Different continent, same result for Whincup

JAMIE Whincup’s dominance is so well established that the four-time champion has begun issuing apologies for repeatedly winning races.

Whincup yesterday claimed the inaugural V8 Supercar race on American soil, and then backed up the historic feat with an identical triumph in the second race.

Teammate Craig Lowndes chased him home each time, giving Red Bull Racing a rare back-to-back quinella, while Fabian Coulthard finished with a pair of thirds.

But the sense of deja vu was heightened even further, with Whincup never trailing a car before a crowd of 30,000 at the Circuit of the Americas track.

There were plenty of scraps among the also-rans, but neither race delivered any breathtaking manoeuvres or carnage that would have sent the Texan turnout into a lather. Knowing that variation and unpredictability are key ingredients to the sport succeeding in the US, Whincup went to the lengths of apologising to the local media afterwards.

‘‘Sorry the podium is the same for the two races,’’ he said.

‘‘We would have liked to have spiced it up a bit, but that’s how it goes.’’

Atightly-turning track that offered very few passing opportunities conspired with longer performing tyres to enforce the strict order up front on a day when the safety car was needed only once.

Whincup urged organisers to allow soft tyres in next year’s event, while Lowndes wants the entire circuit to be used to enable more passing.

There was debate about the time allowed for drivers to recover from 60C cabin temperatures between the races, with Whincup ranking yesterday’s conditions among the toughest he has faced.

But it seems no amount of cold air can stop Red Bull’s mid-season charge, with the team collecting the past five races.