V8 Supercars Championship News

Will Davison (#6 Tradingpost FPR Ford 1st)
Its a test of the character, I was down and out on Saturday night but started with a fresh sheet of paper. I was a grump old man last night, really angry for a lot of reasons. I just didnt enjoy that at all so I woke up today fresh.
You have to keep going, you dont have a choice. Sometimes you stuff up but you have to get on with it. Of course its a good thing, Its great to be in contention. I really look forward to these next block of races. As soon as you back off things start to happen. So I have to press on and go hard.
Craig Lowndes (#888 TeamVodafone Commodore 2nd)
(On his start) Its somewhere I need to improve, its a bit hit and miss at the moment. We had a fast car that helped me pass people but also look after the tyres. It was one of those races where you were satisfied at the end because you gave it your all.
It was probably one of the ones that got away. The cars are fast, theres no doubt about that. We have just got to get those 10 percenters right. This championship is so close you cant afford to slip up in any area.
Jason Bright (#8 Team BOC Commodore 3rd)
We were on a different strategy and I was pretty happy with the pace.
We have made a lot of ground. We are getting on top of some of the problems we are having at particular circuits. When you run up the front there with Triple Eight and FPR I didnt think that was possible a few weeks ago.
Shane van Gisbergen (#9 SP Tools Falcon 4th)
Our car wasnt as good as yesterday but it was still competitive. Just in the middle stints the balance was really good but not our grip and tyre life. The Triple Eight cars passed us and pulled away. Then in the last stint we had new tyres but the balance was really understeery, the track gripped up and it got worse and worse.
I didnt really have the pace but I pushed forward and went around the outside of Craig and we had really good racing. But each time I pushed my tyres would get hot and I would have to drift back and save them again.
I couldnt catch Bright because I used my tyres up catching Jaime and passing him, and our balance was just not good enough. So fourth is where I finished and after the last couple of weekends weve had Ill take a second and a fourth. Im pretty happy to be back on the pace again.
Jamie Whincup (#1 TeamVodafone Commodore 5th)
Overall it was a tough day at the office. We got good points but just didnt have the pace. That early pit stop was a little bit crazy. Well debrief on Tuesday and work out where our pace was lacking.
Mark Winterbottom (#5 Orrcon Steel FPR Ford 6th)
I had a good start and was getting into a good rhythm and then the safety car came out and that was where it ended really. We didnt change tyres as we didnt have time and that meant I was racing guys on older rubber, which made it tough.
After our second stop we recovered well and I was able to pass a few cars to get further up the field where we wouldve been without the queue in the pits which was unavoidable. Anytime you queue the race is going to be tough but that aside I am back in the points hunt and looking forward to recouping over the next few weeks and going at it again in Darwin.
David Reynolds (#55 The Bottle-O Falcon 8th)
I had a good start and I now have a good process which allows me to make consistent starts. Will drove away from me early as he had a lot of pace. We made a strategy call which wasnt correct at the first stop by not changing tyres as it meant we were fighting for position on worse tyres than our rivals.
By the second stop we were fine as we switched to better rubber but by then it was too late. Overall though we have taken another step forward this weekend so for that I am thankful.
Lee Holdsworth (#4 IRWIN Falcon 9th)
I think that was a great strategy by Brad (Wischusen, engineer) and the rest of the boys, I think they chose the right one, but in doing that we had to save a massive amount of fuel, more than most guys, and also we'd done another five laps on our tyres than anyone else.
At the end I was really struggling. It's always a bit frustrating when you are racing, watching your mirrors, Id rather be passing blokes up ahead. The championship is so tight, Giz (Shane van Gisbergen) and Craig (Lowndes) passed me in that race and they jumped me in the championship. Im just trucking along getting some solid points here and there, Ive only been out of the top 10 twice this year, which is not a bad run.
Im still wanting to get on that podium though. We just have to get everything right and just at the moment the car is just a little bit off for me, but Im sure we'll have the IRWIN Racing Ford up there in Darwin.
Tim Slade (#47 Lucky 7 Falcon 12th)
We didnt really have the car to do the job today. Our practice this morning started off really well with conditions pretty similar to yesterday, but after that we just lost our way a little bit.
I think the track changed a little bit today and it didnt really seem to suit the set up that we had in the car. I think we improved the car a little bit between qualifying and the race but unfortunately it was just not good enough.
Steven Johnson (#17 Jim Beam Falcon 17th)
The car was better today but after the first lap hit with Murphy the steering wheel was at about 11 oclock and once again we had sustained front end damage.
Fair dinkum, I thought it was Ground Hog Day same comer, same driver hitting me and same result! It was very hard to pass anyone after that although we did end up moving up the order a bit. I am hoping we can get some luck on our side in Darwin.
Fabian Couthard (#14 Lockwood Commodore 24th)
"I'm just glad to see the back of Phillip Island after this weekend!
"Today we got a good start; I got away well and we were on target for a pretty good day but it's one of those things. We've had our three pieces of bad luck come at once with yesterday's drama, today's front bumper coming loose and then the action in pit lane. Hopefully that's all of our bad luck out of the way now.
"I'm looking forward to Darwin next round and we've got a test in between so there's no reason we can't bounce back.
"It is good for [team-mate] Brighty and good for the team to come away with a podium. Anytime you come away with a podium in V8 Supercars you've done a good job so credit to them; I just wish it was me!"
Tony DAlberto (#3 Hiflex Falcon DNF)
That was certainly a weekend that Team HIFLEX will quickly forget. In terms of our team's effort, there can be no faulting it. I think it was just one of those weekends where if it could go wrong, it did go wrong.
"Even though I'm disappointed, I really can't wait to get up to Darwin. We were very strong there last year, and the FPR-built Fords have improved significantly since then. Bring it on."