Weel chasing first V8 win at Sandown.

PWR Racing driver Paul Weel will be chasing a career-best result when he joins championship leader Jason Bright in the #50 Holden Commodore for this weekend's 2004 Sandown 500 enduro.

Weel has just a single podium finish to his credit after almost seven full seasons in V8 Supercars and he believes the time has come to become a race winner

"This is the best chance I've had in the two years that Jason and I have been racing together, and probably the best chance of my racing career, to really make a statement," he said. "With Jason doing the qualifying for both Sandown and Bathurst, I'm free to just drive the thing and concentrate on consistently fast laps. I've been as fast as anyone else out there at race pace this year, and so has Jason, so if everything goes well on the day we're going to take some beating.

"From my own point of view I've got nothing to lose and everything to gain, but I need to be mindful of the fact that Jason and the team have a championship on the line. It'll be a case of using controlled aggression and good tactics. We've learned a lot from when Jason and I drove together at Sandown and Bathurst last year that gives us a few clues about when to push, and how hard."

Bright agreed the pair would see how the weekend was going before deciding how aggressively to battle for the win as he needs to ensure that he doesn't jeopardise his title chances.

"It depends a lot on how we qualify and how the race plays out - if we're near the front late in the race, we'll be pushing hard," he said. "Otherwise, we're not about to go on a death-or-glory charge to pick up a few placings. There's still a long way to go in the championship and the worst thing I can do now is fail to finish."

Backup for Bright and Weel will come from Konica Minolta series frontrunner Matthew White and British F3 driver Marcus Marshall who will share the #16 car.

Although White hasn't had much time in the car, he remains confident that he and Marshall will be able to challenge for a top ten finish.

"Both of us would have finished inside the top ten at Bathurst last year, if not for mechanical problems late in the day with our respective cars," he said. "It's an incredibly tough field and neither Marcus nor I have a lot of miles in the car, but I think the top ten is achievable."

Marshall made his V8 debut for the team in last year's enduros, and, although he admits it will take him time to re adjust to the car after racing the single seater F3 machine, he is looking forward to the challenge.

"It'll be tough, but that's the best part," he said. "I've got a lot stored in my memory from last year, but I know for sure that after racing Formula 3 it's going to take a couple of stints to get the feel back.

"I'll just be pumping the laps out to get the best result we can, and if we can score a top ten finish like we almost did at Bathurst last year, then that'll be a bonus."