V8 SuperCars – Phillip Island Wrap Up

It has been two days since the race was finished, however I thought it best to wait until the ‘dust had settled’ before I wrote about the results.

The end result was that Rick Kelly is the 2006 V8SuperCar champion, beating Craig Lowndes by 37 points.

For me Lowndes lost the championship at Symmons Plains, when through no fault of his own he was involved in a crash at the start of the race. For me that race should have been restarted.

At Phillip Island it was looing like a great finish to the championship. In race three, the final race of the season, both Lowndes and Kelly where even on points and where side-by-side on the starting grid. Like everyone else watching the race I was looking forward to a great battle between the two best drivers of 2006. Unfortunately it was a fizzer. In the early laps, Rick Kelly punted Lowndes into Todd Kelly (HRT) at Honda Hairpin. This contact caused both Todd and Lowndes to spin and then Will Davidson slammed into Lowndes. The resulting damage for the 888 Falcon of Lowndes killed any hope of him winning the championship.

Rick Kelly was given a drive-through penalty by the stewards, but in my mind it wasn’t enough. People can argue all they like about “it was a racing incident” or “if it happened in any other time, the same penalty would be given” etc. What they fail to consider is that this was an incident which directly impacted the championship. I lay the blame on the stewards and management of V8 SuperCars. They need to be clearer about what constitutes a ‘racing incident’ and what level of punishment should be handed out. That sums up my gripe with this incident. Did the punishment really fit the crime?  Considering the impact it had on Craig Lowndes’ championship, I say no.

I have a message to Mark Skaife… If you want to bag Craig Lowndes for trying to overtake you in a reckless matter, sure big fella vent your spleen it’s your right, but be consistent. I am yet to hear you condemning Rick Kelly’s shunt of Craig. You argue that Craig should have been more measured in his attempt to overtake you. He should have considered the big picture – the championship when pulling off a risky overtaking move. Well Skaife what about Rick Kelly’s reckless (and that is not just my opinion champ – the stewards did give him a drive through for reckless driving) shunt into Lowndes? You have been very quite about that. Although I am not surprised by your lack of ‘balance’ in this matter.

Good luck to Rick Kelly, he did drive well all year; however I feel his win will be tainted by what happened at Phillip Island.

So with 2006 over, I cannot wait for 2007. It will be interesting to see who will be driving what next year as we approach the ‘silly season’. The next few months will full of driver changes and I will attempt to keep you informed

Cheers

Dave