Published on: http://www.fiascosports.com
Jamie Whincup running in at Darwin. Photo: Helen Orr
Red Bull Racing’s Jamie Whincup has extended his championship lead by winning race 17 of the V8 Supercars Championship at Hidden Valley Raceway.
Whincup steered clear in the action-packed race early on, grabbing first position in the second stint of the 60/60-format race, leading Shane van Gisbergen and James Courtney to the finish line.
Ford Performance Racing’s David Reynolds showed his pace in the top-ten shootout and the first stint of the race, grabbing pole position. Unfortunately within the dying stages of the race, Winterbottom made contact with Reynolds going into the hairpin.
Reynolds finished in 14th, with Winterbottom awarded a drive-thru penalty causing the teammates to not finish on the podium for FPR.
Rick Kelly produced the best-ever result for the Nissan Altima, finishing in fifth position, as well as Tim Slade who brought home the Erebus Mercedes AMG in sixth.
Newcomer to the category Chaz Mostert placed his personal best, finishing in seventh place for Dick Johnson Racing.
A further two 35-lap races will be held tomorrow to complete the Skycity Triple Crown event in Darwin.
| Pos | No. | Team | Driver | Car |
| 1 | 1 | Red Bull Racing Australia | Jamie Whincup | Holden Commodore VF |
| 2 | 97 | TEKNO Team VIP | Shane Van Gisbergen | Holden Commodore VF |
| 3 | 22 | Holden Racing Team | James Courtney | Holden Commodore VF |
| 4 | 19 | Tekno Autosports | Jonathon Webb | Holden Commodore VF |
| 5 | 15 | Jack Daniel’s Racing | Rick Kelly | Nissan Altima |
| 6 | 47 | Heavy Haulage Australia Racing | Tim Slade | Mercedes E63 AMG |
| 7 | 12 | Wilson Security Racing | Chaz Mostert | Ford Falcon FG |
| 8 | 8 | Team BOC | Jason Bright | Holden Commodore VF |
| 9 | 3 | Team HIFLEX | Tony D’Alberto | Holden Commodore VF |
| 10 | 36 | Norton 360 Racing | Michael Caruso | Nissan Altima |
| 11 | 33 | Fujitsu Racing GRM | Scott McLaughlin | Holden Commodore VF |
| 12 | 14 | Lockwood Racing | Fabian Coulthard | Holden Commodore VF |
| 13 | 2 | Holden Racing Team | Garth Tander | Holden Commodore VF |
| 14 | 55 | The Bottle-O FPR Ford | David Reynolds | Ford Falcon FG |
| 15 | 360 | Norton 360 Racing | James Moffat | Nissan Altima |
| 16 | 9 | SP Tools Racing | Maro Engel | Mercedes E63 AMG |
| 17 | 7 | Jack Daniel’s Racing | Todd Kelly | Nissan Altima |
| 18 | 4 | Irwin Racing | Lee Holdsworth | Mercedes E63 AMG |
| 19 | 21 | Wilson Security Racing | David Wall | Holden Commodore VF |
| 20 | 18 | Jeld-wen FPR Ford | Alex Davison | Ford Falcon FG |
| 21 | 34 | Fujitsu Racing GRM | Alexandre Premat | Holden Commodore VF |
| 22 | 5 | Pepsi Max Crew FPR Ford | Mark Winterbottom | Ford Falcon FG |
| 23 | 66 | Supercheap Auto Racing | Russell Ingall | Holden Commodore VF |
| 24 | 88 | Dodo Insurance Racing | Dean Fiore | Holden Commodore VF |
| 25 | 80 | ekol Racing | Scott Pye | Holden Commodore VF |
| 26 | 888 | Red Bull Racing Australia | Craig Lowndes | Holden Commodore VF |
| DNF | 6 | Pepsi Max Crew FPR Ford | Will Davison | Ford Falcon FG |
| DNF | 17 | Wilson Security Racing | Tim Blanchard | Ford Falcon FG |
Media by Loren Hazelwood 