He may have been the fastest driver in the east when the V8 Supercar series first visited Bahrain eleven months ago, but after coming away with just one win from three starts Garth Tander is determined to make amends this time around.
The Toll HSV ace triumphed in race two last year by a full twelve seconds, but a jump-start penalty did for his chances in race three, and he would end the round third overall. Tander has recently narrowed championship leader Jamie Whincup's advantage in the standings down to just nine points following victory at Surfers Paradise last time out, and insisted it will be those teams and drivers who best adapt to the unique, low-grip Bahrain International Circuit who will emerge at the front in next weekend's Desert 400.
I enjoy the circuit, the 30-year-old underlined. It suits my driving style and suits the way we set our car up, but it is still only the second time we have been there, so no doubt a lot of people will have looked at what they did last year and evolved their set-ups. It's still going to be a tough weekend.
The surface of the track is a lot different to what we are used to in terms of grip. The way it offers us grip is also a lot different to what we expected a lot more slippery than we thought it was going to be. You really need to adapt your driving style, and that's why I think it suits me just the way I drive the car seems to work on that type of surface. As far as the championship goes, we just have to keep on finishing in front of the Vodafone guys simple as that.
Team-mate and fellow title contender Rick Kelly currently lies fourth in the standings, 35 points adrift of Whincup. Similarly a Bahrain pace-setter last year, the 24-year-old was also out of luck, as a coming-together with James Courtney led to a bent steering arm and punctured tyre in race two.
![Garth Tander - Toll HSV Holden Commodore [pic credit: Toll HSV media]](http://pix.crash.net/thumbs/300777.jpg)
