The upcoming ITM Auckland SuperSprint takes on more significance for the Virgin Australia Supercars Championship after the second day of racing at the Gold Coast was ruled out because of storms that hit the region.
It means that Scott McLaughlin brings his Team Penske Ford to Pukekohe Park in two weeks with a slender 14 point lead in the championship over fellow Kiwi and 2016 Champion Shane van Gisbergen in his Red Bull Racing Holden.
Sunday’s second leg of the Vodafone Gold Coast 600 has been declared a non-event, with no points to be awarded, after racing was unable to resume amid a heavy storm.
Wild weather lashed south-east Queensland into the afternoon, in what was due to be Race 27 of the 2018 Virgin Australia Supercars Championship and the PIRTEK Enduro Cup finale.
What was originally a 102-lap race was run in overcast-but largely dry conditions until lap 29, when the heavens opened.
A Safety Car called for Paul Dumbrell’s crash was interrupted on lap 37 only by the suspension of the race for the first time.
Standing water and rivers running across the track surface were the chief concerns, and a second attempt to restart proceedings only lasted another five laps behind the Safety Car.
The race was suspended again at 4:10pm local time, as the conditions further deteriorated.
It was ultimately cancelled at 4:25pm, 4:48pm AEST having been the time certain finish, declared a non-race with no points awarded.
As a result, McLaughlin will head to the ITM Auckland SuperSprint on November 2-4 with a 14-point championship lead over van Gisbergen, with four races remaining – two 200km races in at Pukekohe and two at Newscastle.
Craig Lowndes and Steven Richards are also the winners of the 2018 PIRTEK Enduro Cup, by 87 points over McLaughlin and Alex Premat.
Lowndes, who retires as a fulltime driver in Supercars at the end of the season, will head to Pukekohe for the final time. The seven-time Bathurst winner has never won at Pukekohe, the track used for more than 10 years for the championship, where he not reached the top of the podium.
Van Gisbergen and fellow Kiwi racer Richie Stanaway head to Auckland on Tuesday for promotional work with event sponsor ITM, and also to speak with media.
DRIVERS’ CHAMPIONSHIP POINTS
1. Scott McLaughlin 3368
2. Shane Van Gisbergen 3354 -14
3. Jamie Whincup 2935 -433
4. Craig Lowndes 2925 -443
5. David Reynolds 2687 -681
6. Chaz Mostert 2438 -930
7. Fabian Coulthard 2354 -1014
8. Rick Kelly 2281 -1087
9. Scott Pye 2248 -1120
10. Nick Percat 2053 -1315
TEAMS’ CHAMPIONSHIP POINTS
1. Triple Eight Race Engineering (Whincup/SVG) 6259
2. Shell V-Power Racing Team 5722 -537
3. Tickford Racing (Mostert/Winterbottom) 4312 -1947
4. Brad Jones Racing 4065 -2194
5. Erebus Motorsport 4006 -2253
6. Walkinshaw Andretti United 3973 -2286
7. Nissan Motorsport (Kelly/Heimgartner) 3723 -2536
8. Garry Rogers Motorsport 3152 -3107
9. Triple Eight Race Engineering (Lowndes) 2925 -3334
10. Nissan NISMO (Caruso/De Silvestro) 2669 -3590
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