Motorsport: How to get it right...a driver's-eye view

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The V8 Supercars championship hits the Franklin streets in Hamilton for the last time. SuperSport takes you on a lap of the ITM400 circuit.

Pepsi Corner
Speed: 65km/h
Gear: 2nd

On the first lap of the race there can be an enormous amount of congestion going in to turn one. If you're a risk-taker, you can run an outside line, with the danger of getting pushed into the wall.

DTR Hairpin
Speed: Reduce from 220km/h to 60km/h
Gear: 2nd

Like turn one, there's still going to be a lot of congestion here. But there is a little more room coming out of the turn, meaning there are passing opportunities if you get the inside line.

Skycity Sweeper
Speed: Reduce from 150km/h to 70km/h
Gear: 2nd

The sweeper has cars driving through a roundabout the wrong way, and the cars are in single file. You don't want to be on the outside because you can quickly run out of track.

Chicane
Speed: Reduce from 210km/h to 120km/h
Gear: 3rd

Cars can break suspension parts through here. In a race, when you are bumper to bumper, you just have to trust your intuition and drive on feel, holding your breath. The chicane now has sensors to stop drivers repeatedly cutting over it.

Turn Five
Speed: Reduce from 185km/h to 100km/h
Gear: 3rd

This corner is a chance to get past someone if they've had a bad run through the chicane. A few battles will be fought at this point on the circuit.

BigPond Corner
Speed: 140km/h
Gear: 3rd

This is a tough little kink to get through because there's not much room for error. The best line is to get as close to the wall as possible without hitting it. The road is bumpy here, and getting it just right is a challenge.

ITM Corner
Speed: Reduce from 210km/h to 90km/h
Gear: 3rd

The fastest run will be on the left-hand side of the track. The entry to the corner is tight, but the exit is extremely wide and you have plenty of road to play with. This is the perfect corner to pass on.

Turn Seven
Speed: Reduce from 140km/h to 80km/h
Gear: 2nd

You're racing between walls here and your ability to brake correctly is crucial to avoid crashing. You have to get your entry speed bang on, as there's no room to run wide.

Jim Beam Corner
Speed: Reduce from 150km/h to 90km/h
Gear: 3rd

This corner is tight at entry but has plenty of room on exit. A lot of strategy comes in to play because the bumps on the road (caused by the crowning of the tarmac) can make life tough. There are probably three or four different exit lines within five or six metres. You can either get on the throttle early and run the risk of wheel spinning, or take a tighter exit line and avoid the bigger bumps.

Main Straight
Speed: 240km/h
Gear: 6th

The aim here is to get your gear changes perfect to generate maximum speed and power. You must get as close to the controlled rev limit before changing gears but if you hit it, valuable tenths will be lost. With the ability to wheel-spin in most gears over the bumps, staying off the limiter isn't easy.