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The return of the Sandown 500 will see a new format implemented.
After four years using the two qualifying race system at Phillip Island, V8 Supercars has tweaked the way the grid will be formed for the September race.
A regular qualifying session for any driver in a combination will sort the grid line-up for the first sprint.
The first sprint will be for the nominated co-driver, with the finishing positions determining the grid for the second sprint where the ‘Primary’ championship drivers take part.
The finish positions at the end of the second sprint will determine the grid for the 500km race.
As opposed to previous years, there will be no compulsory pit stops in the Saturday sprints.
The combined points from the two sprints would determine the grid for the 500km two-driver endurance race.
In past years at Phillip Island, the two sprint races saw 50 championship points awarded to the winner of each race, and 200 points for the winner of the 500 km event. V8 Supercars told Speedcafe.com that the points allocation for the Sandown 500 has not been determined at this point.
The 2012 Sandown 500 will be held in Melbourne on September 14-16, 2012.
The next time that V8 Supercars use the Sandown facility will be for its pre-season test on February 11.
