Whincup wins race one

Jamie Whincup won the first race at Winton Motor Raceway as points leader and poleman Mark Winterbottom suffered an early tyre problem dropping him a lap early in the race.
Jim Beam Racings’ Will Davidson took the teams best result of the season by crossing the line in second. While defending champion Garth Tander competed the poduim in third.

After making an early start, Mark Winterbottom seemed to be on track to extend his lead in the 2008 V8 Supercars Championship as he laerad the field away for 40 laps of the Winton track in cold conditions.

Then just 4 laps into the race Winterbottom slowed as his left rear tyre started to deflate. FPR decided to keep him on track until the compulsory pit stop window opened at the end of lap 6 dropping him down the order.

As the pit stop window opened Winterbotom was in to change the now destroyed tyre, re-joining the race in last place and a lap down on the leading trio of Davison, now in the lead, just ahead of Whincup, and the Commodore of Garth Tander.

Davidson could not hold on to the lead as Team Vodafone managed a quicker pitstop for Whincup putting him out in front of the Jim Beam Falcon.

Will Davidson spent the rest of the race fending off the advances of Garth Tander.

Fourth was the Sprint Gas Racing Holden of Jason Richards with his name-sake Steven Richards taking fifth as a consulation for team Ford Performance Racing.

Lee Holdsworth in his Garry Rogers Motorsport was to cross the line in sixth but was given a 32 second penalty dropping him way down into eighteenth place. This promoted Todd Kelly into sixth place followed by Russell Ingall up to seventh from fifteenth.

Michael Caruso did give Garry Rogers Motorsport a boost by finishing eighth. James Courtney recovered to take ninth and Rick Kerry finished the top ten in his HSV Dealer Team Holden.