Regardless of the results this weekend at Winton, Jamie Whincup has warned against any championship celebrations due to the potential for points penalties to be awarded in next month’s Sydney finale.
Whincup heads into tomorrow’s Race 27 in a commanding position, needing to outscore Mark Winterbottom by just four points – and finish within sight of Craig Lowndes and Will Davison – in order to head to the final round with a margin equal to the 300 points that will be left on offer.
While the situation ensures many could declare Whincup a four-time champion as soon as Sunday afternoon, the 29-year-old says he won’t be celebrating early.
“We’ve got to get through this weekend clean, but no championship will be celebrated this weekend because the opportunity to lose points in Sydney will still be there,” he said after topping today’s fourth and final practice session.
“We’ll do our best this weekend and then head off to Sydney, and hopefully at the end of that last day we’ll have more points than anyone else.”
Whincup, who has headed into the final round of the V8 Supercars Championship in title contention each year since 2007, also stressed that the points equation won’t see him taking a conservative approach this weekend.
Secure your spot today.
“It’s a race and we’ll go out there and be going as hard as we possibly can,” he said.
“We’re not going to conserve. We’ll put our front foot forward and try to be as far up the field as we possibly can.”
CLICK HERE for Speedcafe.com’s Practice 4 report and result
CLICK HERE for Speedcafe.com’s Practice 3 report and result
CLICK HERE for Speedcafe.com’s Practice 2 report and result
CLICK HERE for Speedcafe.com’s Practice 1 report and result
See below for Speedcafe.com’s Winton Race Guide
