Review - 2005 V8 Supercar Championship Series.

by Matt Agius

An eventful, entertaining and carnage-filled 2005 V8 Supercar Championship saw a new series champion crowned, a series hero emerge from four years in the wilderness, and some of the most controversial incidents in recent history. Crash.net takes a look at some of the achievements and failures of drivers and crews in the V8 paddock.

Driver of the year:
Craig Lowndes - Team Betta Electrical, #888 BA Falcon

A triple Australian Touring Car Champion, Craig Lowndes took six race wins and four round wins in 2005. Adding to the best winning record of a driver in the 2005 series, Lowndes was also the best qualifier - taking a total of five pole positions. After four years in uncompetitive yet highly glorified Ford teams including Gibson Motorsport, OO Motorsport and Ford Performance Racing, it seems as though Triple Eight Race Engineering has delivered Craig Lowndes, heralded as Ford's saviour upon converting to the Blue Oval in 2001, a car capable of challenging for the title.

The combination of a superb in-house chassis, coupled with the vaunted Stone Brothers Racing engine package is one which will be difficult to beat in 2006, and Lowndes is looking good to deliver Triple Eight a championship win after just four years in V8 Supercar racing.
Honourable mention: Russell Ingall, Caltex Racing, BA Falcon - first championship is a worthy achievement.

Team of the year:
Stone Brothers Racing - #1 Pirtek and #9 Caltex BA Falcons

Stone Brothers Racing took it all in 2005. The Yatala based outfit can lay claim to the drivers' title, teams' title and delivering Ford the manufacturers' championship all in the same year. In addition, SBR have proved to be extremely prolific in the business department of V8 Supercar racing, by successfully co-ordinating an engine deal with rivals Team Betta Electrical, which helped their driver Craig Lowndes, to second place in the championship.

Three round victories and just one pole position were all that SBR could manage in 2005, their least successful of the previous two years, however the rewards reaped in the most competitive year of the championship to date have put the Ford frontrunners into the V8 history books.
Honourable mention: HSV Dealer Team - #15 and #16 VZ Commodores - one of the strongest finishes to a championship in years.

Endurance co-driver of the year:
Adam Macrow - Team Betta Electrical, #88 BA Falcon

In the HPDC V8 Supercar Series, Adam Macrow was a front-runner and title contender, in the V8 Supercar endurance races, Macrow was a solid and reliable co-driver for Team Betta Electrical's Steve Ellery. Together, the pair finished fifth at the Sandown 500, before cruising to a podium finish at the Super Cheap Auto 1000.
Honourable mention: Yvan Muller - Team Betta Electrical, #888 Falcon - a Sandown 500 victory is hard to pass up.

HPDC series driver of the year:
Dean Canto - Gatorz Racing, #71 BA Falcon

The standout driver in the HPDC V8 Supercar Series was Dean Canto. Four round wins and pole position at almost every round, the Gatorz Racing Falcon was almost always at the front of the pack. Despite a potentially championship-destroying crash at Wakefield Park in the second round of the series, Canto fought back hard, benefited from a little luck with the then title leaders being tangled up in incidents, and managed to take consecutive round wins in the series. Unfortunately for Canto, Dick Johnson Racing opted to sign endurance driver Will Davison for the team's second main game car, forcing Dean to look elsewhere for a race seat - with likely top level options now being at Holden teams.
Honourable mention: Gary MacDonald, Kanga Loaders Racing, BA Falcon - for a consistent year which helped secure the Privateers' Cup.

Most improved driver:
Jamie Whincup - Dodo Racing, #23 VZ Commodore

This is one of the success stories of the 2005 V8 championship. Jamie Whincup has basically gone from zero to hero in the space of three years, but it has been hard work for Whincup to make it to the top of the game.

Garry Rogers Motorsport picked up Whincup in 2003. Driving an under loved Repco Valvoline Cummins Commodore, Whincup featured in a Top Ten Shootout at Winton Raceway. However after a single year struggling at the rear of the field, Whincup was axed in favour of Cameron McConville. A one-year sabbatical, which saw the former Formula Ford champion work for Castrol Perkins Motorsport in the enduros, was enough to see Tasman Motorsport employ Whincup for the 2005 season in the team's second VZ Commodore.

Whincup ran around in the top fifteen for the beginning of the year, but then soon impressed when he finished fourth in China, and later drove with Jason Richards to two podiums at Sandown and Bathurst. It was enough for him to be approached by Team Betta Electrical to partner Craig Lowndes at the team in 2006, and further continues the youngster's rise to V8 stardom.
Honourable mention: Paul Radisich - Team Kiwi Racing, #021 VZ Commodore - for a solid first year with Team Kiwi Racing.

Biggest blunder: Bathurst 1000 collision at the cutting
Greg Murphy - Super Cheap Auto Racing, #51 VZ Commodore
Marcos Ambrose - Pirtek Racing, #1 BA Falcon

These guys have had heated encounters before, but this one took the cake. In the final laps of the Bathurst 1000, Murphy and Ambrose were engaged in a heated battle. At the exit of CAT Corner, Murphy missed a gear and Ambrose saw an opportunity to pass the four-time Bathurst winner. However on the approach to the cutting, Ambrose was tagged in the rear by Murphy's Super Cheap Auto Holden, and was sent spiralling into the adjacent wall - the resulting pile-up forcing a massive cleanup exercise and forced the retirement of several innocent competitors. The collision was deemed a racing incident, but many heated words between the rivals were exchanged after the event.
Dishonourable mention: Mark Skaife, Holden Racing Team - #2 VZ Commodore - for his ultra-costly stall at the line (Oran Park)

Ed's mention: Craig Lowndes brushing the wall at Bathurst. Really was no need to push so hard so early. If Bathurst cost Ambrose his title chances, it also hurt Lowndes too. He would not have been in the wrong place to collect the Dumbrell wheel either. AS

Biggest letdown:
Larkham-Orrcon Racing, #10 and #20 Orrcon Steel BA Falcons

In 2004, Larkham-Orrcon Racing contested for podiums, contested for outright podiums and was the second best Ford team in the championship behind champions Stone Brothers Racing. Indeed, Jason Bargwanna finished eighth in the championship and the Orrcon Fords were showing huge promise for a successful 2005 series. How quickly the form guide was turned upside down. A poor chassis setup and a difficult start to the year resulted in Orrcon Racing finishing thirteenth in the teams' championship. The team was also hit with the departure of development driver Mark Winterbottom for Ford Performance Racing. Now the only way for Larkham's squad is up.
Dishonourable mention: Team Dynamik - #44 Go Talk VZ Commodore for one of the most meteoric falls for such a promising team three years ago.

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