2007 PlaceMakers V8 Supercars

Background

After years of dissatisfaction with the track facilities, and several attempts at finding alternative venues, it was confirmed that 2007 would be the last V8 Supercar event to be held at Pukekohe Park Raceway. Originally, 2005 was mooted to be the final round, with the city of Auckland initially confirmed to host a street race in and around Victoria Park. However, the project fell through, and focus shifted toward a rejuvenated Wellington street race. But, like the Auckland project, the proposed street track in the nations capital was found to be untenable. It was subsequently confirmed that the championship would return to Pukekohe for a further two years before eventually moving to Hamilton for 2008.

The round served as Cameron McConville's 100th start in the V8 Supercar Championship, and ran the number 100 on his car to mark this achievement.

The six in-car cameras in this round were Greg Murphy, Jason Bright, Rick Kelly, Craig Lowndes, Max Wilson and Paul Dumbrell.

Race Report

Qualifying

Part 1

For the second round in a row, only 30 cars made the grid for qualifying after Jack Perkins from Jack Daniels Racing crashed at approximately 160 km/h into the barrier, on the main straight. The first part of qualifying began with Rick Kelly quickest, however a number of cars including Shane Price, Jason Richards and Steven Richards all ran wide at the hairpin at turn 5. Brad Jones also crashed into the tyre barriers at the hairpin after brake failure, which caused the session to be red flagged. The session was restarted with Garth Tander taking provisional pole from his teammate Rick Kelly and Todd Kelly.

Part 2

Once again, a number of drivers including Jamie Whincup, James Courtney and both Jim Beam Racing cars, ran wide at the hairpin, whilst trying to set quick laps which Craig Lowndes was quickest early on. Paul Dumbrell also crashed at turn 4, which caused the second red flag of qualifying. At the end of part 2, James Courtney lead, from Lowndes and Skaife.

Part 3

The third part of qualifying began with Whincup running wide at turn 4, and touched the tyre barriers. However he did not suffer any major damage and was able to continue. The pole position holder changed a number of times with Skaife, Whincup and Steven Richards among the drivers who temporarily held pole. Once qualifying finished, Mark Winterbottom had the quickest lap and took pole, from Garth Tander and team-mate Steven Richards in third.

Race 1

Tander got off the line and beat Mark Winterbottom into the first corner. Meanwhile, Dean Canto ran wide at the first corner and into the gravel trap, causing the safety car to come out at the end of the first lap. Brad Jones' car began heaving smoke barely two laps into the race. He would eventually retire from the race due to a hydraulic problem. The race proved tricky for Britek Motorsport, with both cars in the pits on lap 11 with Jason Bright's car cutting out, which was the same problem that caused the accident in Perth and Alan Gurr's car suffering from a sticky throttle.

Tander lost the lead to Winterbottom after both had completed their compulsory pitstops, and barely withheld a challenge from Steven Richards after exiting the pits. Both cars almost speared off the circuit on lap 20; locking tyres as the battled raged. Once the tyres came up to temperature, Tander pulled away from Richards and set off after Winterbottom. A slow pitstop from Mark Skaife proved costly and dropped last years round winner tumbling down the order. Andrew Jones completed a dicey move on Jason Bargwanna at the hairpin which, remarkably, resulted in no damage for either car. Craig Lowndes' day was less than optimal; outbraking himself at the hairpin and dropping himself out of the top ten. Steven Richards struggled to arrest his career in the braking areas and eventually found himself losing positions to Rick Kelly and Jamie Whincup. Paul Morris meanwhile would retire from the race with engine issues.

With a handful of laps to go, Tander began to apply pressure to Winterbottom. On lap 38, Tander finally scythed through at the hairpin to take the lead, much to the approval of the large Holden fan contingent in the crowd. The top five would remain unchanged on the run to the flag, with Tander taking his second win at Pukekohe in two years.

Race 2

Even before the race had begun, there were problems for Greg Murphy, who had a stuck throttle in the installation laps pre-race. Andrew Jones would start from the pit lane and would be forced to contest the race without power steering.

When the race started, Steven Richards made contact with Todd Kelly and spun off into the wall at turn three. However, he was able to continue, though would suffer another excursion at the hairpin just laps later. Still on the opening lap, Whincup overtook Tander for the race lead, although Tander retook said position on the next lap. Winterbottom followed suit just a couple laps later. Steven Richards' day went from bad to worse after being spun by Morris at the hairpin. Murphy ran wide at the same point of the track and lost five positions. Much like the first race, Winterbottom was able to overtake Tander in the compulsory pitstop cycle. However, he had a major brake lock-up into the hairpin, destroying his front-left tyre and requiring a second pitstop. On lap 28, Jason Richards crashed at the hairpin owing to front-left suspension failure, which led to the first safety car period. Skaife was issued a bad sportsmanship flag for blocking. The second safety car was deployed on lap 37, when Bargwanna ran wide coming onto the front straight and crashed into the safety fence.

When the safety car came back in, it became a sprint to the finish. Tander was never under much pressure and took the win from Whincup. The Kelly brothers squabbled over third, with Rick emerging victorious in that battle.

Race 3

Whincup struggled off the line and lost positions to the Kelly brothers. Davison incurred damage to the front spoiler, causing it to drag on the front-left tyre. Tander set the pace as the leader early on as the race began to settle down. The calm wouldn't last long however as, on lap six, Morris and Brad Jones collided on the approach to Ford Mountain, throwing Morris sideways into the barrier. The impact lifted Morris' car up and sent it into a number of rolls; eventually ending with the car resting on its roof. Morris emerged from the car unscathed as the safety car was dispatched.

Tander continued to control the pace right up until the compulsory pitstop window. When he came in, a slow stop (owing to a cross-threaded wheel nut) lost him an array of positions. Teammate Rick Kelly assumed the lead from brother Todd. Tander began scything through the field with the possibility of a round win still in the play. The pack began to jostle around as several key runners began to move forward. On lap 31, Dean Canto strayed wide at Ford Mountain, slammed the wall and was out of the race. Canto, whilst audibly winded from the accident, emerged unharmed. However, the safety car was deployed once again.

Owing to the late time in the day, as well as AFL commitments for the broadcaster, it soon became evident that the race would finish under time-certain rulings. The slow nature of the recovery of Canto's car, which drew harsh criticism from fans and media, exacerbated the issues. When the race got back underway on lap 36, it would become a one-lap sprint to the finish. Rick Kelly maintained his lead until the end while Tander failed to pass Radisich that would've been required to take the round win. The nature of the finish drew the ire of some drivers, including Tander who claimed they did not know the race would be finished early.

In terms of the overall round, Tander and Rick Kelly were equal on points. However, Kelly won the round after finishing higher in the final race. Kelly would be the last Pukekohe V8 Supercar round winner until the events return in 2013.

Aftermath

Championship standings

References

References

1. (23 April 2007). "Tander upset by shortened race". foxsports.com.au.