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Craig Lowndes heads Triple Eight 1-2 in first Phillip Island race

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Craig Lowndes headed a Triple Eight Race Engineering 1-2 in the first V8 Supercars race of the weekend at Phillip Island with team mate Jamie Whincup in second place.

The victory moves Lowndes back up to second place in the championship behind championship leader Mark Winterbottom who dropped to eighth position from fifth position on the grid.

Pole sitter Scott McLaughlin dropped two positions to finish third for Volvo Polestar Racing, shadowing the Holden duo to finish two seconds behind Lowndes.

Shane Van Gisbergen finished a controversial fourth after contact with David Reynolds on the second lap. The incident left the Rod Nash Racing driver fuming and it will be investigated after the race by the stewards.

Reynolds finished 25th and last, meaning a big blow to the Ford driver’s title hopes.

James Moffat claimed fifth position for Nissan Motorsport ahead of Holden Racing Team driver James Courtney in sixth.