Gold Coast 600 Fast Facts
- This year marks twenty years of V8 Supercar racing on the streets of Surfers Paradise, the Australian Touring Car Championship joining the IndyCar Series in 1994.
- It’s a happy hunting ground for Triple Eight – we’ve bagged seven of the last 13 races wins on the Gold Coast since 2008.
- JDub is historically a street race master, having claimed 26 of his 85 race wins on street circuits, with six of those coming from the Gold Coast over the last six years.
- Craig is the holder of the inaugural PIRTEK Enduro Cup, which is awarded to the pairing with the highest points tally across all three endurance events. This year he and Richo come into the GC600 sitting fourth on the leader board.
- It’s been a year of milestones, with CL’s 40th birthday and 20th anniversary of his V8SC debut, plus Jamie’s 150th event start. Now it’s the team’s turn! Race 1 brings up Triple Eight’s 350th race start in V8 Supercars.
RBRA at the Gold Coast 600
| CRAIG/LUFFY | JAMIE/PD | |
| Qualifying R1 | 2nd | 25th |
| Shootout R1 | 1st | N/A |
| Race 1 | 1st | DNF |
| Qualifying R2 | 3rd | 4th |
| Race 2 | 8th | 4th |
What the Drivers Say
Lowndesy: “I’m looking forward to it, I think it’s one of the last times this year that we race on a soft tyre. The Gold Coast is always a very challenging circuit, being the ‘Concrete Canyon’, but it’s a very exciting circuit and to try and get it right every single lap is a very challenging task for the drivers. We’re always scraping walls and the temperature will be an issue.
I’m really encouraged from Bathurst, we had good car speed in the later stages and Steve and I worked really well, so we’re looking forward to finishing off the Enduro Cup on a positive note. We’re not going to be able to retain the cup this year, but it was nice to win it last year and of course we’ve got to get the championship back on track.”
J-Dub: “I love street tracks and there’s none more traditional than the Gold Coast. The Concrete Canyon makes the Gold Coast one of the most difficult circuits on the calendar.
“I’m a Gold Coaster, so it’s my home event, and it’s extra special to be able to perform at home. At the same time, it’s one of those events where it’s just as much fun being as spectator as it is being a driver as there’s so much atmosphere. There are always thousands of people wanting to have a good time in the sun right beside the beach – it doesn’t get any better.
“PD’s done a great job up until now. It’s a three-round season of endurance, so we plan to put our best foot forward this weekend at the GC. We might let PD drink some fluids as well this time so he doesn’t pass out!
“We led the PIRTEK Enduro Cup going into Gold Coast last year and we threw it away so we certainly are looking to try and make amends for last year’s result and it would be an honour to bring that trophy back.”
Drivers Championship Standings
Jamie Whincup – 2,547
Mark Winterbottom – 2,250
Craig Lowndes – 2,208
Shane Van Gisbergen – 2,096
James Courtney – 2,096
Teams Championship Standings
RBRA – 4,805
FPR – 4,269
HRT – 3,808
BJR – 3,479
Norton Hornets – 2,971
