JAMIE WHINCUP – Car #88
Practice 4 – Ninth (Fastest Time: 0:50.8226)
Qualifying – 13th (Fastest Time: 0:51.0183)
Race 1 – Fifth
Championship – Third (610 points)
“It was nice to crawl back from a bad qualifying position to finish the weekend in fifth place. We were fast on Friday, made some changes but we couldn’t repeat the pace we set on Friday. We were vulnerable all weekend. Even If we absolutely maximised everything possible, it seemed as if we were there or there about. As soon as we didn’t maximise one area, we were down in the pack and that made it hard for us to get back into the race. Once you end up down the back of the pack , the weekend becomes tougher and sometimes it just continues to snowball. The great news is Shane got the first Holden win for the season and that’s a fantastic result for the team.”
SHANE VAN GISBERGEN – Car #97
Practice 4 – Second (Fastest Time: 0:50.6346)
Qualifying – First (Fastest Time: 0:50.7056)
Race 1 – First
Championship – Fourth (604 points)
“Great weekend obviously finishing it with a win. All weekend we were speedy, and the car was nice to drive. I think we certainly learnt a lot with different philosophies throughout the event. Hopefully as a team, we can keep stepping it up for Phillip Island. It will no doubt be interesting to see where we are at for that event but after this weekend, we are definitely doing better than where we started.”
Way to go SVG
🎙”Well done team – what a great recovery after what was a disaster at AGP.”#redbullholden #VASC— Red Bull Holden (@redbullholden) April 7, 2019
1525: On the home stretch… SVG!!!
1515: Both cars doing a second pit stop. Praying mother nature doesn’t make it bucket down before the end!
1450: Meanwhile JDub is doing his thing and moving on up. Just keep chipping away JDub!
Real smooth SVG 👌🏻#redbullholden #VASC https://t.co/ecYP3E4fDp
— Red Bull Holden (@redbullholden) April 7, 2019
1430: It is neck a neck with SVG chasing down the car in front for the lead.
1405: Starting from the front – let’s do it!
That hits the spot – lining up.#redbullholden #VASC pic.twitter.com/mZbMdva9d3
— Red Bull Holden (@redbullholden) April 7, 2019
1300: Race 2 in Tassie coming up in an hour.
SVG – P1 — 0:50.6395
J-Dub – P13 — 0:51.0183
This is how he did it! 💪🏻#redbullholden #VASC https://t.co/CTaIFwrOH8
— Red Bull Holden (@redbullholden) April 7, 2019
1155: SVG has done it – P1!
1145: Now rest – back out we go.
1140: Qualifying over. JDub missing out. SVG sits in the car waiting to head back out to grab a top ten spot on the grid for Race 2.
JDub – P13 – 0:51.0183
SVG P6 – 0:50.8708
1130: Bulls rolling out for second part of Qualy.
1000: Full speed ahead into debrief and then out for qualifying – busy day of driving.
0955: Both drivers move on into the second part of qualifying.
J-Dub P9 – 0:50.8226
SVG P2 – 0:50.6346
Go get em bulls!#redbullholden #VASC pic.twitter.com/tJf39CXoty
— Red Bull Holden (@redbullholden) April 6, 2019
0925: Straight into it all – Practice 4 coming right up.
0920: Praying the rain holds off.
0700: New day, fresh start – leaving it all behind for Race 2.
Sunday April 7
Jamie Whincup – Car #88
Practice 3 – 10th (Fastest Time: 0:51.0645)
Qualifying – 15th (N/A)
Race 1 – 25th
“It was a disappointing day as I don’t know what happen. We had a fast car and ended up with nothing. I am thinking that it had to of been a driving error, but the data doesn’t show anywhere where I can improve. I wish the data reflected poor driving as that would make it a bit easier, but it doesn’t. Also when you qualify poorly you need to push through to get to the top. I got a good run at the start of the race and was always coming down the inside of Chaz but he just shut the gate at the wrong time and BOOM. Normally you can have a little bit of a rub and it’s okay. Unfortunately, this time it hit the wrong place of the tyre and blew it straight out. Once that happens, it’s usually a 50/50 call. I was sure the front end was broken but it wasn’t. Today all the 50/50’s went the wrong way. I don’t know what the plan is for tomorrow. I wish there was something; I’m not feeling good or something to say about what went wrong but at the moment we have got nothing. I feel good, I’m ready to go, the car is good but it’s just not happening.”
SHANE VAN GISBERGEN – Car #97
Practice 3 – 17th (Fastest Time: 0:51.2198)
Qualifying – 3rd (Fastest Time: 0:50.7056)
Race 1 – 3rd
“I got a rubbish start unfortunately with some driver error. The first half of the race was boring as I couldn’t do anything but then it all came alive. We decided to run a little bit longer because it was so hard to pass with the same tyre quality that were on the car. Then after the pit stop, we got some good tyres and came out at the end. Everyone was so far ahead so I didn’t think we would be able to gain much back, but we had good speed and clear air, so it was a good surprise.
1830: What a day of highs and lows! We caught up with the drivers to hear what they had to say about their very different days.
Grabbing points while you can ain’t so bad! Nice work SVG.#redbullholden #VASC pic.twitter.com/dNd466PgJf
— Red Bull Holden (@redbullholden) April 6, 2019
1735: He did it – SVG into 3rd and some kind words over the radio to the crew from J-Dub.
JDub to the crew:
🎙 “Sorry guys totally my fault – disappointing day.”All good bud tomorrow’s another day!#redbullholden #VASC
— Red Bull Holden (@redbullholden) April 6, 2019
1725: Seems there’s a lot of questions in this race — Three laps to go – can SVG pull up to P3?
1705: SVG needs to pit… when will he do it? – Blink and you could have missed it.
1655: Bit too much to handle and it’s only the beginning of the race!
Just one of those day 🤷🏼♀️ #redbullholden #VASC https://t.co/VrP20YpEPZ
— Red Bull Holden (@redbullholden) April 6, 2019
1650: May have spoken too soon.
1640: Fingers crossed this goes better than qualifying.
1500: Two extremes in qualifying – will no doubt make an exciting race ahead!
J-Dub – will start in P15 for Race 1.
SVG – P3 — 0:50.7056.
Got some skills SVG 👌🏻#redbullholden #VASC https://t.co/BYBHTOfjt1
— Red Bull Holden (@redbullholden) April 6, 2019
1420: Final grid spots up for grabs – you got this SVG!
1415: SVG keeps going, ending the session in P3 and getting another crack at qualifying in 10 minutes.
1410: All over for JDub. He is out and done with the qualifying session.
1408: JDub has found the sand pit! Not quite the plan for Car 88 after only a few laps.
Beached 😖
Here’s how Whincup ended up in the gravel.#VASC pic.twitter.com/3Mw0Ff4dvE
— Supercars (@supercars) April 6, 2019
1345: Three part qualifying just about to begin – JDub and SVG in the second session.
1140: Lots of comments after practice – “Cars not the same as yesterday mate.”
J-Dub– P10 — 0:51.0645
SVG – P17 — 0:51.2198
1010: Practice 3 coming right up.
0945: Who’s our #1 fan in Tassie?!? Thanks for coming out and supporting us.
0700: Positive steps yesterday, let’s do it again today!
Saturday April 6
JAMIE WHINCUP – #88
Practice 1 – 4th (Fastest Time: 0:50.7564)
Practice 2 – 1st (Fastest Time: 0:50.5084) *New Lap Record*
“We had a fast but agile car that was tough to drive today. The lap I did at the end was loose, but the time was there. We will work tonight on making some changes to the car. There is a little bit of false security as we ran all our tyres today to guarantee a place in the top 10, whereas our main opposition decided to save a couple to use tomorrow. I think if we don’t improve tonight we will get done, so that’s our focus moving forward into tomorrow. It was positive listening to Craig. It felt exactly like the day he stepped out of the car at Newcastle last year. He was straight back in and straight back on the pace like he hadn’t been out of the car at all, so it’s a positive outlook for the enduro rounds.”
SHANE VAN GISBERGEN – Car #97
Practice 1 – 2nd (Fastest Time: 0:50.8547)
Practice 2 – 2nd (Fastest Time: 0:50.5271)
“The first practice was good. The co-drivers were up near the top, had good things to say about the car and felt comfortable, so that gave us confidence ahead of our practice sessions. It was good to see the co-drivers getting some laps in today. When I went out for practice, the car was good to start with, having done only some little tuning. It’s nice to be out front and not have the car perfect yet. There is still a little bit of room to improve but today we got speed which we need heading into the races tomorrow and Sunday.”
Craig Lowndes – Car #88
Practice 1 – 5th (Fastest Time: 0:51.3052)
“The first practice went well, it was good fun being back in the car after what seems like such a long absence. Working with David Cauchi (Car #88 Race Engineer), we got through our scheduled program for the session; it felt like we made progress and overall gained a better understanding of setups for the car. Hopefully the co-driver practice gave the team a direction of where they needed to go ahead of this weekend’s race. Ha, more like I gave Jamie a couple of tips! In all seriousness, he gave me a rundown on a couple of changes from the 2018 car, but they were mostly around instrument changes. We have been teammates for a very long time, so it’s great to be in the same car rather than trying to beat each other on track.”
GARTH TANDER – Car #97
Practice 1 – 2nd (Fastest Time: 0:51.1266)
“For me the car was good, but it was more about getting an understanding about how the car behaves and getting used to it. It was my first real drive of a Triple Eight car, however, it felt comfortable straight away and the pace seemed strong. We got through some setup work with the boys, so all in all it was a positive practice session. SVG gave me a couple of tips as there are some things which I had asked him about. He came over to the garage, pointed out a few things to think about and try while I was out there driving. They were all helpful and it’s a good start to the relationship between us.”
1730: What a start to Round 3. Let’s see what the gang has to say about their rides.
1715: Oh Bugger – what a way to end the day – a new lap and record and getting into trouble with the yellow flag. J-Dub down in Practice 1 to 4th — 0:50.9578
1500: NEW LAP RECORD – Way to go J-Dub!
J-Dub– P1 — 0:50.5084 *New Lap Record*
SVG – P2 — 0:50.5271
1430: Round and round we go – that hairpin turn though.
1420: P2 here we go!
Let’s repeat bulls! #redbullholden #VASC https://t.co/uorPTIMQMn
— Red Bull Holden (@redbullholden) April 5, 2019
1245: Time to review it all, grab a bit to eat and roll out again in 2 hours.
1230: Seems like Tassie is still J-Dubs favourite – great start to practice.
J-Dub – P1 — 0:50.7564
SVG – P3 — 0:50.8547
1150: Bulls have burst out of the garage into P1 – eager as ever.
1105: Extra visitors in the garage today after first co-driver practice in the season!
GT – P2 — 0:51.3052
CL – P5 — 0:51.3052
1030: Let’s get on the track… but wait who’s that in the car?!?
