Ford Performance Racing (FPR) drivers Mark Winterbottom and Steve Richards have endured a roller coaster ride of highs and lows at the second round of the 2007 V8 Supercar Championship Series held at Perth’s Barbagallo Raceway this weekend.
Strong performances by both FPR Falcon drivers in Saturday’s first race went some way towards relieving the disappointment of qualifying when traction issues saw Richards qualify 13th and electrical problems held Winterbottom back at 15th.
The FPR drivers made up seven positions between them in the opening 50 lap race, Richards finishing 9th and Winterbottom 12th. It was a short lived stay in the top ten for the Castrol FPR Falcon driver, who was issued with a 23 second post-race penalty for a pit lane infringement that relegated him to 22nd for the start of race two.
The second race saw Winterbottom make the most of the fastest laps in the field along with very swift FPR crew pit work to climb from 11th to 6th by the chequered flag, positioning the Orrcon Ford Credit FPR Falcon well for the third and final Perth race. Equally impressive was the effort of Castrol FPR Falcon driver Richards, who channelled his frustration at being relegated to 22nd for the race start into perfectly controlled aggression. The experienced driver passed nine cars on the tight 2.4 kilometre Barbagallo circuit to finish just outside the top ten (and in the points) at 13th.
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