With DJR Team Penske and Triple Eight Race Engineering locked in a battle for the teams’ championship, read on for how the title could go one way or the other.

UPDATE: CLICK HERE for updated figures ahead of Sunday’s Race 32

DJRTP leads by 116 points with up to 576 on the table for either team, spread evenly across both of this weekend’s 250km races at the Coates Hire Newcastle 500.

Triple Eight has declared the title to be its ‘main focus’ while Scott McLaughlin is of a similar mindset having already done enough to go back-to-back in the drivers’ championship.

While the scenario is especially complicated at present with two races and four cars to consider, the headline is that the Ford team can guarantee a second teams’ championship in three years by achieving double top five finishes in each race.

Should McLaughlin and Fabian Coulthard deliver a fourth and a fifth between them both today and tomorrow, Shell V-Power Racing Team would still finish the year at least two points up on the Red Bull Holden Racing Team.

The following scenarios are based on identical results in Races 31 and 32, for demonstration purposes.

If Triple Eight cannot get one-twos, DJRTP needs a minimum of: second and ninth, third and ninth (noting the implication that the second Triple Eight car would be no better than fourth), or fourth and sixth.

If neither Shane van Gisbergen nor Jamie Whincup can win a race in Newcastle this year, then DJRTP needs the following finishes as a minimum: first and 15th, second and 17th (noting the implication that Triple Eight would have finishes of third and fourth at best), third and 11th (…second and fourth at best), fourth and eighth, or fifth and sixth.

If Triple Eight cannot get podiums at all, DJRTP needs a minimum of: first and last (24th), second and 23rd, third and 20th, fourth and 23rd (noting the implication that Triple Eight would have finishes of fifth and sixth at best), fifth and 17th (…fourth and sixth at best), sixth and 11th, seventh and 10th, or eighth and ninth.

Obviously, DJRTP’s requirements become less onerous if Triple Eight’s cars finish further from the podium.

Should the four drivers in question finish where they qualified in today’s Armor All Top 10 Shootout (1st van Gisbergen, 2nd McLaughlin, 3rd Whincup, 6th Coulthard), DJRTP would win the teams’ championship by 38 points.

Speedcafe.com will present a revised scenario set ahead of Sunday’s race.

Teams’ championship