V8s give Middle East a tune-up

It was an all Team Vodafone front row for race one of the 2011 season, as Craig Lowndes claimed pole position ahead of teammate Jamie Whincup. However, it was Ford’s Alex Davison who got the jump from the second row, taking the pack around turn one.

His brother Will was also in the thick of things, but not how he would have liked, spinning off the road before returning backwards. Warren Luff, Dean Fiore and David Reynolds did an excellent job to avoid contact with the FPR Falcon.

On lap four there were massive dramas for Jason Bright in his new BOC Commodore, with the engine blowing.

Whincup made an easy pass on Alex Davison to take the lead, as defending champion James Courtney was heading to the pits with damage.

On lap 21, Lowndes was passed by young gun Tim Slade.

However, his teammate Whincup led the race with a comfortable lead of seven seconds.

The battle for second place was heating up between Mark Winterbottom and Alex Davison, but was resolved on lap 28 when Davison jumped Winterbottom in the pits.

On lap 32 Courtney was struggling in his new HRT Commodore, spinning on the track.

But all eyes were on Whincup as he crossed the line on lap 43 to take the first race of the year, making it three from three at Abu Dhabi.

Alex Davison followed in second and Winterbottom in a close third place. Courtney finished in 26th position.

In race two there was a familiar sight on the front row, with Whincup taking pole alongside Lowndes.

Like the day before, a crash took place on lap one, this time involving Garth Tander, Slade, Todd Kelly and Tony D’Alberto.

This time it was much more serious, resulting in the safety car making its first appearance of 2011 and leaving Tander and Slade walking back to pit lane.

Steve Owen served a pit lane penalty after an unsafe release during the safety car period. With the safety car still in effect, Winterbottom snatched top spot from Whincup during a pit stop and with the slow speed of the safety car, the two came out alongside it, causing a great deal of confusion in the order.

On lap seven, Steven Johnson did not hesitate during the restart, passing Whincup to take the lead.

Whincup was still hot on his tail and by lap 12 the two-time champ made his move successfully.

An unusual error from Lowndes caused the safety car to appear yet again.

Courtney, penalised 50 championship points for an incident in race one, was leader after the restart but by lap 37 it was apparent that his fuel might not last him to the end.

On lap 40, Bright was gaining on Courtney and got the job done.

However, the race was not over yet, with Courtney giving Bright everything he had left in the tank, resulting him in regaining the lead on lap 42.

Fuel was going to be the main issue in this race to the finish but somehow Courtney managed to hold on to take the win, making it his first for the year and his first for HRT.

Bright finished in second place and Whincup third despite speculation over contact with Jason Bargwanna.

The next event will be the Clipsal 500 in Adelaide, from March 17-20.