Sunday, 11th May 2008

FPR ace takes second win at Barbagallo.

If anyone thought that Mark Winterbottom's victory in the opening race of the BigPond 400 at Barbagallo was an aberration, the Ford driver proved otherwise with a rep[eat performance in race two

'Frosty' proved unbeatable in a rain-affected race, taking another maximum points haul as teams were left in limbo when the heavens opened on lap 18,begging the question of whether to fit wet tyres in the compulsory pit stop window. Winterbottom had pitted before the rain started, and was determined to avoid a second stop, but had to call on all his ability to commanded the lead on slicks under intense pressure from Garth Tander.

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“It was an excellent drive from Mark,” FPR team principal Tim Edwards said, "He just consistently maintained a solid pace to the finish. We were monitoring the weather and were confident it was only a light shower and wasn't going to get heavy enough to change to wets, so Mark did a great job in the intermediate conditions.”

“I wasn't happy when the rain started, as I knew it wasn't going to help," the #5 Orrcon Ford Credit driver admitted, "I just had to concentrate on staying on the track and keeping Tander behind me. He was quick in the slippery conditions, but not as strong in dry, so I was able to pull away.”

Having held off both Tander and Toll/HRT team-mate Mark Skaife in race one, Winterbottom will have been relieved to see one of the white-and-red Holdens disappear from his mirrors, albeit not in the manner of Skaife's exit.

Running side-by-side with the second FPR Falcon of Steven Richards through the first two turns, as he had with Tander on Saturday, the pair touched wheels through the Esses, spearing sending the #2 Commodore sideways into the concrete safety wall. While Richards limped back to the pits as the safety car took to the track, Skaife extricated himself from his crumpled car.

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