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2015 Clipsal 500 – Day 2: V8 Supercars live coverage, blog

The Phillip Island Grand Prix Circuit. (Photo: Red Bull Racing)
Roar Guru
28th February, 2015
119

Can anyone stop Jamie Whincup winning Races 1 and 2 of the V8 Supercar Championship? Find out as The Roar live blogs Race 1 and 2 of the Clipsal 500 from 2:15pm AEDT.

That’s the question on everyone’s mind after the 2015 V8 Supercar championship started yesterday in Adelaide.

Whincup, who is chasing his 7th V8 Supercar title, dominated qualifying to take pole for races one and two of the championship in Adelaide.

Just who is going to stop him today will be the key to the race.

If anyone thought Whincup would have a championship hangover, after winning four straight titles and six overall, those thoughts were immediately put to rest by the Triple 888 driver.

His two laps that secured pole position broke the lap record for a V8 Supercar around the streets of Adelaide.

He has come to fight and dominate again this year.

Historically the Clipsal 500 has been a race won by only a handful of drivers.

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Just 11 have tasted victory in the 16 year history of the event.

Most of those winners – 7 – have won races for two teams that have dominated here.

Triple 888 racing and the Holden Racing Team have won 22 of the 33 races completed in Adelaide.

This includes 15 of the last 18 races with only Shane Van Gisbergen, Will Davison and Rick Kelly winning for a different team.

It is an incredible record that Whincup and James Courtney will look to continue today.

Courtney, for HRT, was the best placed Walkinshaw driver and will start today’s races in 5th and 3rd respectively.

This season is a big one for HRT. They are celebrating 25 years as a team after debuting in 1990.

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A championship title, after a 12 year drought, would be the perfect birthday present.

HRT will be hoping to shine today.

The best chance to break the run of HRT and Triple 888, looks to come from Fabian Coulthard and Scott McLaughlin.

McLaughlin, who qualified third and second, was the best of the rest after Whincup.

The Volvo, prepared by Garry Rogers Motorsport, looks strong again for 2015 and capable of giving McLaughlin a shot at the title.

He is every chance of beating Whincup this weekend.

Fellow New Zealander, Fabian Coulthard, also performed well yesterday qualifying in 2nd and 4th for today’s races.

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He will be looking to start the year in style with a victory around the streets of Adelaide.
Today drivers will complete two 39 lap races in the continuation of the format which started last year.

After the success of the format last year, everyone will be hoping for a repeat of what happened in Race 2 in 2014.

In a great battle between Whincup and McLaughlin, the young kiwi, in his new Volvo, would overtake Whincup in the final corner to steal second position from the six time champion.

His comments in the post-race interview, where he accidentally swore and used jandal in a sentence, has become folklore in V8 Supercars.

If today’s races are a repeat of last year then we are all in for a good show today.

Join The Roar as we live blog the race start of the 2015 championship.

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