Supercars – Adelaide 500 – Preview

There’ll be six Ford Mustangs and no Ford Falcons. Craig Lowndes won’t be racing and Mark Winterbottom will drive a Holden Commodore. This weekend’s Adelaide 500 is shaping up to be the most anticipated start to a Supercars Championship in recent memory.

Perhaps the most anticipated part of the weekend will be the introduction of Tickford Racing and DJR Team Penske’s new Mustang Supercars. There’ll be six of them, driven by reigning champion Scott McLaughlin, Fabian Coulthard, Chaz Mostert, Cameron Waters, Lee Holdsworth and Will Davison. During their first hit out at testing at Phillip Island earlier this month, all six cars finished within the top ten, while Waters (Tickford), Coulthard (DJRTP) and Mostert (Tickford) rounded out the top three. Although testing does not determine how cars will fare in a race, the Ford drivers are confident they can transfer those results into the Championship in 2019.

“It’s going to be a big challenge for us to make these things quick out of the box, but I think our test day proves that we’re not far away,” Holdsworth told tickfordracing.com.au.

Craig Lowndes has passed on the ‘veteran driver’ baton to Rick Kelly, who’ll make his 18th appearance at the Adelaide 500 this weekend. Lowndes, meanwhile, will make his commentary debut after retiring from full-time racing at the end of 2018. In a column for redbull.com, Lowndes admitted preparing for his first trackside job has been vastly different from anything he’s experienced before.

“…I keep feeling like I should be taking my helmet or be in meetings with the team,” he wrote.

“It’s a combination of feeling like that and also like a new kid would on his first day of school, I suppose.”

The most significant driver change for the 2019 season has been Irwin Racing’s signing of Mark Winterbottom. For the first time in his career, ‘Frosty’ will ditch the blue oval and drive a Holden Commodore. After limping to 12th overall in the championship last year, Winterbottom told Fox Sports he is relishing his time at his new team.

“It’s a small family. I’ve gone from 80 people to 15 so I know everyone’s name, know everyone’s deal and I feel at home and I feel really good, and that’s why I want to hit the track,” he said.

Eagle-eyed viewers will notice a change in the track this year, following controversy in qualifying in 2018. A tyre wall has been placed right behind the kerb at turn seven to prevent drivers from driving outside of track limits. On Fox Sports, Lowndes labelled the change as a “great move.”

“The track itself hasn’t changed. Drivers that have had the mentality to use the road, it’s definitely going to be in favour of them. But the guys that have been cheating it, they’re the ones that are disappointed about the whole thing,” Lowndes said.

The weather is set to play a critical role on Friday and Saturday with the Bureau of Meteorology predicted maximum temperatures of 40 degrees Celsius. This means drivers could be sitting in temperatures upwards of 60 degrees in their cars. As a result, Supercars has employed its heat policy, which requires drivers to use a cooling system. Supercars will monitor drivers’ cool suits, while a medical expert will be on hand to monitor the drivers.

With six former winners on the grid, the two 250km races on Saturday and Sunday are anybody’s game. The Red Bull Holden Racing Team could be considered the favourite heading into the weekend, with Jamie Whincup being the most successful driver to contest the Adelaide 500, and Shane van Gisbergen coming off two wins and two pole positions in both 2018 and 2017.