No matter how the drivers handled it, it was tough on their cars. On lap 140, Skaife cracked his front splitter, which had been progressively wearing away throughout the race. Murphy suffered a much worse fate, suffering engine troubles which, upon pit bay inspection, turned out to be a knock in the motor. With Murph out of podium contention, fellow Kiwi Jason Richards inherited third position, and was relatively unchallenged for the rest of the race.
Meanwhile, Lowndes had been taking seconds off Skaife's with each lap. In ten laps he had brought the margin back from more than thirty seconds to just a few tenths, hovering right on Skaife's rear bumper with only four laps remaining.
For five laps, the former team-mates diced; Lowndes enjoyed superior top speed and stability as Skaife struggled to stay ahead in a damaged car. Skaife did well to cover Lowndes, and it appeared that he may have been able to hold him off. He didn't get the chance, as the red Holden was rapidly running out of fuel. Skaife let Lowndes through, and with two laps remaining, he stopped for a last minute fuel fill.
Lowndes cruised on to victory, wowing the crowd with a series of skilful powerslides, as he was able to relax and soak up victory in the first endurance event.
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Top Ten – Betta Electrical Sandown 500
1
C.Lowndes/Y.Muller Team Betta Electrical
2
M.Skaife/T.Kelly Holden Racing Team
3
J.Richards/J.Whincup Dodo Racing
4
G.Tander/R.Kelly HSV Racing
5
S.Ellery/A.Macrow Team Betta Electrical
6
J.Bright/D.Brabham Ford Peformance Racing
7
R.Ingall/L.Youlden Caltex Havoline Racing
8
P.Morris/P.Radisich Sirromet/Team Kiwi
9
J.Bowe/B.Jones Team BOC
10
C.McConville/A.Jones Repco Valvoline Cummins
