Motorsport: The circuit of sweet and sour for Whincup

Forget about F1, this is motor racing excitement we can relate to. Photo / Edge Photographics

The big V8s you see roaring around the streets of Hamilton have an earthy appeal - what you see on the telly is not that far removed from what's parked in the driveway.

Formula One, on the other hand, is so far removed from us mere mortals, it may as well be a Scalextric game. F1 cars look like paper darts, and they're not driven, they're programmed.

The ITM400 starts today and over the weekend more than 110,000 petrolheads, and the just plain curious, are going to experience the magic of V8 Supercar racing.

These bellowing behemoths are going to be hurled at speeds of up to 250km/h around streets normally used for getting to work or going shopping.

For the third year in a row, the streets of the Frankton district in Hamilton are going to be pounded by 650-plus horsepower booming Fords and Holdens.

Those who make the annual pilgrimage to the New Zealand round of the V8 Supercars championship have never been disappointed, since the first race at Pukekohe 10 years ago. For years, Kiwi V8 stalwart Greg Murphy owned the local round of the series. He won four out of six times at Pukekohe, and was never off the podium.

Since the event moved to Hamilton three years ago there have been only two winners - two-times series champion Jamie Whincup, who remains undefeated in Hamilton, and 2007 champion Garth Tander.

"My memories of Hamilton are sweet and sour," said Whincup. "I had that write-off in the first year, and then a few good wins.

"We're confident coming here with the pace we've shown so far early on this year, and on top of that, we've had a good run here. We're not over-confident as there are a handful of teams who are chasing us hard this year so we've got our work cut out.

"I enjoy the track especially the last part through the industrial area."

Whincup's teammate, Craig Lowndes, thinks this could be his year, although his form has not been all that good in New Zealand the past couple of years.

"It's a race track we haven't had too many great results on despite having good car speed," said Lowndes.

"This weekend is shaping up to be a good one what with the soft tyres and the changes to the chicane [no tyre bundles this year]."

Tander, the only other driver to win in Hamilton, knows he's in with a good chance of closing the gap on Whincup in the championship and is confident after his Clipsal 500 win in Adelaide.

"I enjoy street circuits and always tend to go well on them," said Tander. "I like the commitment required to go fast and drive at 100 per cent for the whole race. They're places where the slightest mistake results in the biggest consequences."

Defending champion James Courtney needs to get his title defence back on track and is hoping Hamilton will be the place.

"It's a great little event and I'm looking forward to getting two good results," he said.

"At each round so far we've had a bad race on the Saturday and then it's all come together on the Sunday."

The top-placed Kiwi in the championship, Fabian Coulthard, is ready to make an impact in his home event.

"We have definitely had a good start to the year, we have had two solid events this season and that is why we are in position five," said Coulthard.

Murphy, New Zealand's long-serving V8 Supercars campaigner, says he's feeling good about being back on home soil.

"Our last hit-out at the Grand Prix ended successfully [second place in race three], so the team is going to New Zealand with some momentum and confidence," said Murphy.

POINTS TABLE

1: Jamie Whincup 567

2: Mark Winterbottom 423

3: Garth Tander 363

4: Alex Davison 348

5: Fabian Coulthard 345

6: Craig Lowndes 336

7: Shane van Gisbergen 327

8: Rick Kelly 321