The 2013 ITM 400 Auckland was a motor race meeting for the Australasian sedan-based V8 Supercars Championship. It was the third event of the 2013 season and took place over four 100 kilometer races. Following the collapse of the Hamilton 400, this event marked the return of Pukekohe Park Raceway to the schedule and was the first running of the Auckland event since 2007.
The weekend saw the emergence of future champion, Scott McLaughlin, who captured his first win in the category after debuting full-time earlier that year. This year also saw the introduction of the Jason Richards Memorial Trophy; an award presented to the driver with the highest accumulated point total from the event. The inaugural trophy would be won by Jason Bright. It was an emotional win for Bright and his team, Brad Jones Racing. Richards had driven for the team and remained an integral part of the outfit before his death.
Background Not long after the V8 Supercar category started racing in New Zealand in 2001, Pukekohe's place on the calendar had remained in question. From 2004, alternative venues were explored, eventually culminating in the series leaving the Franklin venue for a street circuit in Hamilton from 2008 onwards. However, with the event reportedly costing the Hamilton ratepayer upwards of $40 million to host the event, the resulting friction between the local government and event organisers ultimately led to the series leaving the city after the 2012 event. In a bid to have the series return to Auckland, a race at Whenuapai airbase was explored for 2013 onwards. However, these plans never materialised, leaving negotiators back at square one and the series' future in New Zealand, once again, unclear.
After extensive talks regarding improvements to track facilities, a five-year agreement was penned between V8 Supercars, the Auckland Tourism Events and Economic Development (ATEED), New Zealand Government, Auckland Council and Counties Racing Club, to have the championship return to Pukekohe Park Raceway for 2013. Improvements to the circuit included track resurfacing, enhanced viewing areas and an additional overhead bridge between the hairpin and pit entry. The armco barriers around the circuit, which were a major source of contention regarding circuit safety, were replaced by concrete barriers, fit with catch fencing, left over by the now-defunct Hamilton event. Perhaps the biggest change made to the circuit ahead of its return was the introduction of a chicane on the back straight. This was initiated to arrest the high speeds of the cars, as well as create more overtaking opportunities. The cost of all aforementioned changes to the circuit totaled $6.6 million.
Race report Race 6 Qualifying Name Team Car Time 1 1 Jamie Whincup Triple Eight Race Engineering Holden Commodore (VF) 1:02.5597 2 14 Fabian Coulthard Brad Jones Racing Holden Commodore (VF) 1:02.8534 3 5 Mark Winterbottom Ford Performance Racing Ford Falcon (FG) 1:03.0533 4 34 Alexandre Prémat Garry Rogers Motorsport Holden Commodore (VF) 1:03.0697 5 8 Jason Bright Brad Jones Racing Holden Commodore (VF) 1:03.0861 6 888 Craig Lowndes Triple Eight Race Engineering Holden Commodore (VF) 1:03.1018 7 97 Shane van Gisbergen Tekno Autosports Holden Commodore (VF) 1:03.1028 8 55 David Reynolds Rod Nash Racing Ford Falcon (FG) 1:03.1290 9 2 Garth Tander Holden Racing Team Holden Commodore (VF) 1:03.1350 10 33 Scott McLaughlin Garry Rogers Motorsport Holden Commodore (VF) 1:03.1526 11 6 Will Davison Ford Performance Racing Ford Falcon (FG) 1:03.1925 12 22 James Courtney Holden Racing Team Holden Commodore (VF) 1:03.1955 13 19 Jonathon Webb Tekno Autosports Holden Commodore (VF) 1:03.3669 14 18 Alex Davison Charlie Schwerkolt Racing Ford Falcon (FG) 1:03.3694 15 15 Rick Kelly Nissan Motorsport Nissan Altima (L33) 1:03.3936 16 17 Tim Blanchard Dick Johnson Racing Ford Falcon (FG) 1:03.4040 17 36 Michael Caruso Nissan Motorsport Nissan Altima (L33) 1:03.4115 18 21 David Wall Britek Motorsport Holden Commodore (VF) 1:03.4553 19 7 Todd Kelly Nissan Motorsport Nissan Altima (L33) 1:03.4815 20 3 Tony D'Alberto Tony D'Alberto Racing Holden Commodore (VF) 1:03.4895 21 4 Lee Holdsworth Erebus Motorsport Mercedes-Benz E63 AMG 1:03.5145 22 66 Russell Ingall Walkinshaw Racing Holden Commodore (VF) 1:03.5191 23 88 Dean Fiore Lucas Dumbrell Motorsport Holden Commodore (VF) 1:03.5799 24 360 James Moffat Nissan Motorsport Nissan Altima (L33) 1:03.6664 25 12 Jonny Reid Dick Johnson Racing Ford Falcon (FG) 1:03.8677 26 9 Maro Engel Erebus Motorsport Mercedes-Benz E63 AMG 1:03.9717 27 47 Tim Slade James Rosenberg Racing Mercedes-Benz E63 AMG no time Source:
Top Ten Shootout Name Team Car Time 1 1 Jamie Whincup Triple Eight Race Engineering Holden Commodore (VF) 1:02.7600 2 5 Mark Winterbottom Ford Performance Racing Ford Falcon (FG) 1:03.0138 3 8 Jason Bright Brad Jones Racing Holden Commodore (VF) 1:03.0468 4 33 Scott McLaughlin Garry Rogers Motorsport Holden Commodore (VF) 1:03.2060 5 97 Shane van Gisbergen Tekno Autosports Holden Commodore (VF) 1:03.3183 6 34 Alexandre Prémat Garry Rogers Motorsport Holden Commodore (VF) 1:03.3438 7 2 Garth Tander Holden Racing Team Holden Commodore (VF) 1:03.3923 8 55 David Reynolds Rod Nash Racing Ford Falcon (FG) 1:03.7041 9 888 Craig Lowndes Triple Eight Race Engineering Holden Commodore (VF) 1:04.6049 EXC 14 Fabian Coulthard Brad Jones Racing Holden Commodore (VF) time excluded Source:
Race Drama struck early as Whincup was eliminated from contention early owing to a puncture on the front-right tyre. He was forced to pit, ceded the lead to Winterbottom and emerged from the pitlane in last place. To pour salt on the wounds, he was then issued a drive-through penalty for speeding in the pitlane. Meanwhile, Premat was issued a 10-second time penalty for a false start.
On lap 12, Winterbottom's commanding lead was evaporated after his rear-left tyre exploded on the back straight. This misfortune gifted the lead to McLaughlin, much to the adulation of the local crowd. The excessive debris left from the tyre explosion warranted a safety car and thus limited the damage time-wise for Winterbottom. As the race resumed, McLaughlin sought to put as much distance between himself and the chasing pack. Premat was still yet to serve his penalty but for the time being remained a rear-gunner for his teammate. This lasted for only a couple laps, after which time, Premat speared off into the escape from at turn five. It was soon revealed that the brake pedal had gone to the floor and was forced to retire from the race. This left Bright free to chase after McLaughlin.
Tander strayed wide at turn three and lost third place to Lowndes. James Moffat was shuffled down the order when he slid off the track at turn three. McLaughlin withheld the pressure from Bright and came home to win the first race at Pukekohe since its return to the V8 Supercar calendar. This was also McLaughlin's first win in the category and Garry Rogers Motorsport's first win in since the 2010 Sydney 500. Name Team Laps Time Points 1 33 Scott McLaughlin Garry Rogers Motorsport 35 39min 54.9226sec 75 2 8 Jason Bright Brad Jones Racing 35 + 0.82 69 3 888 Craig Lowndes Triple Eight Race Engineering 35 + 1.31 64 4 97 Shane van Gisbergen Tekno Autosports 35 + 2.46 60 5 14 Fabian Coulthard Brad Jones Racing 35 + 3.29 55 6 2 Garth Tander Holden Racing Team 35 + 4.80 51 7 6 Will Davison Ford Performance Racing 35 + 5.03 48 8 55 David Reynolds Rod Nash Racing 35 + 6.41 45 9 22 James Courtney Holden Racing Team 35 + 7.71 42 10 19 Jonathon Webb Tekno Autosports 35 + 11.22 39 11 18 Alex Davison Charlie Schwerkolt Racing 35 + 11.59 36 12 15 Rick Kelly Nissan Motorsport 35 + 12.63 34 13 36 Michael Caruso Nissan Motorsport 35 + 13.16 33 14 66 Russell Ingall Walkinshaw Racing 35 + 13.76 31 15 17 Tim Blanchard Dick Johnson Racing 35 + 15.74 30 16 3 Tony D'Alberto Tony D'Alberto Racing 35 + 16.09 28 17 7 Todd Kelly Nissan Motorsport 35 + 16.73 27 18 4 Lee Holdsworth Erebus Motorsport 35 + 17.47 25 19 5 Mark Winterbottom Ford Performance Racing 35 + 17.87 24 20 88 Dean Fiore Lucas Dumbrell Motorsport 35 + 20.28 22 21 21 David Wall Britek Motorsport 35 + 20.77 21 22 360 James Moffat Nissan Motorsport 35 + 21.73 19 23 12 Jonny Reid Dick Johnson Racing 35 + 23.15 18 24 9 Maro Engel Erebus Motorsport 35 + 23.81 16 25 47 Tim Slade James Rosenberg Racing 35 + 24.24 15 26 1 Jamie Whincup Triple Eight Race Engineering 34 + 1 lap 13 Ret 34 Alexandre Prémat Garry Rogers Motorsport 19 Brakes 12 Fastest lap: Mark Winterbottom (Ford Performance Racing), 1:03.7638 Source:
Race 7 Qualifying Name Team Car Time 1 14 Fabian Coulthard Brad Jones Racing Holden Commodore (VF) 1:02.6310 2 888 Craig Lowndes Triple Eight Race Engineering Holden Commodore (VF) 1:02.6774 3 1 Jamie Whincup Triple Eight Race Engineering Holden Commodore (VF) 1:02.7217 4 6 Will Davison Ford Performance Racing Ford Falcon (FG) 1:02.8310 5 5 Mark Winterbottom Ford Performance Racing Ford Falcon (FG) 1:02.8897 6 2 Garth Tander Holden Racing Team Holden Commodore (VF) 1:02.9474 7 55 David Reynolds Rod Nash Racing Ford Falcon (FG) 1:02.9690 8 8 Jason Bright Brad Jones Racing Holden Commodore (VF) 1:02.9938 9 33 Scott McLaughlin Garry Rogers Motorsport Holden Commodore (VF) 1:03.0351 10 22 James Courtney Holden Racing Team Holden Commodore (VF) 1:03.1014 11 97 Shane van Gisbergen Tekno Autosports Holden Commodore (VF) 1:03.1498 12 15 Rick Kelly Nissan Motorsport Nissan Altima (L33) 1:03.1895 13 4 Lee Holdsworth Erebus Motorsport Mercedes-Benz E63 AMG 1:03.2062 14 34 Alexandre Prémat Garry Rogers Motorsport Holden Commodore (VF) 1:03.2087 15 21 David Wall Britek Motorsport Holden Commodore (VF) 1:03.2358 16 36 Michael Caruso Nissan Motorsport Nissan Altima (L33) 1:03.2905 17 360 James Moffat Nissan Motorsport Nissan Altima (L33) 1:03.2962 18 19 Jonathon Webb Tekno Autosports Holden Commodore (VF) 1:03.3483 19 18 Alex Davison Charlie Schwerkolt Racing Ford Falcon (FG) 1:03.3892 20 66 Russell Ingall Walkinshaw Racing Holden Commodore (VF) 1:03.4415 21 88 Dean Fiore Lucas Dumbrell Motorsport Holden Commodore (VF) 1:03.4802 22 9 Maro Engel Erebus Motorsport Mercedes-Benz E63 AMG 1:03.8194 23 3 Tony D'Alberto Tony D'Alberto Racing Holden Commodore (VF) 1:03.8495 24 7 Todd Kelly Nissan Altima (L33) Nissan Motorsport 1:03.9588 EXC 12 Jonny Reid Dick Johnson Racing Ford Falcon (FG) time excluded EXC 17 Tim Blanchard Dick Johnson Racing Ford Falcon (FG) time excluded Source:
Race Confusion reigned immediately as Fabian Coulthard jumped the start while Lee Holdsworth didn't move at all owing to a clutch issue. Coulthard's jump resulted in a ten-second penalty while Whincup and Lowndes scrapped for the effective lead of the race. The race remained relatively placid until lap 14 when Tim Slade spun off at turn one and was stranded on the circuit at turn two. He stalled and couldn't re-fire his car, thus resulting in a safety car.
When the race resumed, drivers jostled for position. A battle between Reynolds and Tander borked Bright who came under attack from van Gisbergen. The Tekno Autosports driver completed the move into turn one. But once they reached there, multiple drivers - including van Gisbergen, Bright, James Courtney and McLaughlin - spun off the track. Meanwhile, Winterbottom completed a move on teammate, Will Davison, and began his charge after the Triple Eight cars. Courtney's car was beached in the gravel trap and warranted a second safety car period.