At 31 years old, Jamie Whincup stands on the brink of Australian motorsport history, and yet few seem to appreciate his achievements.
The five-time V8 Supercars champion and four-time Bathurst 1000 winner is one more title away from moving to the top of the Most Driver’s Championships list, one ahead of Ian Geoghegan, Dick Johnson and Mark Skaife.
This record comes despite being at a relatively young age in terms of touring cars and, should he remain in V8 Supercars, has a long career ahead to further add to his tally.
Whincup took the lead of the 2014 V8 Supercars championship with two wins from three races at Queensland Raceway last weekend, as part of a mid-season charge where he has overcome the deficit from some early-season struggles.
So will a record-breaking sixth championship earn Whincup the respect he deserves and put him in the debate of who is the best current Australian sportsman?
Whincup perhaps lacks that respect because of the sport he’s in. So many in the Australian mainstream still don’t consider motorsport a sport.
Also, for much of his championship years there’s been Aussies doing well in the international motorsport scene – Casey Stoner, Mark Webber and now Daniel Ricciardo, overshadowing Whincup’s achievements closer to home.
There’s also the consideration that Whincup has done all his winning with the Triple Eight team, the undoubted benchmark operation in V8 Supercars. But with the team’s switch from Ford to Holden, Whincup has won across both manufacturers.
Had it not been for unreliability in Triple Eight’s first season running Holdens in 2010 and a three-point swing in 2007, Whincup would have won every V8 Supercars championship from 2007 to 2013 – seven on the trot in such a competitive era.
The argument that Triple Eight’s strengths have overplayed Whincup’s talents also forgets that within that team he has consistently beaten who many consider to be one of Australian touring car’s all-time greats, Craig Lowndes.
Teammate comparisons are the easiest way to rate drivers given the same equipment and support. And Whincup has beaten Lowndes in the standings in every season since 2007 and is ahead of him again in 2014.
And therein lies the problem for Whincup. His achievements are overshadowed because he is consistently beating the most popular driver in the series, the established household name.
Whincup is more reserved than fan-favourite Lowndes, so it’s too easy for some to characterise his demeanour as arrogant when it’s directly compared to a driver who engages the public in the same unique way as his mentor, the late Peter Brock.
People also want to see new winners and storylines emerge, so a driver dominating any sporting contest will typically put neutrals offside. Throw in Australia’s tall-poppy syndrome, and the fact that Triple Eight originally hails from the United Kingdom, and his appeal is further affected.
Whincup’s appeal was also never closely aligned to a specific manufacturer. Lowndes, Mark Winterbottom and the then recently departed Marcos Ambrose were Ford’s main flag bearers. And when Triple Eight switched over to Holden, Whincup was still seen as manufacturer neutral.
Perhaps the return of Ambrose or a successful switch to another manufacturer/team will give fans more reason to appreciate Whincup.
But those fans should salute Whincup’s achievements and take a moment to reflect on the significance of his potential sixth championship in 2014. There’s no doubt he’s among the greats and is putting up a strong case for being the greatest.
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