Top five finishes for McIntyre and Richards at V8SuperTourers

John McIntyre and team-mate Steven Richards finished the first-ever round of V8SuperTourer racing with top five places in the third and longest race of the weekend.

McIntyre bought the #47 Blackwood Protector FG Falcon home in second place, with Richards in the #556 CRC-backed Ford V8SuperTourer finishing fourth in the 30-lap feature race.

“Being on the podium today is largely down to the team who keep toiling all weekend,” says the Nelson-based three-time New Zealand V8 touring car champion. “We’ve had some long nights and we really struggled with the cars this weekend, which just aren’t where we want them to be. But in that last race, we’ve had more passing than I’ve seen in touring car racing for a long time. My congratulations to Ant Pedersen for winning the first feature race – having Murph, and now Ant, win races at our first weekend highlights the fact this has been a phenomenally competitive start for this new category.”

Richards also felt happier to finish the weekend on the podium after being tapped by another competitor in the weekend’s second race, as he was in the first on Saturday afternoon.

“We’ve had a relatively solid day today, so full credit to the whole JMR team who have put in some long hours,” says the Melbourne-based Kiwi. “To have two cars in the top five in the final race was a great result and shows we’re heading in the right direction. Between now and the next round in Christchurch in April, there’s a lot more hard work to do.”

Sunday morning’s 25-lap race saw McIntyre finish sixth, having started ninth, and Richards came through from 13th to tenth. McIntyre’s mid-pack to-and-fro battle with Andy Knight was described by commentators as the ‘battle of the race’. Greg Murphy won the race from Jonny Reid and Kayne Scott.

“It was significant to note that both JMR cars were delivering faster and faster laps as the race went on – both John and I achieved our quickest lap in the 23rd of 25 laps,” says Richards. “This highlights the fact the tyres are performing consistently as well.”

The grid for Sunday’s third race was determined by points earned from qualifying and the first two races – McIntyre started 8th and Richards 11th. The intensity of competition stepped up another notch with considerably more passing and ‘panel rubbing’.

“The third race really was intense. We had safety cars and plenty of passing – I had a great battle with Andy Booth while trying to defend against Andy Knight. There was certainly a lot going on and it was great to come through to end the weekend with a podium place,” says McIntyre, who finished second to Auckland’s Ant Pedersen with Gold Coast-based Kiwi Scott McLaughlin third between McIntyre and Richards.

“From here, I think we’re only going to see the racing get closer and closer as everyone learns more about the cars. We can’t wait for round two in Christchurch at Easter!”

The inaugural season of V8SuperTourer racing comprises a four-round sprint championship and a three-round endurance championship. In the sprint championship standings, McIntyre is sixth with 411 points and Richards is tenth with 328. Murphy leads the series with two race wins and 625 points.

The next V8SuperTourer round takes place at Easter when John McIntyre Racing heads to Christchurch for three races over two days at Powerbuilt Tools Raceway.

More information about McIntyre, Richard and the team can be found on www.jmr.co.nz, or follow John McIntyre Racing on Facebook or ‘JohnMcIntyreRac’ on Twitter.