Thompson to miss race after turn eight shunt

Andrew Thompson will miss today’s first leg of the Clipsal 500 after becoming V8 Supercars’ first casualty at the notorious turn eight.

The #10 Bundaberg Red Racing driver collected the inside wall at the fast turn eight before crushing the outside wall.

Thompson will watch today’s Race 5 of the V8 Supercars Championship Series from the sidelines due to the extent of the damage to his Walkinshaw Racing Commodore VE.

“I turned in too early, clipped the inside kerb and hit the wall on the inside,” he explained.

“It fired me straight into the outside wall and it was a fair old hit. After I hit the wall on the inside, the next second I was rolling down the track and the car’s a wreck. I did a pretty good job of it, so we won’t make this race so we can get the car right. We want to make sure it’s properly fixed and safe for tomorrow’s race.

Thompson’s team-mate Fabian Coulthard will start in sixth place, and Thompson said he’s frustrated, knowing that the speed in the car is there.

“It’s frustrating to miss any race,” he said.

“I think we had a good car, and that shows where Garth (Tander) and Fabian are. Unfortuntaely, we didn’t get to show what it can do.

“I made a mistake, but that happens in motorsport, as much as you don’t want it to. Shit happens, I guess.”

Today’s race starts at 2.35pm