Motorsport: Frosty hoping 2009 heats up in Darwin

Mark Winterbottom knows he's pushing it to challenge for the V8 Supercars title. Photo / Getty Images

SYDNEY - Mark Winterbottom admits time is fast running out for him to launch a realistic challenge for the 2009 V8 Supercars title.

The Ford Performance Racing driver finished a close runner-up to champion Jamie Whincup last year but, while Whincup has gone on to collect five wins from eight races and 1044 points so far this season, Winterbottom is 10th on the ladder with just 573 points and his one victory came in the non-competition Australian Grand Prix stage.

With over a quarter of the series completed, the 28-year-old accepts this weekend's event at Hidden Valley in Darwin could make or break his campaign.

"A few good rounds and the championship does get back on track but we can't keep saying "next round, next round", you've got to actually go and do it," Winterbottom said.

"It gets harder and harder because the guys at the front don't make a lot of mistakes and we've had a pretty average run.

"The good thing is the car is actually really quick and pretty good to drive so once we get our act together and everything falls into place I'm sure we'll get a heap of points.

"There's 600 points at Phillip Island and Bathurst so you never give up until you mathematically can't do it but it isn't the start that I'd planned to back up last year."

Giving Winterbottom hope is his team's performance at Hidden Valley last year, where he won the first of three races before his FPR teammate Steven Richards claimed the third race on his way to a stage victory.

"Darwin is one that we hope can turn the season around and going off last year there's no reason why we can't," he said.

"(Last year's performance) does help you but I've also got a new car now and it's differently set up so we've got to make sure we get the FG back to where the BF was there last year and try and have the dominance that we did."

Winterbottom conceded he faced a more severe hurdle this weekend than Queensland-based drivers such as Whincup, Craig Lowndes and James Courtney in adjusting to the temperature difference from his wintery Melbourne base to the tropics of Darwin.

"I found when I lived in Queensland going to Darwin was very easy but when you live in Melbourne and go to Darwin it is quite a shock to the body," he said.

"If you train hard and prepare yourself as well as you can, there's no doubt you'll get through the race okay but it is definitely easier if you're a Queensland based driver than a Melbourne-based driver."

- AAP