Pitstop: Whincup leads into Ipswich

The Australian V8 Supercars are back on home soil this weekend at the Ipswich 300 in Queensland for round six of the series. TeamVodafone driver and defending champion Jamie Whincup is building a commanding lead in the race for the title and is 204 points ahead of James Courtney. Best of the Kiwis is Shane van Gisbergen who slipped to fifth after a dismal Hamilton round.

NZV8 chassis changes

A raft of changes will be introduced over the next two years in the NZV8 class. The aim is to reduce costs and increase parity and to give the aging class a boot in the pants. The biggest change will be a new chassis - a one-make standard that will accept not only the original Holden and Ford body panels but could also take Toyota Camry panels. The plan is to have around 10 cars competing within 18 months' time, for the 2011-12 season.

Endurance returns

After a year's sabbatical, the opening round of the three-race North Island endurance series returns to Manfeild this weekend with a field of high-performance cars from Japan, Europe, the United States and Australia. After Manfeild, the series continues at Taupo then to Pukekohe. The field includes BMW M3s and several other BMW models, Minis, V8 Falcons, Subarus, Mazdas, Nissans, Mitsubishis and even a Panoz.

Huge crowds for MotoGP

More than 120,000 fans are expected to turn up at round two of the MotoGP series in Jerez, Spain. Defending champion Valentino Rossi won the opening round in Qatar after Aussie Casey Stoner threw the race away while leading. Due to the cancellation of the Japanese race because of disruptions caused by volcanic ash, all the teams have had extra time to get ready for this weekend's race.

Rossi going for third

Staying with Rossi, the Ferrari Formula One team are to continue in their effort to field a third car on the grid and they want the Italian MotoGP rider to fill the seat. Ferrari was turned down this year (they wanted Michael Schumacher back in red) but President Luca di Montezemolo has vowed to continue to push his plans forward.

Track records

Brooklands in England is regarded as the first purpose-built motor racing circuit. The 5km track is said to have inspired the Indianapolis Speedway built in 1909. Brooklands was the first purpose-built track but the Milwaukee Mile in Wisconsin, adapted for racing in 1903 is the oldest racing track in the world.