Scott McLaughlin has become 2019 Supercars ‘Champion-Elect’ today, by finishing the Sandown 500 in ninth position, alongside co-driver Alex Premat.
“I’m just so proud of this team,” commented McLaughlin. “We’ve been knocked around a fair bit this year, and they’ve just kept coming back.
“We started last today, and just ground it out to get a Top 10 result. Thanks to Alex (Premat) for his work this year, I love Frenchie. I’m stoked to have been able to get it done, but there’s still work to be done for our team and sponsors in Newcastle. We want to win the Teams’ Championship, and will be pushing hard to get that done.”
McLaughlin and Premat – who started the race from last position due to a post-qualifying penalty – drove a cautious race, aiming to finish with enough points to close out the title. The result was a 550-point gap to p17 finisher Shane van Gisbergen, with only 300-points left to earn in Newcastle.
Jamie Whincup and Craig Lowndes scored their first Penrite Oil Sandown 500 win together in 12 years. The #888 Red Bull Holden completed a flawless weekend after a heartbreaking right-rear damper failure for teammates Shane van Gisbergen/Garth Tander brought undone a storming drive.
“It’s a shame,” said van Gisbergen. “The first half of the race was awesome by Garth (Tander). The safety car helped us a bit and we were right back in the fight. The car was awesome – we were 15 seconds behind, then we ran it down and extended that lead. It was amazing.
“Then a part broke with 10 laps to go, which sucks. I’m pretty gutted because we all on our side did everything we could but at least the team still won the race by a good margin and we got the Enduro Cup. I’m just gutted for us.
“There’s a lot of what could have been this enduro season, except for Gold Coast. Bathurst was a close one. This one we came even closer. It’s been awesome, but I’m still excited for next year’s enduros when they come around because it will just be a continuation. Garth was really strong for all three rounds.”
That loss was Tickford Racing’s gain, with Chaz Mostert/James Moffat and Lee Holdsworth/Thomas Randle moving up to be a distant second and third.
Fabian Coulthard and Tony D’Alberto started the race from fifth position, and had to battle for it after being spun back to last on lap five. D’Alberto did a fantastic job across his two stints, before Coulthard climbed aboard Car 12 and drove it to a fourth place finish to remain fourth on the points table.
The team’s lead in the Teams’ Championship is 116-points over Triple Eight Race Engineering, and is now the focus for Coulthard and McLaughlin as they head to Newcastle in two weeks.
Comments