Brock wins, Bowe struggles in Nations Cup opener.

Australian motorsport legend Peter Brock took his first win in the Donut King Australian Nations Cup Championship at Surfers Paradise today [Thursday], driving a Holden Monaro in the opening race of round eight at the Lexmark Indy 300.

Championship leader Paul Stokell finished second, extending his points lead over rival John Bowe and setting a new lap record of 1min 54.57secs on the final lap of the eight-lap race. With only two races left to decide the championship, Stokell has a 29-point lead over Bowe, who finished today in sixth position with an ill-handling Porsche GT3 RS.

Australian motorsport legend Peter Brock took his first win in the Donut King Australian Nations Cup Championship at Surfers Paradise today [Thursday], driving a Holden Monaro in the opening race of round eight at the Lexmark Indy 300.

Championship leader Paul Stokell finished second, extending his points lead over rival John Bowe and setting a new lap record of 1min 54.57secs on the final lap of the eight-lap race. With only two races left to decide the championship, Stokell has a 29-point lead over Bowe, who finished today in sixth position with an ill-handling Porsche GT3 RS.

Brock started from third on the rolling grid, leaving team-mate Nathan Pretty to fight for the first turn with Stokell in a Lamborghini Diablo. Pretty and Stokell both outbraked themselves, ending up tangled in the tyre barrier. Both recovered to go on with the race after the rest of the field had passed them, but Pretty admitted he had made an error at the start.

"It was just a silly mistake - I didn't get enough heat in the tyres and it understeered," he explained, "I hit the tyres and blocked the track for Paul."

"I was in a braking duel with Nathan and it was a silly thing to do," Stokell added, "It just came down to two drivers who didn't want to give way."

Brock duly took the lead, with Peter Hackett in a second Lamborghini following. By lap five, however, Stokell had caught up to third position, setting a blistering pace almost three seconds a lap faster than the rest of the field. As fast as he was, though, the Lamborghini driver couldn't close the gap to Brock and finished second with his team-mate Hackett in third.

Brock was delighted with his win, which came at the end of his first season of regular racing since ending a five-year retirement.

"I was in [Bathurst 24-hour mode for a few laps, but I thought I'd better get a move on because I could see that black foreign car catching me fast," he said.

John Bowe, Stokell's big rival for the title, struggled with an unfamiliar Porsche 911 GT3 and finished down in sixth place.

Group Two driver Allan Simonsen was miles ahead in his Ferrari. He finished fourth outright and first in his class at his maiden race on the Gold Coast street circuit.

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