By Matthew Agius
The eighth round of the V8 Supercar Championship Series kicks off this Friday with the first endurance race of 2006 at Sandown Raceway, for the Betta Electrical 500 Melbourne.
As the first long-distance race of the season, Sandown traditionally carries the tag of being the curtain-raiser for the Bathurst 1000, a month later. However the event is so much more than an understudy to the ‘great race’. Even though Bathurst is the most prestigious race of the season, Sandown holds its own as a tough and challenging event. This is boosted by the fact that the event has a history of being weather-marred. In all previous years, the Sandown 500 has had varying degrees of rain, from the odd sprinkle last year, to the heavy rain and spray which ended the 2003 event. In years gone by, Sandown Raceway has experienced format adjustments. Despite being a traditional 500-kilometre race, 1999-2002 saw Queensland Raceway take the title of hosting the pre-Bathurst enduro, consigning Sandown to a sprint format.
Historically, the Sandown 500 has been an important event in the championship. Two driver races are dangerous for title contenders – events are often won or lost on a co-driver’s efforts (or lack thereof) and can be challenging most of the time. Various strategies have been employed by teams in their pairings for 2006.
In the instances of Team Betta Electrical and Ford Performance Racing, the regular drivers have been put in the team’s lead car, whist ring-ins have been employed to steer the group’s second machine – a traditional strategy that rewards both lead drivers if a good result is collected, and gives the recruits the opportunity to outperform the regulars. Successful uses of this type of pairing include the previous three Bathurst winners – Greg Murphy and Rick Kelly (2003-4) and Mark Skaife and Todd Kelly (2005), whilst the latter partnership also won the 2003 Sandown 500 together.
