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The 2010 V8 Supercar Championship Series was an FIA sanctioned international motor racing series for V8 Supercars. It was the twelfth V8 Supercar Championship Series and the fourteenth series in which V8 Supercars have contested the premier Australian touring car title. The championship began on 19 February in the Middle East at Abu Dhabi's Yas Marina Circuit and finished on 5 December at the Homebush Street Circuit after 26 races at 15 events. These events were held in all states of Australia and in the Northern Territory as well as in the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain and New Zealand. The 51st Australian Touring Car Championship title was awarded to the winner of the Drivers Championship by the Confederation of Australian Motor Sport.
Contents
- Teams and drivers
- Team changes
- Driver changes
- Mid season changes
- Wildcard entries
- Rule changes
- Race calendar
- Publicity
- Points system
- Teams Championship
- Champion Manufacturer of the Year
- References
James Courtney won the Drivers Championship for Dick Johnson Racing by 65 points from Triple Eight Race Engineering's Jamie Whincup in the final race of the season at the 2010 Sydney Telstra 500. Championship Team of the Year was awarded to TeamVodafone and Champion Manufacturer of the Year to Holden.
Teams and drivers
The following teams and drivers have been confirmed for the 2010 series.
Italics indicate driver did not take part in a race.
Team changes
Driver changes
Mid-season changes
Wildcard entries
Rule changes
Full-time drivers will no longer be allowed to partner one another for the endurance races at the L&H 500 at Phillip Island and the Supercheap Auto Bathurst 1000 at Mount Panorama in an effort to make both the championship and the endurance races more competitive.
For the Armor All Gold Coast 600, each team had to include a driver who races in an overseas series. The majority of nominated drivers were sourced from the Indy Racing League.
Following a failed attempt to get former champion Marcos Ambrose to make a one-off guest appearance at the 2009 Sydney Telstra 500, the V8 Supercars Executive Board approved plans to allow for one-off guest drives. The system would work in a similar fashion to the "Wildcard" entries that the series allows to drivers and teams from the Fujitsu Development Series to step up to the V8 Supercars during the endurance races. Ambrose has been earmarked as a target for such an appearance, with the series looking to allow international drivers to take part in the offshore races in Bahrain and Abu Dhabi at the start of the season.
Race calendar
The following events made up the 2010 series. The proposed event for Queensland Raceway in early May was cancelled in January after V8 Supercar and circuit operators were unable to agree to terms. The Ipswich venue was later restored to the calendar. Barbagallo Raceway was later removed with V8 Supercar citing workplace health and safety regulations.
Calendar is as follows:
Publicity
Immediately prior to the season start, V8 Supercar launched a new publicity campaign, centred around American singer Pink and her 2001 recording Get the Party Started. The advertising campaign is called "The Greatest Show on Wheels" and is the first of a three-year deal between V8 Supercar and Pink.
Points system
Points are awarded to the driver or drivers of a car that completes 75% of the race distance and is running at the completion of the final lap.
NOTES:
Std denotes all races except the L&H 500, Bathurst 1000, and Surfers Paradise. These three races have unique rules.
L&H 500: The Phillip Island event was split into two qualifying races and a 500 km feature race. The two drivers per team were grouped into separate qualifying races that counted towards drivers' individual point totals and towards the starting grid for the feature race. The two drivers then shared one car for the 500 km endurance race.
Bathurst: Two drivers shared one car for the race.
Armor All Gold Coast 600: Each V8 Supercar team was required to have an international driver included in its driver lineup for each 300 km race. The international driver was required to complete 30% of the race distance. The event was run under a National permit, allowing International licence holders to compete but not to score championship points. This differed from the Bathurst event which was run under an International permit.
Teams Championship
Champion Manufacturer of the Year
Holden took out the Champion Manufacturer of the Year award, having clinched the title at the Gold Coast 600 event with its 14th race win of the year. The award is given to the manufacturer that scores the most race wins during the Championship season.