Stone Brothers Racing finished strongly at Oran Park’s NRMA Motoring and Servcies Grand Finale today with JELD-WEN Motorsport’s James Courtney and SP Tools Racing’s Shane van Gisbergen racing their way into the top five in this afternoon’s final race.

Courtney had his battles today, making a great start in this morning’s 46-lap race to move from fifth to third place early only to fall back to fifth as he struggled with tyres, then further to eighth when he was squeezed by Craig Lowndes, allowing Lowndes, Rick Kelly and Michael Caruso through.

Things steadied after the JELD-WEN Motorsport Falcon made its compulsory pit stop on lap nine and Courtney picked up two positions to cross the line in sixth place.

Courtney replicated his slick start in today’s final race to move from sixth to fourth position on the opening lap, the JELD-WEN Motorsport driver settling in fifth.

The JELD-WEN Motorsport Falcon pitted early on lap six and then inherited fourth position when Steven Richards served a ten second penalty for a jump start during his compulsory stop.

Courtney’s fourth place in race three was enough to secure fifth for the round and sixth position in the 2008 V8 Supercar drivers’ championship.

After a tough day at the office yesterday, team-mate van Gisbergen put in a gritty performance in this morning’s race to climb into 13th position after starting from the rear of the grid.

The SP Tools Racing driver had made his way to 19th prior to his compulsory pit stop on lap 18.

Fresh rubber saw him pick off the likes of Paul Dumbrell, Jason Richards, Greg Murphy, Will Davison and Mark Winterbottom on his way to 12th position by lap 39.

Winterbottom was able to fight back however, passing the 19-year-old three laps later, van Gisbergen settling for 13th place.

The SP Tools Racing driver continued his forward charge in race three, van Gisbergen completing a steady start prior to his compulsory stop on lap 14, sitting in seventh place during the safety car period between lap 16 and 20.

Van Gisbergen made his move after the safety car restart, passing Michael Caruso on lap 21 and Jason Bright on lap 25 to claim fifth place which he held until the chequered flag.

Van Gisbergen’s recovery today following his retirement from race one yesterday saw him move back up to 15th position in the V8 Supercar drivers’ championship standings. The SP Tools Racing driver finished 16th for the round.

In the Fujitsu V8 Supercar Series, SBR’s Jonathon Webb battled it out in wet conditions to take sixth place in today’s race which was enough to secure third in the Fujitsu V8 Supercar Series.

James Courtney, #4, JELD-WEN Motorsport
“It was a good way to go out today.

“We didn’t have the best car on the circuit this weekend but we were able to keep it on the track, keep it clean and come away with fifth for the round.

“I’ve had a great three years with SBR; there has been some highs and lows as there is in any sport but today has been a good positive note to go out on.”

Shane van Gisbergen, #9, SP Tools Racing
“We had two very good races today.

“We made up a lot of spots in this morning’s race and we were able to follow Winterbottom through and then we were able to follow it up with another strong race this afternoon.

“Today’s results gut us back into the top 15 in the championship which is what we came here to achieve this weekend.

“We know we can do the job next year.”

V8 Supercars Meeting Points
1. Garth Tander 260 pts
2. Craig Lowndes 252 pts
3. Rick Kelly 236 pts
4. Russell Ingall 226 pts
5. James Courtney 222 pts
6. Steven Richards 202 pts
7. Jason Bright 172 pts
8. Michael Caruso 160 pts
9. Fabian Coulthard 146 pts
10. Paul Morris 140 pts
16. Shane Van Gisbergen 118 pts

V8 Supercars Championship Points
1. Jamie Whincup 3332 pts
2. Mark Winterbottom 3079 pts
3. Garth Tander 3048 pts
4. Craig Lowndes 2871 pts
5. Will Davison 2495 pts
6. James Courtney 2446 pts
7. Rick Kelly 2430 pts
8. Steven Richards 2416 pts
9. Russell Ingall 2236 pts
10. Steven Johnson 2163 pts
15. Shane Van Gisbergen 1614 pts

V8 Supercars – Race 3
1. Rick Kelly
2. Garth Tander
3. Craig Lowndes
4. James Courtney
5. Shane Van Gisbergen
6. Lee Holdsworth
7. Jason Bright
8. Fabian Coulthard
9. Paul Morris
10. Michael Caruso    

V8 Supercars – Race 2
1. Garth Tander
2. Russell Ingall
3. Steven Richards
4. Rick Kelly
5. Craig Lowndes
6. James Courtney
7. Jason Bright
8. Todd Kelly
9. Steven Johnson
10. Fabian Coulthard
13. Shane Van Gisbergen