16 is sweet, 17 would be sweeter for McLaughlin
Scott McLaughlin says breaking one of Supercars’ most prized records this weekend would be something he would cherish.
The 26-year-old Christchurch-born driver has won 16 of the 22 races this year. That puts him equal with Craig Lowndes, who won 16 races in 1996.
It would take incredible bad luck for McLaughlin not to win the championship again this season as he holds a massive 573-point lead over his nearest rival, Chaz Mostert.
The title won’t be officially confirmed until later in the year, but one thing he could celebrate this weekend in Pukekohe is breaking Lowndes’ record.
‘‘This one I’m excited for, because if won here, I’d get the record in New Zealand,’’ McLaughlin told
‘‘The records are something you see after the race and think that was pretty cool.
‘‘But when I think about this one, I know it would be great to get here.’’
For this year’s Supercars weekend in Pukekohe there’s no doubt that McLaughlin is the star of the show.
There will also be support for the four other Kiwi drivers in action – Shane van Gisbergen, Fabian Coulthard, Andre Heimgartner and Richie Stanaway – but it’s McLaughlin who has become the face of Supercars in New Zealand.
He lives in Australia, where he’s been since he was a boy and with his Supercars commitments, there’s no chance of him moving back to New Zealand.
But even if he’s not spending much time in this country, McLaughlin’s popularity is high with the media and public and he’d struggle to walk down Auckland’s Queen Street without being recognised.
‘‘I get the occasional person come up and stuff, but I’m not like Richie McCaw or anything like that,’’ he said. ‘‘But I’m always available for a photo whenever people see me.’’
Three of the top four drivers in the championship are Kiwis, with Coulthard and van Gisbergen just behind Mostert.
Given that Supercars is an Australian motor racing category, there must be some frustration over there that Australians aren’t dominating and McLaughlin says he can sometimes pick up on a bit of resentment.
‘‘If you listen to the commentators, then probably there is,’’ he said.
‘‘I think that if you’re a good winner or not much of a w ..... then people don’t mind you.
‘‘But certainly, they all want to see an Aussie win, especially when they come here they want to beat us, because it’s an Australian beating New Zealanders here.’’