The new soft-compound 'sprint' tyres we raced on at Winton last weekend
created plenty of interest and proved a big success.

There is no doubt the extra grip from the optional Dunlop V8 Sport Maxx
'sprint' tyres resulted in more on-track passing moves in round three of
the V8 Supercar Championship.

All the drivers relished the additional passing opportunities, and this
improved the entertainment for fans at the track and television viewers
watching the racing on Channel 7.

On Monday I attended a function in Albury for JELD-WEN, one of my
personal sponsors, and many of those present commented how the 'sprint'
tyres made the racing more exciting.

Before the Winton event, the Ford Falcons and Holden Commodores in the
championship raced exclusively with durable and relatively
consistently-wearing Dunlop 'control' tyres.

However, this year V8 Supercars Australia introduced a rule that makes
in it is compulsory for cars to be fitted with a set of 'sprint' tyres
at some stage during either of the two races in the events at Winton,
plus Symmons Plains, Hidden Valley, Sandown, Queensland Raceway, and
Barbagallo.

After the success at Winton, I won't be surprised if V8SA may consider
introducing the 'sprint' tyres to other events, especially at some of
the street circuits where overtaking is traditionally difficult.

The aim of the 'sprint' tyres is to have cars circulating on different
types of rubber at any one time, to increase passing opportunities
throughout the field.

The 'sprint' tyres produced lap times that were between two to three
seconds faster, compared to when we were using the 'control' rubber.

I used my allocated set of 'sprint' tyres in the first race at Winton,
and my best lap was 1-minute 23.282-seconds. That was 2.729-seconds
faster than my quickest lap in race two when I drove exclusively on
'control' tyres.

The reason the 'sprint' tyres create faster lap times is you can brake
earlier for corners and accelerate quicker on the exit. You can also
move the car across the track with more precision, whereas on the
'control' tyres you have to coax the car through the corners.

A by-product of using the 'sprint' tyres is the grip levels deteriorate
markedly during a stint, and the lap times then become slower than the
'control' rubber.

So the challenge for the teams is to devise a strategy where you can
maximise the extra grip from the 'sprint' tyres, and then make a pit
stop at the appropriate time and switch to the 'control' tyres.

Regardless of strategy, the best plans can go astray if there is a
Safety Car, so overall there are many variables that can influence the
outcome of a race.

When racing on the 'sprint' rubber, you also use more fuel. In some
instances it may be better to drive a little below 'ten tenths' to
conserve fuel and this also means you retain the extra grip for more
laps.

I finished fifth fastest in qualifying for race one at Winton on
Saturday, and then seventh in the Top 10 Shoot Out.

In the first race I made an early pit-stop and switched to the 'sprint'
tyre with the intention of driving through to the finish.

My team felt this plan would allow me to race in 'clean air' away from
the bulk of the field to maximise the grip of the tyres.

Championship leader Jamie Whincup (Team Vodafone Falcon) and Lee
Holdsworth (Gary Rogers Motorsport) also made early pit-stops and the
three of us started moving through the field.

Unfortunately my car had a rear hub failure and I had to retire from the
race after 17 of the 33 laps. Whincup eventually finished second, and
since I was on the same strategy I felt I was in a strong position for a
podium finish, or top five at worst.

The second race on Sunday was over 66 laps. I qualified 10th and
finished sixth. It was a difficult race because my car wasn't consistent
and developed bad understeer.

I also lost some time exiting the pits. I made my pit-stop on lap 20 and
there was congestion in pit-lane at the time. The pit-lane at Winton is
too narrow when so many cars stop at one time.

I scored 102 championship points for my result in the second race.
Unfortunately I dropped from 10th to 14th in the championship. My
retirement in the first race cost me valuable points, but hopefully I
can make amends in the next event at Symmons Plains (May 29-31).

Keep smiling.

JC

WINTON RESULTS - JAMES COURTNEY
ROUND 3, V8 Supercar Championship, (May 1-3)

Qualifying - Race 1: 5th
Top 10 Shoot Out - Race 1: 7th
Race 1 Result: did not finish (mechanical problem)
Qualifying - Race 2: 10th
Race 2 Result: 6th

CHAMPIONSHIP POINTS (after round 3): Jamie Whincup (Ford) 804; Will
Davison (Holden) 690; Steven Johnson (Ford) 573; Lee Holdsworth (Holden)
534; Rick Kelly (Holden) 531; Garth Tander (Holden) 504; Craig Lowndes
(Ford) 501; Shane Van Gisbergen (Ford) 453; Jason Richards (Holden) 417;
Fabian Coulthard (Ford) 414. Other: James Courtney (Ford) 374.