Whincup’s pursuit of final crowning glory
JAMIE Whincup has vowed to keep fighting teammate Shane van Gisbergen for this year’s Supercars title until it is “mathematically out of reach” in his final quest to add to his record seven V8 crowns.
As Supercars prepares to roar back to life after a three-month hiatus with the first of four consecutive rounds at Sydney Motorsport Park this week, Whincup declared he would do everything he could to keep runaway title leader van Gisbergen “honest” in the run home.
Van Gisbergen holds a 276-point lead over second-placed Whincup in the championship standings after dominating with 11 race wins before the series’ Covid-enforced break.
Third-placed Tickford Racing rival Cameron Waters (412 points behind), Chaz Mostert (420) and Will Davison (421) are the only other drivers within any sort of striking distance of the Triple Eight star.
Van Gisbergen can have the championship sewn up leading into the final round at Mount Panorama for the Bathurst 1000 if he is more than 300 points in front.
But Whincup, who will retire from full-time driving at the end of the year to step into the role as Triple Eight team boss, said he had not conceded defeat yet and would keep hunting van Gisbergen for the title as long as he still had a chance.
“I will keep pushing for the title until it is mathematically out of reach,” Whincup said. “While it’s still mathematically possible, for sure, I will keep my head down.
“The least I can do is keep the other side of the garage honest.
“We’ll do what we always do, work together and grind it out until the last lap of the last race.”
A seven-time Supercars champion, Whincup holds more V8 crowns than any other driver in history, two clear of Mark Skaife, Dick Johnson and Ian Geoghegan on five. The 38year-old won the last of his seven championships in 2017, finishing third twice and fourth since then.
Whincup wasn’t daring to dream what it would be like to go out on a high with an eighth title but was focused on keeping the championship fight alive.
“We might talk about that (winning title) later if there is an opportunity,” Whincup said.
“But we will do everything we can at SMSP to be in title contention come Bathurst.
“I’m just focusing on making sure
I finish my full-time career on as much of a high as possible.”
Van Gisbergen is chasing his second Supercars crown after claiming his maiden title in 2016.
“SVG has been doing a good job, the cars have been quick at the same time, the whole team have given us two of the best cars on the grid,” Whincup said.
“So we like to think as drivers we have maximised.”
Whincup has not won in Sydney since 2017 and van Gisbergen since 2018.
“We have had mixed results there in the past, we have had some great results but we have had some not so as well,” Whincup said.
“We are going to make sure we concentrate this weekend, certainly in the practice sessions to ensure the cars are dialled in and we are competitive.”