Garth Tander made it two-from-two in the V8 Supercar triple-header supporting the Australian Grand Prix in Melbourne, edging Holden ever closer to Sprint Gas Manufacturers' Challenge title.
Without overall championship points to chase, the weekend is a head-to-head - with feeling - between old rivals Holden and Ford and, with HRT colleagues Mark Skaife and Tander taking out the sessions that matter so far, red is the corner to be in.
Having won the opening race of three on Friday, reigning V8 Supercar champion Tander repeated the feat on Saturday, converting pole position into an early lead and never being headed as he eased away from second-placed Will Davison. Even a sizeable accident for Tander's replacement at HSV, Paul Dumbrell, and a subsequent safety car intervention failed to interrupt the champion's progress as he headed home another decent result for the Holden side.
“Two race wins doesn't yet secure Holden the Manufacturers Challenge but, while we've still got a job to do tomorrow, I'm happy with today," Tander said, pointing out that he run on day old tyres, "My Commodore was terrific - the challenge for us has been adapting the car to the different grip levels the circuit is offering each time after the
F1 cars have run, and the team has done a great job. Like yesterday, we were able to pull a bit of a gap at the start, and again after the restart, and look after the car. When you do that, you don't hurt the tyres.”
Although Ford took the other two rostrum spots courtesy of Davison and Mark Winterbottom, Tander headed seven Holdens in the top ten, swinging the advantage in the one-off competition further in the brand's direction. The Manufacturers' Challenge will be decided by adding together the points of the top twelve Holdens and Fords across three races around the Albert Park circuit and, following Tander's second win, Holden holds an almost secure 310-point advantage ahead of the final event.
![Garth Tander - Toll HRT [Pic credit: Holden Motorsport]](http://pix.crash.net/thumbs/417013.jpg)
