Russell Ingall Wins 2005 V8 Supercars Championship,
Stone Brothers Racings Third Consecutive Championship
Release Date: 27/11/2005
www.v8supercars.com.au
Stone Brothers Racing’s Russell Ingall claimed his first V8 Supercar crown at the BigPond Grand Finale at Phillip Island Raceway in Victoria today.
In his 10th year of V8 Supercar competition, Ingall finished fifth in the two final heats of the final round in his Caltex Falcon to collect his maiden crown ahead of fellow Ford driver Craig Lowndes.
Ingall’s SBR team-mate Marcos Ambrose finished his V8 Supercar career in style and gave Ford the V8 Supercar manufacturers’ title when he won the round with wins in both of today’s 32-lap races.
Ambrose, who won the last two V8 Supercar Championships, finished third in this year’s title chase in his Pirtek Falcon and now heads to the US to chase a career in the NASCAR series.
Ingall’s victory was the third consecutive championship victory for the Stone Brothers Racing outfit.
In the end he won the championship with 1922 points from Craig Lowndes (1865), Ambrose (1856), Todd Kelly (1760), Mark Skaife (1754) and Garth Tander (1734).
WHAT THEY HAD TO SAY…..
RUSSELL INGALL – CALTEX RACING
“I have a little bit of mixed emotions, but I am glad its over,” said Ingall.
“I guess I am waiting for it all to sink in. Maybe that will happen after a few VBs with the Caltex crew tonight.
“This is a fantastic result for Ford, Caltex, Bosch and everyone involved with Stone Brothers Racing.
“So many people have worked so hard for this moment and I am happy it has finally come.
“I had a few moments out there in both races, but I guess they all seem “moments” when you have the championship on the line.
“At the end of the day, you don’t slower in the head as you get older, just physically.
“If you can keep yourself fit, you are in the game and I plan to do that for sometime yet.
“Now we have number one on the door we are the target for next season and we need to ensure we are ready.
“We will review of weaknesses over Christmas and fix them. Then we can blast into 2006 as the champions.
“You have to be smart and quick to win this championship. You have to do absolutely everything. What ever it takes.
“Our job was made easier this weekend because the Caltex Falcon was quick, but because of our situation we could not really show how quick it was.”
MARCOS AMBROSE – PIRTEK RACING
“My time in V8 Supercars has been pretty special and to go out with a win like we did today and give Ford the manufacturers’ title is extra special,” said Ambrose.
“I have built up some tremendous friendships in this series up and down pit lane then you have everyone at Ford and Pirtek.
“I have many great friends in the Pirtek organisation and I will certainly miss those guys next year.
“There was a tear in my eye there at the end, but at the same time I am excited about what lies ahead.
“I had a terrific car this weekend and I guess to win the round was a great reward for all boys and a fitting way to go out.
“I have to thank Ford, Pirtek, my crew and Ross and Jimmy Stone and their families for all their support and giving me the opportunity for such success over the last five years.”
Ingall Stays Out Of Trouble On Road To Glory
AAP 28/11/05
www.drive.com.au
After playing the bridesmaid for four years, The Enforcer finally has his hands on the V8 Supercar championship trophy.
Russell Ingall is a bridesmaid no more. The Enforcer finally put years of heartache behind him by winning his first-ever V8 Supercar Championship title at Phillip Island yesterday.
The 41-year-old Ford driver famously posed in a bridesmaid's dress for a newspaper at the start of the season but yesterday he was showered in glory, his fifth place in the final round securing him the title at his 10th attempt.
A four-time series runner-up, Ingall claimed the 2005 title with 1922 points, holding off a rampaging finish from Craig Lowndes on 1865 and finally beating his Stone Brothers teammate Marcos Ambrose who won yesterday's round to almost complete a team quinella on 1856 points.
With six drivers in contention heading into the round, Ingall's fate wasn't sealed until the final race as Lowndes still had a flicker of hope of overcoming a 37-point deficit if Ingall suffered mechanical trouble or fell foul of officials.
But it was Lowndes who was "left with a sour taste in my mouth", after being given a drive-through penalty for a pit lane infringement which dropped him from second to 25th. A desperate sprint to regain his pointscore runner-up position proved successful though as he finished 15th.
Amid all the drama Ingall, too, had his scares, surrounded by drivers rubbing his bumper, but he safely negotiated any fracas and cruised to the title.
A tearful Ingall celebrated by driving a lap around the circuit hanging out of his Falcon doing burnouts and then taking a pair of scissors to the bridesmaid's dress.
"By about the 48th Jim Beam tonight it will be sinking in quite nice," said Ingall the 1998, 1999, 2001 and 2004 runner-up. "I could not think of a better way or better team to win it with."
Ingall's championship, however deserved, has been tempered by the fact he won just one round and two individual races throughout the year.
Runner-up Lowndes managed four round victories and 12 race wins, but fell victim to his own misfortune when he suffered car trouble at four early rounds.
Ingall admits to taking a cautious approach to the season. He set his own "record" of not visiting the judiciary during the year, as he y stood on the podium only three times including his Oran Park win. Faced with criticism that his consistency, not speed, won the title, Ingall was too jubilant to care.
"After 10 years I will take whatever I can get, I am not fussy," he said. "I had tried every which way to win it. Bash and crash and bucking the system and this was the last resort. You have got to be everything to win this championship, you don't win this by being smart and not quick.
"It has been hard changing my attitude. If you ask me did I enjoy it more I would say no because I like getting in and having a race. It was **************** hard work, but it was worth it."
Ambrose, the 2003-2004 champion, fell just short in his quest to win a third consecutive title in his final V8 season before departing for NASCAR in the United States.
Ambrose finished third in the title race after his round victory yesterday but will forever rue his heated Bathurst collision with rival Greg Murphy which cost him at least 64 points. He was also penalised 25 points by race officials for his racing style in Perth.
"It is a great way to finish this year in style," Ambrose said. "We won the first race and won the last race but everything in between was just a bad dream.
"It would have been great to win the championship but I am happy to hand it over to my teammate."
Ambrose's final-round victory, ahead of Holden's Garth Tander and Rick Kelly, ensured Ford won the manufacturers' title while his Stone Brothers team also celebrated winning the team's overall pointscore.