australia, Hazelwood is 22 years old, and has had to get to the main game the dark way with the factory team. In 2018, he will run the #35 Ford FG X Falcon for Matt Stone Racing, who's also going up to the main game using the retired Jason Bright's Racing Entitlements Contract.

Todd Hazelwood is the 2017 Super2 champion, has no wins in the main game and no last place finishes. However, Hazelwood is known for the almighty crash he had in the 1st Sprint for the grid at Sandown in 2017 after contact with Jonothan Webb.

Hazelwood is fast and talented, and a very hard worker. He will be a challenger for the Rookie of the Year title in 2018.

#3: Jack LeBrocq

Original by Supercars, edited by me.#3: Jack LeBrocq

The third rookie that will be competing is a real dark horse in this championship in 2018, Jack LeBrocq. LeBrocq is a Victorian race car driver, is 25 years old, and will run the #19 Holden ZB Commodore for Tekno Autosports, replacing Will Davison.

Jack LeBrocq has the most main-game racing experience, and this could serve him well, and therefore I consider him a dark horse for the rookie of the year in 2018.

Now those are the three rookies that will be either contenders or a dark horse for the Rookie of the Year crown in 2018. I will now explain why the two remaining rookies are not likely contenders for the Rookie of the Year title in 2018.

#4: James Golding

Original by Shannon's Supercar Showdown, edited by me

The fourth rookie is James Golding. Golding is a Victorian driver, 22 years old, and will drive the #34 Holden ZB Commodore for Gary Rodgers Motorsports, replacing James Moffat.

So why don't I think that James Golding will be much of a contender? Well it's a mix of factors. Firstly, Golding didn't run much during 2016, so he's going to be a bit rusty. Secondly, he doesn't seem to have the raw talent of LeBrocq, Hazelwood and Stanaway. Thirdly, Gary Rodgers Motorsport haven't tended to be contenders in the main game, so Golding likely won't have the raw pace of Hazelwood, Stanaway and LeBrocq.

#5: Anton De Pasquale

Original by Supercars, edited by me.

The final rookie entered in 2018 is Anton De Pasquale, he's a 22-year-old Victorian driver who will be running #99 Holden ZB Commodore for Erebus Motorsports, replacing Dale Wood.

So why don't I think that Anton De Pasquale will be much of a contender? Unlike James Golding, Anton De Pasquale does appear to have the raw talent to compete. He also has the car, as Erebus Motorsports are more competitive than Gary Rodgers Motorsports. However, the problem is Anton's experience, or rather, lack thereof. Anton De Pasquale is, long story short, an inexperienced racer, and that will bite him at some point.

So those are the rookies of 2018 in the Supercars series. Do you agree? Or not.

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.