Frosty storms ahead of pack

HE’S exorcised some of the demons from last year and now Ford’s Mark Winterbottom is talking up his chances of finally landing the V8 Supercars championship.

Winterbottom stormed to a 248-point lead in the championship standings after claiming back-to-back wins at the Townsville 400 at the weekend.

The Prodrive Racing Australia ace backed up his victory on Saturday by claiming his sixth win of the year in yesterday’s 200km race on the Reid Park street circuit.

Heading into last year’s event in Townsville, Winter- bottom held a 161-point championship lead, but Holden’s Jamie Whincup claimed two of the three races to start a charge that would eventually lead to his sixth championship.

Now, armed with two street circuit race wins and a healthier championship lead, Winterbottom says he is confident about the remainder of the year.

“I think we can win any- where after this round,” he said.

“This was the bogey one for me.

“We’ll keep working and Homebush, Gold Coast now don’t seem as frightening as they did four days ago.”

Holden Racing Team’s James Courtney would have set nerves jangling in his garage when he tangled with teammate Garth Tander in the race’s closing stages. But the pair avoided a repeat of embarrassing crashes from the past two events.

Courtney eventually overhauled Ford’s David Reynolds on his way to second place, while Reynolds completed a strong weekend when he finished third.

Whincup, still without a win since March, finished fifth yesterday, but remains in eighth place in the standings — 391 points behind Winterbottom.

His teammate Craig Lowndes overcame a 23rd-place starting position to finish ninth and regain second spot in the title standings, but he conceded 153 points to Winterbottom at the weekend.

Meanwhile, Holden’s Fabian Coulthard, who started the day second in the standings, had to settle for 13th place after a pit lane penalty ruined his race.

It was also a bittersweet day for Volvo’s Scott McLaughlin, who claimed his first pole position of the year earlier in the afternoon, but was forced to retire after just 21 laps when his vehicle broke down.

The next V8 event is at Queensland Raceway from July 31 to August 2.

I think we can win anywhere after this round. This was the bogey one for me

MARK WINTERBOTTOM