Coulthard gears up for V8s in Queensland

Fabian Coulthard is predicting a lift in his V8 Supercars performance. Picture / Edge Photographics

V8 Supercars are back, and Kiwis are aiming high

After a short break, the V8 Supercars championship is back in action for the Ipswich 400 in Queensland today. No driver has managed to steal a march on his rivals, with Ford Performance Racing driver Mark Winterbottom leading the charge from defending champion Jamie Whincup and battling New Zealander Fabian Coulthard.

The Kiwi has, by his own admission, had a good run in the championship, but is keen to put some niggling dramas behind him and get back on top of the podium.

"Imagine if we had collected the points we should have?," he said. "But we've had a podium at every round we've been to except in New Zealand.

"I can't say it's been bad, but our weakness has been not getting the big points in the feature races recently.

"We had a test recently and found out a few things and I think a few people are going to be surprised how good we're going to be."

Second-best Kiwi in the field is Shane van Gisbergen in fourth, who has been doing all his talking on the track in recent rounds.

Van Gisbergen missed testing, having been in Spa Francorchamps, Belgium last weekend for the Total 24 Hours of Spa, in which his Von Ryan Racing car was involved in a huge shunt two hours into the race.

The third Kiwi racing in the series, Scott McLaughlin, has also been abroad - in the US - and is raring to go after watching a bit of Nascar racing.

Scott McLaughlin is looking forward to racing in Queensland. Picture / bwmedia.co.nz

"It's tough racing at QR [Queensland Raceway] but it should be good for us," he said.
"We're good on tracks with high-speed turns and the car works well on soft tyres.

"It's hard to say but I think we'll be there, or there about, but you know what V8 Supercar racing is like - there are so many variables."

Red Bull Racing Australia's Craig Lowndes has lost a lot of ground on the leaders but should be feeling okay this weekend. He has won more races on this track than anyone else - he has an impressive 11 wins.

Queensland Raceway is the home test track for seven of the 25 teams and recent history indicates they have an advantage; they have taken 10 of the 12 victories since 2009.

Points after seven rounds
1. Mark Winterbottom - 1634
2. Jamie Whincup - 1538
3. Fabian Coulthard - 1361
4. Shane van Gisbergen - 1355
5. James Courtney - 1354
6. Craig Lowndes - 1352
7. Scott McLaughlin - 1211