ADELAIDE, South Australia — Recap by Race Chaser Online V8 Supercars Correspondent James Pike — V8 Supercars photo —
Jamie Whincup started 2015 right where he left off at the end of 2014 — at the top of the podium.
Save for pit cycles, Whincup started on pole in Race One of the Clipsal 500 and led the opening round of the V8 Supercars season flag-to-flag en route to his 90th career victory. The triumph ties him with Mark Skaife for second on the all-time V8 Supercars win list.
Whincup held on over the course of a one-lap dash to the checkered flag following the lone caution period of the race — shortened to 34 laps of the scheduled 39 due to time constraints.
“I’m glad they held that Safety Car back — they tried to give it the best opportunity to keep it green and the fans got to see a great finish,” Whincup said on the podium.
Whincup also noted the importance of starting up front.
“The car was fantastic — it was all about getting off the line, because there was plenty of drama, as you saw,” he said. “At the start of the season, you want to just the first race out of the way- it’s kind of hard to keep your concentration because you’re so excited.”
Prodrive Racing Australia’s Chaz Mostert claimed second while Brad Jones Racing’s Fabian Coulthard scored third in the debut for his new primary sponsor, Freightliner.
Before the race even started, there was drama in Adelaide. Wilson Security Racing’s Scott McLaughlin was to start from third in this race, but was forced to retire on the formation lap when an oil line let loose on his Volvo S60 in between turns two and three. McLaughlin slid to a stop in his own oil right in front of the fence as the flames roared from underneath his engine.
As a result, McLaughlin begins the 2015 championship already down in the points standings and will have to spend the first few rounds of the season climbing back up the championship ladder. The team is currently repairing the car with the intention of making it to the grid for Race Two, where the No. 33 car starts second.
At the beginning of the race, Whincup led the first six laps before coming in to pit. There were almost no changes in the running order during pit stops, save for one notable exception — Mostert jumped ahead of Coulthard for second place in the running order.
On lap 17, Will Davison brought his No. 9 Solar Energy Erebus E63 AMG down to pit road and Whincup regained control of the race. He would hold on to the race lead until lap 30, when two separate incidents brought out the lone Safety Car of the event.
Davison was the first casualty of lap 30 — he lost power between turns two and three, and his car came to a complete stop along the fence. It was his loss of power that was technically the reasoning behind the Safety Car, though his troubles were not the only ones to be found.
In the tricky turn nine hairpin, Super Black Racing’s Andre Heimgartner and Britek Motorsport’s Dale Wood made contact — Heimgartner appeared to cut down on Wood, who was already halfway up the side of Heimgartner’s No. 111 — and the Super Black Racing Ford Falcon pulled a 180-degree spin in the corner.
Unfortunately, Ash Walsh brought his Erebus Motorsport machine into the corner right after Heimgartner had spun and the two made contact, with the No. 111 sustaining heavy right-front damage. Heimgartner would finish 23rd; Walsh would finish 20th.
The restart would create the deciding one lap shootout — and though Chaz Mostert was able to hold on the rear bumper of Whincup, he could not set up the six-time and defending champion in turn eight, allowing Whincup to drive away to victory.
Mostert was left to rue his failed shot at victory after the race.
“I tried my best to go the hardest with Jamie, but he’s in a bit of a league of his own,” the 22-year-old said. “Maybe we can tune it up and make it a bit faster for Race Two — we’re starting in a bad spot, but we’ll try and keep it out of drama and give it a good run.”
Though it was towards the back end of the field, Marcos Ambrose made a strong charge in his return race to V8 Supercars for the first time since 2005. Starting 24th, Ambrose used a quick launch off of the starting grid to claim three spots by the time the field came to turn 2, and would gain three more spots over the course of the race to bring his DJR Team Penske car home in 18th.
The Clipsal 500 Adelaide continues with Race 2 of the V8 Supercars Championship. Coverage of that 125 km sprint is set to begin at 12:40 A.M. EST.
For more information on the Clipsal 500 Adelaide, visit https://www.clipsal500.com.au/.
For more information on V8 Supercars, visit http://www.v8supercars.com.au/.
