Van Gisbergen wins at Townsville

TOWNSVILLE: Shane Van Gisbergen secured a vital Supercars victory at Townsville yesterday as the Red Bull Holden Racing Team completed a dominant weekend.

After securing pole position earlier in the day, Van Gisbergen came out on top of a tussle with teammate Jamie Whincup on the Reid Park circuit to post his first win since the season opener at Adelaide in March.

A safety car with less than 10 laps remaining, after Michael Caruso’s Nissan was sent into a tyre barrier following contact with Erebus rookie Anton de Pasquale, ended the race with a fivelap sprint but the Red Bull duo held off rival Scott McLaughlin to secure the result.

Victory means Van Gisbergen (1902 points) now trails championship leader McLaughlin (2033) by 131 points after the Ford star came home third.

That result was a good one for McLaughlin who started the race seventh and fell back to 11th by the end of the opening lap.

The DJR Team Penske driver pitted early to get some clear air. The strategy helped him recover and end the day with a podium.

Whincup backed up his win ning performance on Saturday by finishing second.

Red Bull Holden Racing Team finished onetwo in both races. Whincup now sits fourth on the championship ladder heading into the Ipswich SuperSprint at Queensland Raceway later this month.