Kiwi driver Scott McLaughlin delivered Volvo their first V8 Supercars win in 28 years with victory in yesterday's opening race of the round in Perth.

The V8 Supercars are at Barbagallo, Perth this weekend for round five of their championship and Ford Performance Racing's Mark Winterbottom leads the early charge in the race for the title.

The affable and much-liked Kiwi V8 racer, who passed away in December 2011 after a 14-month battle with cancer, could not have foreseen the enduring legacy he would leave.

V8 Supercars' driver Jason Bright got his defence of the Jason Richards Memorial Trophy off to a storybook start by taking pole for race one of the weekend yesterday.

While the main focus is on the big boys of international V8 racing, the V8 Supercars, it shouldn't be forgotten that as with all great sporting events there is an undercard.

This weekend's fourth round of the V8 Supercars championship at Pukekohe is the only time it's a New Zealand versus Australia grudge match, and that's more to do with the partisan crowd than the drivers.

Revving engines will be the only thing heard south of Auckland this weekend, as one of motorsport's most anticipated events comes to town.

The V8 Supercars will mark ANZAC Day with a race in New Zealand. The race on Friday will start a big weekend of action where one of Ford's young stars is setting his sights on mixing it with the leaders.

The three New Zealand contenders at this week's ITM 500 at Pukekohe will be tapping into the Anzac spirit as they look to post an elusive home V8 Supercars victory.

The grand old lady of New Zealand motor racing circuits, Pukekohe Raceway, put on one hell of a display in welcoming back the V8 Supercars circus last year after a five-year hiatus.

Kiwi motorsport veteran Ross Stone has a win at the iconic Bathurst circuit and a couple of V8 Supercar championships to his name.