Perth SuperSprint
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Frosty gives FPR podium Double
20 July 2011
Will and Frosty on the podium
Ford Performance Racing (FPR) has claimed its second podium in two days after Mark Winterbottom drove the #95 Orrcon Steel FPR Falcon to third place in Race 15 of the 2011 V8 Supercar Championship at the Sucrogen Townsville 400.
Winterbottom was denied a fifth-straight pole position by Craig Lowndes but still managed to secure second on the grid.
Team-mates Will Davison and Paul Dumbrell endured mixed fortunes with Davison grabbing fifth place while Dumbrell could not do better than 28th due to two poor early runs and a subsequent starter motor issue.
Winterbottom made another rapid start and led into turn one.
Davison moved up to fourth and Dumbrell also gained a number of places off the start as the factory Fords again proved their ability to get away well from the grid.
The Orrcon-backed driver led until lap two when cars starting on the softer compound Dunlop passed him, though he remained third until his first stop on lap 21.
He retained his position after his stop and then pitted along with the majority of the field on lap 44 for slick tyres when a safety car was deployed due to debris on the circuit.
The quick stop vaulted him into second and despite being passed by eventual race winner Jamie Whincup when racing resumed, he managed his soft tyres well to claim third place.
Davison was in the top five or six places for most of the race though dropped to ninth after the safety car-induced stops when he was forced to queue behind Winterbottom.
At the end of the first lap after the restart he was nudged into a spin by Jason Bright which dropped him to 23rd.
He recovered to 18th by race end but the result was far less than what he had hoped at the start of the race.
Dumbrell stayed out long on his first set of tyres and ran as high as second before pitting.
When he switched to softs under the safety car and began a charge through the field which saw him rise as high as sixth in the latter stages before tyre wear dropped him to 10th at the chequered flag – a valiant effort given he started last.
Winterbottom’s successful weekend jumps him to fifth in the standings while Davison is one point and place behind in sixth. Dumbrell remains 16th but has closed the gap to the top 15.
DRIVERS’ VIEW
Mark Winterbottom – #95 Orrcon Steel FPR Falcon
Qualifying: 2nd – 1m13.17s
Race 15: 3rd – Fastest lap: 1m14.23s
Championship position: 5th – 1201 points
“It is always a good day when you finish on the podium but it would have been nice to finish higher. We still have a bit more work to do on the soft tyre to improve our pace to our key rivals, though all-in-all it was a solid weekend. We put the car on the front row both days so qualifying is sorted, but we need to make it better over a complete race distance and we have good data from this weekend so that will help us achieve that. The team is building momentum and we are starting to look forward to the two enduros where we should be strong.”
Will Davison – #6 Trading Post FPR Falcon
Qualifying: 5th – 1m13.25s
Race 15: 18th – Fastest lap: 1m14.08s
Championship position: 6th – 1200 points
“The car was not quite as good as yesterday but we were still competitive. The pit stop under the safety car hurt me as I had to queue behind Frosty (Winterbottom) and that cost me three positions and then on the restart Jason Bright spun me around and that was that. We have been quite competitive this weekend which is a good sign and we are certainly making some headway but we are still not good enough on soft tyres. Today was a missed opportunity and we have been on for a top five so it is upsetting when things you can’t control take away a good result.”
Paul Dumbrell – #55 The Bottle-O FPR Falcon
Qualifying: 28th – 1m20.77s
Race 15: 10th – Fastest lap: 1m13.82s
Championship position: 16th – 763 points
“What a day. Qualifying turned into a disaster which meant we were unable to set a competitive time. Starting last was far from ideal but it meant we could be very aggressive with our strategy. We played the long game and after a great start we regularly picked off cars. We pitted from second at our first stop and then put soft tyres on when the safety car came out like everyone else. I pushed as hard as I could and we gained a lot of ground. We got as high as sixth and although I knew it might be hard to hold off some of the guys behind us in the closing laps, the team can be pleased with our recovery effort.”
Tim Edwards – FPR Team Principal
“The team put in another good effort today to claim its second podium finish in as many days. Qualifying was again promising, except for Paul’s issue, and all three drivers made a great start. Mark managed his tyres well late in the race to come home in a comfortable third place which is reward for two days of good racing. Will looked set for another high finish until he was punted from behind and from there his day was done which is a shame as he deserved more. Paul drove the race of his life and used the strategy to good effect. He was very quick on the soft tyres and did well to come from last to 10th. We still have work to do to be more competitive but we made another step forward this weekend so we know we are headed in the right direction.”
2011 V8 SUPERCAR CHAMPIONSHIP
TOWNSVILLE
RACE 15 – RESULTS:
1) Jamie Whincup – Triple Eight
2) Craig Lowndes – Triple Eight
3) Mark Winterbottom – Ford Performance Racing
4) Alex Davison – Stone Brothers Racing
5) Shane van Gisbergen – Stone Brothers Racing
10) Paul Dumbrell – Ford Performance Racing
18) Will Davison – Ford Performance Racing
2011 V8 SUPERCAR CHAMPIONSHIP
DRIVER POINTS AFTER RACE 15
1) Jamie Whincup – Triple Eight: 1683 points
2) Craig Lowndes – Triple Eight: 1497
3) Shane van Gisbergen – Stone Brothers Racing: 1317
4) Rick Kelly – Kelly Racing: 1244
5) Mark Winterbottom – Ford Performance Racing: 1201
6) Will Davison – Ford Performance Racing: 1200
16) Paul Dumbrell – Ford Performance Racing: 763
2011 V8 SUPERCAR CHAMPIONSHIP
TEAM POINTS AFTER RACE 15
1) Triple Eight
2) Stone Brothers Racing
3) Ford Performance Racing
