KEY POINTS:
The Supercar V8s roar into action again this weekend at Winton in Victoria.
Defending round champion Craig Lowndes, although seventh on the table, is confident of closing the gap on the leaders with a good showing in the fourth round of the championship.
Lowndes' victory last year came
as something of a surprise, given that the tight 3km circuit is the test track for 20 of the 31 drivers in the championship, not including Lowndes' team.
Team Kiwi driver Paul Radisich successfully completed a half-day's practice, for the first time this season, this week at Winton.
"It was a good test day. We're closing the gap down on the other guys so we're really pleased about that," said Radisich.
After a good performance at Pukekohe, Radisich is happy to have had time to get on and do things with the car at the team's leisure.
"We're really looking forward to this weekend and we're looking to qualify in the top-10 and maybe a top-10 finish," he said.
Rain is forecast, which could play into the experienced Radisich's hands - not only is he a past master in the wet, but it levels the playing field for some of the other drivers.
Radisich is 15th in the championship and is looking to move further up the table after a solid performance in front of a home crowd at Pukekohe.
The Winton round will see the addition of another New Zealander to the series. Simon Wills will step into the Team BOC Ford vacated by Brad Jones this week. The sudden decision of veteran Jones, after 105 championship starts, not to compete at his home event comes after a fraught start to his season.
Neither he nor his team-mate Andrew Jones has scored any championship points so far this year. Jones will take a hands-on role in running the team and continue as a popular ambassador for Ford.
Another Ford driver, John Bowe, in his retirement year, will be one to watch. His three Winton victories make him the most successful racer on the Victorian circuit.
Although Rick Kelly may top the table on 173 points after three rounds, many drivers think Garth Tander (160 points) is the man to beat. Tander has won five of the eight races so far this year. He would have won another, too, if not for a jammed wheel nut in the final race at Pukekohe that cost him the race and the round.
If Tander gets to the front, there's not much chance of anyone getting past him on current form.
It helps he has a good car and few would have guessed the new VE Commodore would have been so fast out of the box. But there's no arguing, as the Toll-HSV cars of Tander and Kelly have left the field in their wake, winning all bar one race so far.
The Holdens of Kelly, Tander, Todd Kelly (132 points) and Mark Skaife (104 points) hold down four of the top five places in the series (Jamie Whincup is equal fourth with Skaife on 104 points).
Despite the fact most of the teams test at Winton, it remains a circuit where local knowledge does not count for much. The track, compared to others, has a low average speed, and drivers have to be very smooth. Because there's not a lot of grip available, small mistakes are punished.
It will be the best set-up car, piloted by the smoothest driver, that will win this round.
