Richo moves forward in opener at Eastern Creek
11/1/2005 15:59 (Press Release) -
Castrol Perkins Motorsport’s Steven Richards has opened his account in the final round of the V8 Supercar Championship Series with an eighth place finish. After starting in 14th spot on the grid, Richards decided to make his compulsory pit stop on lap seven of 26, which helped him leapfrog up the field.
After fending off Steven Johnson as he brought his tyres up to heat and temperature, Richards pressed on to push the #11 Commodore into eighth spot by race’s end.
Despite not making the Top 10 Shootout in qualifying earlier in the day, the two-time Bathurst champion will start from the fourth row in tomorrow’s first of two 39-lap races.
His result today solidifies him in sixth place in the overall championship, especially given that seventh-placed Todd Kelly came to grief at the opening corner when he hit team-mate/owner Mark Skaife and suffered a puncture.
Richards trails fifth-placed Rick Kelly by 46 points. He has finished sixth in the championship for the past two seasons, in both years driving for the Castrol Perkins operation.
Falcon driver Marcos Ambrose won the race and wrapped up the 2004 championship with a lights-to-flag victory.
Richards’ Castrol team-mates Paul Dumbrell and Alex Davison had two very different races. Dumbrell was aided by a good pit stop by the Perkins outfit that helped him up the field from his 26th grid position to finish 16th.
“The guys have introduced a bit of a new procedure with the pit stops and that helped me make up a few spots,” said Dumbrell.
“We passed a few more on the track so the ‘back to basics’ approach we took to the setup of the car worked.”
Davison settled in early, making up four spots to be 23rd by the end of the first lap and pressed on to make his pit stop on lap nine. The Carrera Cup champion ended up finishing in the same position as he continues his learning process in the category.
Sunday’s 150-kilometre races, over 39 laps each, will be run at 12.30pm and 3.40pm respectively.
Race 1 Results – V8 Supercar Championship Series, Round 13 at Eastern Creek
Pos No Driver Car
1 1 Marcos Ambrose Pirtek Falcon BA
2 6 Craig Lowndes CAT Falcon BA
3 50 Jason Bright PWR Commodore VY
4 23 David Besnard WPS Falcon BA
5 15 Rick Kelly Kmart Commodore VY
6 88 Paul Radisich Betta Falcon BA
7 98 Russell Ingall Caltex Falcon BA
8 11 Steven Richards Castrol Commodore VY
9 17 Steven Johnson Shell Helix Falcon BA
10 10 Jason Bargwanna Orrcon Falcon BA
16 8 Paul Dumbrell Castrol Commodore VY
23 7 Alex Davison Castrol Commodore VY
Grid – V8 Supercar Championship Series, Round 13 - Eastern Creek
Pos No Driver Car Time
1 1 Marcos Ambrose Pirtek Falcon BA 1:32.4345
2 2 Mark Skaife HRT Commodore VY 1:32.8835
3 22 Todd Kelly HRT Commodore VY 1:33.1843
4 6 Craig Lowndes CAT Falcon BA 1:33.6643
5 50 Jason Bright PWR Commodore VY 1:34.2743
6 98 Russell Ingall Caltex Havoline Falcon BA 1:34.3121
7 888 Max Wilson Betta Falcon BA 1:34.4234
8 88 Paul Radisich Betta Falcon BA 1:34.4419
9 34 Garth Tander Valvoline Commodore VY 1:34.6899
10 23 David Besnard WPS Falcon BA Time DSQ
14 11 Steven Richards Castrol Commodore VY 1:33.0473
26 8 Paul Dumbrell Castrol Commodore VY 1:33.9362
27 7 Alex Davison Castrol Commodore VY 1:33.9882
Release Date: 04/11/2004
Castrol Perkins Motorsport
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