Van Gisbergen looks back

Scott Mclaughlin might be looking to learn the lessons from last year’s disastrous final race of the Supercars season, but Shane van Gisbergen can draw on better experiences.

Last year Mclaughlin and his team made a series of errors which cost him the title.

But in 2016, van Gisbergen took out the championship in the final round of the season, beating out his Triple Eight team-mate Jamie Whincup at Homebush in Sydney.

He had a fairly big cushion going into that round, but still needed to get the job done and did so by finishing third on Saturday and winning the Sunday race.

Thinking back to that time, van Gisbergen says he’ll be able to go into this weekend knowing what’s required to clinch the title.

‘‘I’ve been in this situation and know what it feels like,’’ van Gisbergen said. ‘‘But since then I’ve got more experience and hopefully I’ll feel better out there.

‘‘That weekend was a bit different with the championship being in house.’’

Newcastle is a better setting for a finale than Homebush was. The tight circuit around Olympic Park was one where there were few points where spectators could watch more than one corner and it was almost impossible to overtake.

While overtaking is only slightly better in Newcastle, there are better vantage points and the city embraces the event in a way Sydney never would.