The 2002 V8 Supercars Sandown round (known for naming rights reasons as the 2002 Betta Electrical V8 Ultimate) was the thirteenth and final round of the 2002 V8 Supercar Championship Series. It was the 31st ATCC/V8 Supercar event to be held at Sandown in the sprint format and was held on the weekend of 29 November to 1 December at the Sandown Raceway in Melbourne, Victoria.

Marcos Ambrose dominated the round by taking pole position and winning both races en route to taking overall round honours. In qualifying, Ambrose exhibited noticeably stronger pace than the rest of the field. In the races, his lead was never in question and won comfortably in a lights-to-flag effort. Greg Murphy claimed second overall to help cement second in the championship standings while Mark Skaife claimed third for the round.

Background The event was held on the weekend of 29 November to 1 December 2002. It was the 31st ATCC/V8 Supercar event to be held at Sandown Raceway and consisted of one 150 km race followed by a 300 km final which would reward double points.

Mark Skaife entered the round as the champion, having already sewn up the championship at the tenth round of the championship at Bathurst. Second place was still up for grabs with the primary contenders being Jason Bright, Marcos Ambrose and Greg Murphy.

Entry list

There were 35 drivers entered into the event with no necessitation for pre-qualifying.

Paul Stokell replaced Anthony Tratt at Paul Little Racing for undisclosed reasons, Simon Wills became the sixth driver to compete for Imrie Motorsport, and Matthew White returned with his privateer outfit. Paul Morris returned to the series after missing the previous rounds on the Gold Coast and New Zealand while the team undertook extensive repair work following Morris' accident at the Bathurst 1000.

Garth Tander was entered under the number 427 for this round in reference to Garry Rogers Motorsport winning the Bathurst 24 Hour for Holden in the Monaro 427.

This was the last V8 Supercar event in which the VT Holden Commodore would be utilised.

Race report Qualifying Ambrose claimed pole position with a time nearly two tenths faster than nearest competitor, Greg Murphy. Ambrose was the only driver to set a time below the 1 minute 11 second bracket.

Pos No Name Team Vehicle Time 1 4 Marcos Ambrose Stone Brothers Racing Ford Falcon (AU) 1:10.9872 2 1 Mark Skaife Holden Racing Team Holden Commodore (VX) 1:11.1006 3 9 David Besnard Stone Brothers Racing Ford Falcon (AU) 1:11.1941 4 8 Russell Ingall Perkins Engineering Holden Commodore (VX) 1:11.2898 5 2 Jason Bright Holden Racing Team Holden Commodore (VX) 1:11.2979 6 51 Greg Murphy Tom Walkinshaw Racing Australia Holden Commodore (VX) 1:11.3264 7 00 Craig Lowndes 00 Motorsport Ford Falcon (AU) 1:11.3372 8 31 Steven Ellery Steven Ellery Racing Ford Falcon (AU) 1:11.3934 9 888 John Bowe Brad Jones Racing Ford Falcon (AU) 1:11.4100 10 15 Todd Kelly Tom Walkinshaw Racing Australia Holden Commodore (VX) 1:11.4813 11 3 Cameron McConville Lansvale Racing Team Holden Commodore (VX) 1:11.5797 12 16 Steven Richards Perkins Engineering Holden Commodore (VX) 1:11.5835 13 40 Cameron McLean Paragon Motorsport Ford Falcon (AU) 1:11.6319 14 65 Max Wilson Briggs Motorsport Ford Falcon (AU) 1:11.6377 15 021 Jason Richards Team Kiwi Racing Holden Commodore (VT) 1:11.6519 16 02 Rick Kelly Holden Young Lions Holden Commodore (VX) 1:11.7259 17 35 Jason Bargwanna Garry Rogers Motorsport Holden Commodore (VX) 1:11.7367 18 17 Steven Johnson Dick Johnson Racing Ford Falcon (AU) 1:11.8553 19 427 Garth Tander Garry Rogers Motorsport Holden Commodore (VX) 1:11.8650 20 7 Rodney Forbes 00 Motorsport Ford Falcon (AU) 1:11.8821 21 11 Larry Perkins Perkins Engineering Holden Commodore (VX) 1:11.9042 22 21 Brad Jones Brad Jones Racing Ford Falcon (AU) 1:11.9165 23 10 Mark Larkham Larkham Motorsport Ford Falcon (AU) 1:11.9384 24 18 Paul Radisich Dick Johnson Racing Ford Falcon (AU) 1:11.9928 25 27 Neil Crompton 00 Motorsport Ford Falcon (AU) 1:12.0160 26 5 Glenn Seton Glenn Seton Racing Ford Falcon (AU) 1:12.0681 27 66 Tony Longhurst Briggs Motorsport Ford Falcon (AU) 1:12.0763 28 46 John Faulkner John Faulkner Racing Holden Commodore (VX) 1:12.0929 29 43 Paul Weel Paul Weel Racing Ford Falcon (AU) 1:12.1094 30 29 Paul Morris Paul Morris Motorsport Holden Commodore (VX) 1:12.1927 31 54 Craig Baird Rod Nash Racing Holden Commodore (VX) 1:12.2773 32 600 Dean Canto Briggs Motorsport Ford Falcon (AU) 1:12.5183 33 24 Matthew White Matthew White Racing Holden Commodore (VT) 1:12.6007 34 75 Paul Stokell Paul Little Racing Ford Falcon (AU) 1:13.1061 35 14 Simon Wills Imrie Motorsport Holden Commodore (VX) 1:13.2836 Source:

Top fifteen shootout Pos No Name Team Vehicle Time 1 4 Marcos Ambrose Stone Brothers Racing Ford Falcon (AU) 1:11.0674 2 00 Craig Lowndes 00 Motorsport Ford Falcon (AU) 1:11.2144 3 9 David Besnard Stone Brothers Racing Ford Falcon (AU) 1:11.7020 4 51 Greg Murphy Tom Walkinshaw Racing Australia Holden Commodore (VX) 1:11.9537 5 16 Steven Richards Perkins Engineering Holden Commodore (VX) 1:12.1726 6 31 Steven Ellery Steven Ellery Racing Ford Falcon (AU) 1:12.1952 7 3 Cameron McConville Lansvale Racing Team Holden Commodore (VX) 1:12.2909 8 15 Todd Kelly Tom Walkinshaw Racing Australia Holden Commodore (VX) 1:12.2948 9 8 Russell Ingall Perkins Engineering Holden Commodore (VX) 1:12.3225 10 65 Max Wilson Briggs Motorsport Ford Falcon (AU) 1:12.3240 11 021 Jason Richards Team Kiwi Racing Holden Commodore (VT) 1:12.3651 12 888 John Bowe Brad Jones Racing Ford Falcon (AU) 1:12.3897 13 2 Jason Bright Holden Racing Team Holden Commodore (VX) 1:13.2296 14 40 Cameron McLean Paragon Motorsport Ford Falcon (AU) 1:13.4826 15 1 Mark Skaife Holden Racing Team Holden Commodore (VX) no time Source:

Race 1 Pos No Name Team Vehicle Laps Time/Retired Grid 1 4 Marcos Ambrose Stone Brothers Racing Ford Falcon (AU) 48 58:30.4851 1 2 51 Greg Murphy Tom Walkinshaw Racing Australia Holden Commodore (VX) 48 + 6.391 4 3 9 David Besnard Stone Brothers Racing Ford Falcon (AU) 48 + 7.624 3 4 15 Todd Kelly Tom Walkinshaw Racing Australia Holden Commodore (VX) 48 + 15.727 8 5 1 Mark Skaife Holden Racing Team Holden Commodore (VX) 48 + 24.474 15 6 16 Steven Richards Perkins Engineering Holden Commodore (VX) 48 + 30.975 5 7 00 Craig Lowndes 00 Motorsport Ford Falcon (AU) 48 + 40.887 2 8 427 Garth Tander Garry Rogers Motorsport Holden Commodore (VX) 48 + 42.675 19 9 888 John Bowe Brad Jones Racing Ford Falcon (AU) 48 + 43.183 12 10 31 Steven Ellery Steven Ellery Racing Ford Falcon (AU) 48 + 48.562 6 11 17 Steven Johnson Dick Johnson Racing Ford Falcon (AU) 48 + 49.212 18 12 27 Neil Crompton 00 Motorsport Ford Falcon (AU) 48 + 49.882 25 13 43 Paul Weel Paul Weel Racing Ford Falcon (AU) 48 + 56.076 29 14 65 Max Wilson Briggs Motorsport Ford Falcon (AU) 48 + 56.930 10 15 66 Tony Longhurst Briggs Motorsport Ford Falcon (AU) 48 + 1:00.381 27 16 021 Jason Richards Team Kiwi Racing Holden Commodore (VT) 48 + 1:01.227 11 17 600 Dean Canto Briggs Motorsport Ford Falcon (AU) 48 + 1:01.763 32 18 21 Brad Jones Brad Jones Racing Ford Falcon (AU) 48 + 1:02.239 22 19 46 John Faulkner John Faulkner Racing Holden Commodore (VX) 48 + 1:02.681 28 20 35 Jason Bargwanna Garry Rogers Motorsport Holden Commodore (VX) 48 + 1:25.635 17 21 54 Craig Baird Rod Nash Racing Holden Commodore (VX) 47 + 1 lap 31 22 5 Glenn Seton Glenn Seton Racing Ford Falcon (AU) 47 + 1 lap 26 23 10 Mark Larkham Larkham Motorsport Ford Falcon (AU) 47 + 1 lap 23 24 75 Paul Stokell Paul Little Racing Ford Falcon (AU) 47 + 1 lap 34 25 8 Russell Ingall Perkins Engineering Holden Commodore (VX) 47 + 1 lap 9 26 7 Rodney Forbes 00 Motorsport Ford Falcon (AU) 47 + 1 lap 20 27 29 Paul Morris Paul Morris Motorsport Holden Commodore (VX) 47 + 1 lap 30 28 14 Simon Wills Imrie Motorsport Holden Commodore (VX) 47 + 1 lap 35 29 18 Paul Radisich Dick Johnson Racing Ford Falcon (AU) 47 + 1 lap 24 30 11 Larry Perkins Perkins Engineering Holden Commodore (VX) 46 + 2 laps 21 31 3 Cameron McConville Lansvale Racing Team Holden Commodore (VX) 46 + 2 laps 7 Ret 02 Rick Kelly Holden Young Lions Holden Commodore (VX) 25 Retired 16 Ret 24 Matthew White Matthew White Racing Holden Commodore (VT) 17 Retired 33 Ret 2 Jason Bright Holden Racing Team Holden Commodore (VX) 15 Retired 13 Ret 40 Cameron McLean Paragon Motorsport Ford Falcon (AU) 12 Retired Fastest Lap: Marcos Ambrose (Stone Brothers Racing) - 1:11.6658 on lap 10 Source:

Race 2 Pos No Name Team Vehicle Laps Time/Retired Grid 1 4 Marcos Ambrose Stone Brothers Racing Ford Falcon (AU) 96 02:28:23.0280 1 2 1 Mark Skaife Holden Racing Team Holden Commodore (VX) 96 + 7.534 5 3 51 Greg Murphy Tom Walkinshaw Racing Australia Holden Commodore (VX) 96 + 11.371 2 4 2 Jason Bright Holden Racing Team Holden Commodore (VX) 96 + 17.131 33 5 02 Rick Kelly Holden Young Lions Holden Commodore (VX) 96 + 17.285 32 6 888 John Bowe Brad Jones Racing Ford Falcon (AU) 96 + 17.826 9 7 9 David Besnard Stone Brothers Racing Ford Falcon (AU) 96 + 26.196 3 8 66 Tony Longhurst Briggs Motorsport Ford Falcon (AU) 96 + 31.728 15 9 43 Paul Weel Paul Weel Racing Ford Falcon (AU) 96 + 35.304 13 10 31 Steven Ellery Steven Ellery Racing Ford Falcon (AU) 96 + 36.497 10 11 35 Jason Bargwanna Garry Rogers Motorsport Holden Commodore (VX) 96 + 37.271 20 12 5 Glenn Seton Glenn Seton Racing Ford Falcon (AU) 96 41.257 22 13 17 Steven Johnson Dick Johnson Racing Ford Falcon (AU) 96 + 41.809 11 14 11 Larry Perkins Perkins Engineering Holden Commodore (VX) 96 + 53.411 30 15 7 Rodney Forbes 00 Motorsport Ford Falcon (AU) 96 + 1:09.432 26 16 21 Brad Jones Brad Jones Racing Ford Falcon (AU) 95 + 1 lap 18 17 00 Craig Lowndes 00 Motorsport Ford Falcon (AU) 95 + 1 lap 7 18 021 Jason Richards Team Kiwi Racing Holden Commodore (VT) 95 + 1 lap 16 19 8 Russell Ingall Perkins Engineering Holden Commodore (VX) 95 + 1 lap 25 20 10 Mark Larkham Larkham Motorsport Ford Falcon (AU) 95 + 1 lap 23 21 40 Cameron McLean Paragon Motorsport Ford Falcon (AU) 91 + 5 laps 34 22 600 Dean Canto Briggs Motorsport Ford Falcon (AU) 87 + 9 laps 17 23 65 Max Wilson Briggs Motorsport Ford Falcon (AU) 82 + 14 laps 14 Ret 14 Simon Wills Imrie Motorsport Holden Commodore (VX) 67 Retired 28 Ret 18 Paul Radisich Dick Johnson Racing Ford Falcon (AU) 62 Retired 29 Ret 15 Todd Kelly Tom Walkinshaw Racing Australia Holden Commodore (VX) 62 Retired 4 Ret 427 Garth Tander Garry Rogers Motorsport Holden Commodore (VX) 62 Retired 8 Ret 16 Steven Richards Perkins Engineering Holden Commodore (VX) 51 Retired 6 Ret 27 Neil Crompton 00 Motorsport Ford Falcon (AU) 50 Retired 12 Ret 46 John Faulkner John Faulkner Racing Holden Commodore (VX) 46 Retired 19 Ret 75 Paul Stokell Paul Little Racing Ford Falcon (AU) 29 Retired 24 Ret 3 Cameron McConville Lansvale Racing Team Holden Commodore (VX) 24 Retired 31 Ret 29 Paul Morris Paul Morris Motorsport Holden Commodore (VX) 22 Retired 27 Ret 54 Craig Baird Rod Nash Racing Holden Commodore (VX) 18 Retired 21 DNS 24 Matthew White Matthew White Racing Holden Commodore (VT) Did not start Fastest Lap: David Besnard (Stone Brothers Racing) - 1:12.060 on lap 62 Source:

Championship points

Round points tally No Driver Team 1 4 Marcos Ambrose Stone Brothers Racing 240 2 51 Greg Murphy Tom Walkinshaw Racing Australia 166 3 1 Mark Skaife Holden Racing Team 163 4 9 David Besnard Stone Brothers Racing 109 5 888 John Bowe Brad Jones Racing 88

Drivers' Championship standings No Driver Team 1 1 Mark Skaife Holden Racing Team 2227 2 51 Greg Murphy Tom Walkinshaw Racing Australia 1569 3 4 Marcos Ambrose Stone Brothers Racing 1498 4 2 Jason Bright Holden Racing Team 1459 5 15 Todd Kelly Tom Walkinshaw Racing Australia 1345

References