Will Davison wins enthralling Townsville opener

Will Davison charged home to take an impressive victory in the opening leg of the Sucrogen Townsville 400. The 30 year-old led home a dominant Ford Performance Racing one-two finish, with team mate Mark Winterbottom bringing the second Pepsi Max sponsored Falcon home in second position.

Davison hunted down an 18 second gap to Lowndes in the final 30 laps of the race, with a comparative speed advantage on the soft tyre compared to the hard compound tyre used by Lowndes. The FPR pilot dived up the inside of Lowndes on the 58th lap, and never looked back for the remaining 13 laps to take a composed victory. Throughout the second half of the race, Mark Winterbottom stalked his team-mate and took the chequered flag a further 4 seconds behind.

Will Davison’s Falcon will require work from the Ford Performance Racing mechanics after he glanced the wall while performing a post-race burnout in front of his adoring Ford fans.

Brad Jones Racing’s Fabian Coulthard rounded out the podium in his Lockwood sponsored VF Commodore after starting from third on the grid. Craig Lowndes hung onto fourth position for Red Bull Racing Australia on the harder compound tyre, while Team BOC’s Jason Bright completed the top 5 after starting from sixth.

The race was punctuated by the differing strategy of Craig Lowndes, the only car in the field to begin the race on the softer compound tyre. The 39 year-old picked his way through traffic in the early laps, and assumed the lead on the 9th lap having started the race in 12th position. While the strategy brought a significant improvement in position for the #888 Red Bull Racing Commodore, it left the three-time champion in a vulnerable situation in the closing stages, where he lost three positions in 12 laps.

James Courtney brought his Holden Racing Team entry home in 6th position, ahead of championship leader Jamie Whincup in the second Red Bull Racing Australia VF Commodore. HRT’s Garth Tander recovered from a challenging qualifying session to finish 8th, ahead of the Ford duo of Alex Davison and Chaz Mostert, who rounded out the top 10.

Earlier, Tekno Autosports’ Shane van Gisbergen secured pole position after a blistering shootout lap saw him 2 tenths of a second faster than his closest rival in Will Davison. Fabian Coulthard rounded out the top three after an ordinary final sector hampered his chances of a front row start. The story of qualifying was the failure of either Red Bull Racing driver to reserve a place in the top-10 shootout, as Lowndes and Whincup started from 12th and 16th respectively.

Shane van Gisbergen, the leading hard tyre runner throughout the first half of the race, was penalised after a pit infringement was made by his Tekno Autosport crew. Refuelling on the kiwi’s VIP Petfoods backed VF Commodore continued after it was dropped from the air jacks, which is not permitted under the category’s regulations. An almost identical infringement hampered Jonathon Webb in the second Tekno Autosport Commodore. Both pilots were dealt drive-through penalties, and finished the race a disappointing 17th and 22nd respectively.

Erebus Motorsport also suffered a difficult outing at the Townsville circuit. Tim Slade was forced to retire after his engine overheated mid-way through the race, while his team mate Lee Holdsworth suffered extensive damage on the opening lap. Maro Engel piloted the highest finishing entry representing the Silver Arrows, guiding his damaged SP Tools AMG Mercedes home in 19th overall.

Russell Ingall was the third retirement of the event after his Supercheap Auto Racing Commdore suffered a power steering failure in the closing stages.

In terms of the championship standings, Jamie Whincup’s lead has been further cut by Craig Lowndes’ 4th place finish. Whincup now holds a 135 point lead over his Red Bull Racing Australia stable mate. Today’s winner, Will Davison, sits a further 219 points adrift of the reigning champion.

The final 200 kilometre leg of the Townsville 400 will take place tomorrow. It will follow a short 20 minute qualifying session to decide the grid for the 21st race of the season.