“I was lucky to get away without damage at the start when Winterbottom pushed me into the wall, and we also had to wait during the pit-stop as the crew did a double stop," he reflected, suggesting that his position could have been even better before the puncture, "Once we got back out there, the car felt good, and I was learning more and more about the circuit. We were picking them off until I nudged the tyre bundles in the chicane and, later in the lap, found myself heading towards the wall with a flat tyre. It was a shame to do all the hard work then drop back at the end.”
The retirement list started on lap one when Russell Ingall, Steven Johnson and Shane Price collided at turn two, but only grew to include Michael Patrizi before the chequered flag. After Whincup's no-show, there was no better news for Vodafone team-mate Craig Whincup either, the veteran incurring a drive-through penalty for a pit-lane infringement, and then being turned around at turn one resulting in a puncture.
“This was not the finish I was hoping for,” Lowndes said of 19th spot, "I was aiming for at least a top ten finish and was on track with a reasonable start until I got boxed in at turn two and pushed to the back of the field. I guess we were just in the wrong place at the wrong time all day today, just as we got caught out with the weather in qualifying which put me in a less than ideal starting position.”
Victory sees Tander climb three positions in the championship race, which continues to be headed by Whincup with two races remaining in the weekend.
