KEY POINTS:
SYDNEY - It's been a frustrating year for Ford Performance Racing.
After finishing third in 2006, Mark Winterbottom was earmarked as a real contender for the 2007 V8 Supercar championship.
With five rounds to go the 26-year-old is well and truly out of contention
in eighth, more than 200 points behind leader Rick Kelly.
Steve Richards isn't in the hunt either. The 35-year-old's recent strong rounds at Oran Park (second) and Sandown (third) have merely added some gloss to an otherwise disappointing season.
Sunday's Bathurst 1000 presents both men with one last shot at 2007 glory.
They both know that, and so does the team, even if it did take some convincing of the sponsors.
FPR's major sponsors desperately wanted the two leading drivers in different cars but it has become apparent that's not the way to go if you want to be seriously competitive.
In the end a compromise was met, whereby the two drivers would drive in the team's No.6 car, which will appear in a one-off, re-designed livery that combines all three of the team's major sponsors.
"The top eight guys in the championship have all paired together and that's the way you've got to go now to really have a strong crack," said Winterbottom, whose best Bathurst 1000 result was fifth in 2004.
"When you've got different sponsors it makes it tough to put you're top guys in the same car but we've been fortunate to do that.
"But at the same time, we're lucky to have four good drivers, with Matt Halliday and Owen Kelly as well. They're not favourites but they're not out of the race either. We're hopeful that one car will bring it home.
"We're pretty lucky that winning Bathurst can turn a bad year into a good year and that's what we need to do because we've shown a lot of potential this year but haven't got as many points as we probably should have."
Richards has an impressive record at Mount Panorama.
He uniquely went back-to-back in 1998 and 1999 in a Ford then a Holden.
All in all he has six Bathurst 1000 podiums over the last decade, finishing runner-up three times.
"Having someone experienced definitely helps me because I can try and draw off what he's done and we can work together and get the result," Whincup added.
"It's nice to race with someone who's won the race but also we're both pretty comfortable with each other.
"We're both looking forward to it. We both can't wait to get up there and give it a good crack."
Whincup had plenty of faith in the team Falcon, saying it was right on pace.
"To get pole at Sandown (last round) was a really good feeling going to Bathurst because car speed is a big part of winning these races," he said.
"You've got to be quick in the right parts of the race.
"We qualified pole and we led for 50 laps of the race so it was not only quick for one lap, it was quick over a duration so we're really confident going to Bathurst that we'll have a strong car."
- AAP
