en 2003 V8 Supercar Championship Series

The 2003 V8 Supercar Championship Series was a motor racing series for V8 Supercars. The series, which was the fifth V8 Supercar Championship Series, began on 22 March 2003 in Adelaide and ended on 30 November at Eastern Creek Raceway after 13 rounds. It ended with the awarding of the 44th Australian Touring Car Championship title by the Confederation of Australian Motor Sport to Tasmanian driver Marcos Ambrose. It was the first time a Stone Brothers Racing driver had won the championship and marked the first title win by a Ford driver since Glenn Seton in 1997, ending a five-year run by Holden Racing Team.

Teams and drivers

The following drivers and teams competed in the 2003 V8 Supercar Championship Series. The series consisted of eleven rounds of sprint racing and two rounds (the Sandown 500 and the Bathurst 1000) of endurance racing with each car piloted by two drivers.

Manufacturer	Vehicle	Team	No.	Drivers	Events		Endurance Event Drivers
Ford	Falcon AU	Ford Performance Racing	5	Glenn Seton	1–3		—
		Rod Nash Racing (FPR)	19	David Besnard	1–6		—
		00 Motorsport	7	Rodney Forbes	1–3		—
		Larkham Motorsport	10	Mark Larkham	1–8, 11–13		—
			20	Jason Bargwanna	1–7		—
			20	Grant Johnson	9–10		Kerry Wade
		Noske Motorsport	23	Mark Noske	1–8, 11–13		—
		Noske Motorsport	23	Neal Bates	9–10		Rick Bates
		Paul Little Racing	75	Anthony Tratt	1–7		—
		Thexton Motor Racing	99	David Thexton	1–4, 6–13		Brett Peters* Stephen Voight**
	Falcon BA	Stone Brothers Racing	4	Marcos Ambrose	All		Russell Ingall
			9	Russell Ingall	1–8, 11–13		—
			9	Mark Noske	9–10		Mark Winterbottom
		Ford Performance Racing	5	Glenn Seton	4–8, 11–13		—
			5	Darren Hossack	9–10		Adam Macrow
			6	Craig Lowndes	All		Glenn Seton
		Rod Nash Racing (FPR)	7	David Besnard	11–13		—
		Rod Nash Racing (FPR)	19	David Besnard	7–10		Owen Kelly
		00 Motorsport	7	Rodney Forbes	4, 6		—
			00	Rodney Forbes	5
			00	Greg Ritter	1–4, 6
		Larkham Motorsport	10	Mark Larkham	9–10		Jason Bargwanna
		Larkham Motorsport	20	Jason Bargwanna	8, 11–13		—
		Dick Johnson Racing	17	Steven Johnson	All		Warren Luff
		Dick Johnson Racing	18	Max Wilson	All		David Brabham
		Brad Jones Racing	21	Brad Jones	All		John Bowe
			888	John Bowe	1–8, 11–13		—
			888	John Cleland	9–10		Andrew Jones
		Steven Ellery Racing	31	Steven Ellery	All		Luke Youlden
		Briggs Motorsport 8 Triple Eight Race Engineering 5	65	Paul Radisich	All		Rickard Rydell
		Briggs Motorsport 8 Triple Eight Race Engineering 5	66	Dean Canto	All		Matthew White
		Paul Little Racing	75	Anthony Tratt	8–13		Paul Stokell
Holden	Commodore VX	Tom Walkinshaw Racing Australia 4 (HRT) John Kelly Racing 9 (HRT)	15	Rick Kelly	1–8, 11–13		—
			15	Cameron McLean	9–10		Andy Priaulx
			51	Greg Murphy	1–7		—
		Lansvale Smash Repairs	3	Cameron McConville	All		Tim Leahey
		Perkins Engineering	8	Paul Dumbrell	All		Tomas Mezera
		Perkins Engineering	11	Steven Richards	2–5		—
		Paul Weel Racing	16	Paul Weel	1–8, 11–13		—
			16	Marcus Marshall	9–10		Greg Ritter
			50	Jason Bright	All		Paul Weel
		Team Kiwi Racing	021	Craig Baird	All		Mark Porter
		Romano Racing	24	Paul Romano	1		—
		Paul Morris Motorsport	24	Wayne Wakefield	3–4, 7–8, 10		Andy McElrea
		Paul Morris Motorsport	24	Alan Gurr	9		Andy McElrea
		Garry Rogers Motorsport	33	Jamie Whincup	1–9, 11–12		Allan Simonsen
		Garry Rogers Motorsport	33	Nathan Pretty	10		Allan Simonsen
	Commodore VY	Holden Racing Team	1	Mark Skaife	All		Todd Kelly
			2	Todd Kelly	1–8, 11–13		—
			2	Jim Richards	9–10		Tony Longhurst
		John Kelly Racing (HRT)	51	Greg Murphy	8–13		Rick Kelly
		Perkins Engineering	11	Steven Richards	1, 6–13		Larry Perkins
		Paul Morris Motorsport	29	Paul Morris	All		John Faulkner
		Garry Rogers Motorsport	33	Jamie Whincup	13		—
		Garry Rogers Motorsport	34	Garth Tander	All		Nathan Pretty* Jamie Whincup**
		Team Dynamik	44	Simon Wills	All		Jason Richards
			45	Jason Richards	1–8, 11–13		—
			45	Nicolas Minassian	9–10		Wayne Wakefield* Jan Magnussen**
Wildcard Entries
Ford	Falcon AU	Fernández Racing	55	José Fernández	10		David Russell
Ford	Falcon AU	Sydney Star Racing	89	Mal Rose	10		Grant Elliott**
Holden	Commodore VX	Robert Smith Racing	13	Phillip Scifleet	9–10		Steve Owen
		Robert Smith Racing	72	Alan Gurr	10		Jonny Reid
		Lansvale Smash Repairs	24	David Krause	13		—
		John Faulkner Racing	46	Tony Ricciardello	9–10	Dale Brede
		Phoenix Motorsport	59	Jamie Miller	10	Ron Searle
		Robert Jones Racing	69	Robert Jones	10	Peter Doulman

* = Drove in Sandown 500 only

** = Drove in Bathurst 1000 only

Driver changes

Jason Bright left the Holden Racing Team to join Team Brock.
Todd Kelly left the K-Mart Racing Team to join the Holden Racing Team replacing Jason Bright.
Rick Kelly left the Holden Young Lions to join the K-Mart Racing Team replacing his brother Todd Kelly.
Russell Ingall left Perkins Engineering to join Stone Brothers Racing replacing David Besnard.
David Besnard left Stone Brothers Racing to join Ford Performance Racing.
Craig Lowndes left 00 Motorsport to join Ford Performance Racing.
Greg Ritter returned to the Supercars Championship joining 00 Motorsport replacing Craig Lowndes.
Larry Perkins stepped down from full-time competition. He joined Steven Richards for the Enduro Rounds.
Mark Noske returned to the Supercars Championship joining ICS Team Ford for the Single Driver Rounds. He joined Mark Winterbottom for the Enduro Rounds. He was replaced by Professional Australian Rally Driver Neal Bates for the Enduro Rounds.
Jason Bargwanna left Garry Rogers Motorsport to join Larkham Motorsport.
Paul Radisich and Max Wilson effectively swapped seats, with Radisich moving to Briggs Motor Sport and Wilson to Dick Johnson Racing.
Jason Richards left Team Kiwi Racing to join Team Dynamik.
Craig Baird left Team Brock and replaced Jason Richards at Team Kiwi Racing.

Team changes

Ford Performance Racing expanded to a three car team.
Perkins Engineering scaled down to a two car team.
Following the collapse of Tom Walkinshaw Racing in February, the Holden Racing Team and Tom Walkinshaw Racing Australia entries were sold to Skaife Sports Pty Ltd and John Kelly Racing respectively.^[1]^[2]

Results and standings

Race calendar

The 2003 V8 Supercar Championship Series consisted of 13 rounds which included eleven sprint rounds of one, two or three races and two longer distance endurance races requiring two drivers per car.

Rd.	Round Name, Circuit	City / state	Date	Format	Winner	Team	Report
1	Clipsal 500 Adelaide, Adelaide Street Circuit	Adelaide, South Australia	20–23 Mar	2 races	Mark Skaife	Holden Racing Team	Report
2	Phillip Island	Phillip Island, Victoria	11–13 Apr	1 race	Craig Lowndes	Ford Performance Racing
3	Eastern Creek Raceway	Eastern Creek, New South Wales	2–4 May	1 race	Marcos Ambrose	Stone Brothers Racing
4	Winton Motor Raceway	Benalla, Victoria	23–25 May	1 race	Marcos Ambrose	Stone Brothers Racing
5	VB 300, Barbagallo Raceway	Perth, Western Australia	6–8 Jun	3 races	Marcos Ambrose	Stone Brothers Racing
6	Hidden Valley Raceway	Darwin, Northern Territory	27–29 Jun	3 races	Marcos Ambrose	Stone Brothers Racing
7	BigPond 300, Queensland Raceway	Ipswich, Queensland	18–20 Jul	1 race	Russell Ingall	Stone Brothers Racing
8	Oran Park Raceway	Sydney, New South Wales	15–17 Aug	1 race	Marcos Ambrose	Stone Brothers Racing
9	Betta Electrical Sandown 500, Sandown International Raceway	Melbourne, Victoria	12–14 Sep	1 race	Mark Skaife Todd Kelly	Holden Racing Team	Report
10	Bob Jane T-Marts 1000, Mount Panorama Circuit	Bathurst, New South Wales	9–12 Oct	1 race	Greg Murphy Rick Kelly	K-mart Racing Team	Report
11	Gillette V8 Supercar Challenge, Surfers Paradise Street Circuit	Surfers Paradise, Queensland	23–26 Oct	2 races	Russell Ingall	Stone Brothers Racing
12	Placemakers V8 International, Pukekohe Park Raceway	Pukekohe, New Zealand	7–9 Nov	3 races	Greg Murphy	K-mart Racing Team	Report
13	VIP Petfoods Main Event, Eastern Creek Raceway	Eastern Creek, New South Wales	28–30 Nov	2 races	Marcos Ambrose	Stone Brothers Racing

Adelaide

Phillip Island

Eastern Creek

Winton

Perth

Darwin

Ipswich

Oran Park

Sandown

Bathurst

Gold Coast

class=notpageimage|

Australian rounds

Pukekohe

class=notpageimage|

New Zealand rounds

Drivers championship

Drivers were required to drop the points earned at their worst round from their total, regardless of how many rounds were entered. Drivers who only entered one round lost all their points.

Pos.	Driver	No.	ADE		PHI	EAS1	WIN	BAR			HID			QLD	ORA	SAN	BAT	SUR		PUK			EAS2		Pen.	Pts.
1	Marcos Ambrose	4	1	Ret	17	1	1	3	2	1	2	1	1	2	1	5	6	6	4	6	23	9	1	1	0	2085
2	Greg Murphy	51	10	11	3	5	14	1	4	3	6	5	2	8	11	3	1	2	2	1	1	3	23	Ret	0	1983
3	Mark Skaife	1	2	1	6	19	6	2	1	23	1	2	3	Ret	3	1	8	3	3	7	2	1	7	Ret	105	1817
4	Jason Bright	50	3	6	2	4	2	12	10	10	3	4	4	5	19	31	Ret	4	Ret	21	3	2	2	2	0	1770
5	Craig Lowndes	6	Ret	7	1	2	10	6	Ret	17	28	27	15	6	2	16	2	15	9	16	12	18	6	4	0	1756
6	Steven Richards	11	4	2	7	8	3	4	3	8	9	6	5	Ret	23	6	4	Ret	22	20	6	6	4	16	50	1709
7	Russell Ingall	9	7	12	10	3	4	5	27	14	Ret	17	8	1	8	5	6	1	1	19	26	10	DSQ	DSQ	90	1701
8	Rick Kelly	15	9	24	11	9	11	10	9	4	14	7	18	9	24	3	1	5	7	8	13	5	25	10	25	1675
9	Todd Kelly	2	5	5	5	Ret	DSQ	7	7	2	7	24	Ret	3	6	1	8	10	Ret	2	4	4	3	Ret	0	1628
10	Paul Radisich	65	12	4	12	15	7	16	13	6	5	8	23	Ret	Ret	7	7	11	6	5	7	8	12	7	0	1618
11	John Bowe	888	Ret	23	21	30	8	30	11	11	10	10	7	7	7	4	10	14	10	12	10	Ret	11	14	0	1478
12	Garth Tander	34	13	15	4	6	Ret	9	5	5	4	3	24	25	4	18	19	16	Ret	3	Ret	21	22	5	0	1470
13	Paul Weel	16	14	3	8	11	5	13	6	7	12	11	13	10	16	22	Ret	13	16	15	11	12	29	Ret	0	1450
14	Jason Bargwanna	20	15	19	26	14	13	Ret	Ret	DNS	17	13	20	17	15	9	Ret	17	13	4	5	13	9	6	0	1341
15	Glenn Seton	5	18	10	9	26	12	14	15	18	Ret	16	17	Ret	Ret	16	2	12	5	11	9	11	18	Ret	0	1266
16	Steven Johnson	17	6	Ret	18	17	19	29	18	12	13	29	12	12	Ret	15	13	8	8	10	Ret	16	20	Ret	0	1229
17	Max Wilson	18	26	Ret	16	16	9	24	17	13	Ret	20	16	24	Ret	19	12	9	23	18	24	19	5	3	0	1214
18	Cameron McConville	3	8	Ret	Ret	12	17	21	8	9	23	14	14	15	9	Ret	20	19	15	Ret	18	20	10	8	0	1191
19	Steven Ellery	31	29	DSQ	20	22	25	11	16	Ret	8	15	9	14	21	2	3	Ret	Ret	9	21	14	24	23	0	1164
20	Brad Jones	21	24	18	15	Ret	26	15	14	15	15	21	10	Ret	12	4	10	Ret	18	22	22	15	16	18	0	1127
21	David Besnard	19/7	Ret	Ret	Ret	13	24	20	20	Ret	24	18	28	11	13	8	Ret	7	Ret	25	15	Ret	28	11	0	1059
22	Simon Wills	44	16	9	22	7	Ret	8	Ret	16	11	9	6	Ret	Ret	Ret	22	22	11	13	8	7	Ret	22	0	1059
23	Paul Morris	29	27	20	13	10	Ret	18	Ret	20	Ret	23	30	4	Ret	13	Ret	20	19	14	16	Ret	8	19	0	1047
24	Dean Canto	66	20	Ret	29	23	23	27	22	26	18	12	19	22	10	14	Ret	Ret	24	17	14	25	15	9	0	1001
25	Mark Larkham	10	23	16	23	18	22	26	23	27	26	30	21	Ret	18	9	Ret	18	17	27	20	23	19	Ret	0	949
26	Jason Richards	45	28	Ret	28	21	15	28	12	25	16	31	24	20	5	Ret	22	23	Ret	DNS	DNS	DNS	14	21	0	909
27	Jamie Whincup	33	17	22	25	Ret	Ret	22	Ret	21	20	Ret	11	16	20	29	19	25	12	28	17	Ret	13	15	0	906
28	Mark Noske	23/9	Ret	13	30	27	18	17	19	19	19	25	29	21	14	11	Ret	Ret	25	Ret	DNS	DNS	17	13	0	905
29	Paul Dumbrell	8	11	8	31	20	Ret	19	26	Ret	27	22	Ret	13	17	Ret	14	26	21	24	28	17	21	12	0	887
30	Craig Baird	021	21	14	19	24	DSQ	25	24	22	22	19	27	18	22	Ret	17	21	14	23	19	22	26	20	0	856
31	Anthony Tratt	75	19	Ret	24	Ret	16	31	21	24	25	Ret	DNS	19	Ret	30	Ret	24	20	Ret	25	24	27	17	0	678
32	Greg Ritter	00/16	22	13	14	28	20				29	26	20			22	Ret								0	537
33	David Thexton	99	DNQ	DNQ	DNQ	29	DNQ				DNQ	DNQ	DNQ	23	DNQ	26	16	DNQ	DNQ	26	27	26	DNQ	DNQ	0	348
34	Rodney Forbes	7	25	21	27	25	DSQ	23	25	28	21	28	26												0	238
35	Luke Youlden	31														2	3								0	188
36	Larry Perkins	11														6	4								0	180
37	Tony Longhurst	2														10	5								0	176
37	Jim Richards	2														10	5								0	176
39	Rickard Rydell	65														7	7								0	168
40	Owen Kelly	19														8	Ret								0	164
41	John Cleland	888														20	9								0	160
41	Andrew Jones	888														20	9								0	160
43	Wayne Wakefield	24/45				DNQ	21							DNQ	DNQ	28	DNQ								0	156
44	Nicolas Minassian	45														28	11								0	152
44	Mark Winterbottom	9														11	Ret								0	152
46	David Brabham	18														19	12								0	148
47	Cameron McLean	15														12	Ret								0	148
47	Andy Priaulx	15														12	Ret								0	148
49	Warren Luff	17														15	13								0	144
49	John Faulkner	29														13	Ret								0	144
51	Matthew White	66														14	Ret								0	140
51	Tomas Mezera	8														Ret	14								0	140
53	Darren Hossack	5														17	Ret								0	128
53	Adam Macrow	5														17	Ret								0	128
53	Mark Porter	021														Ret	17								0	128
56	Grant Johnson	20														23	18								0	124
56	Kerry Wade	20														23	18								0	124
56	Nathan Pretty	33														18	Ret								0	124
59	Tim Leahey	3														Ret	20								0	116
60	Steve Owen	13														21	21								0	112
60	Phillip Scifleet	13														21	21								0	112
62	Marcus Marshall	16														22	Ret								0	108
63	Dale Brede	46														24	Ret								0	100
63	Tony Ricciardello	46														24	Ret								0	100
65	Neal Bates	23														25	Ret								0	100
65	Rick Bates	23														25	Ret								0	100
67	Alan Gurr	24/72														27	Ret								0	88
67	Andy McElrea	24														27	DNQ								0	88
69	Paul Stokell	75														30	Ret								0	80
69	Allan Simonsen	33														29	Ret								0	80
	Jan Magnussen	45															11								0	0
	Jamie Miller	59															15								0	0
	Ron Searle	59															15								0	0
	Stephen Voight	99															16								0	0
	Grant Elliott	89															23								0	0
	Mal Rose	89															23								0	0
	Brett Peters	99														26									0	0
	Paul Romano	24	Ret	Ret																					0	0
	David Krause	24																					Ret	Ret	0	0
	Jose Fernandez	55															Ret								0	0
	David Russell	55															Ret								0	0
	Peter Doulman	69															Ret								0	0
	Robert Jones	69															Ret								0	0
	Jonny Reid	72															Ret								0	0
Pos.	Driver	No.	ADE		PHI	EAS1	WIN	BAR			HID			QLD	ORA	SAN	BAT	SUR		PUK			EAS2		Pen.	Pts.

Colour	Result
Gold	Winner
Silver	Second place
Bronze	Third place
Green	Points finish
Blue	Non-points finish
Blue	Non-classified finish (NC)
Purple	Retired (Ret)
Red	Did not qualify (DNQ)
Red	Did not pre-qualify (DNPQ)
Black	Disqualified (DSQ)
White	Did not start (DNS)
	Withdrew (WD)
	Race cancelled (C)
Blank	Did not practice (DNP)
	Did not arrive (DNA)
	Excluded (EX)

Bold - Pole position
Italics - Fastest lap

References

^ "Skaife named owner of Holden Racing Team". 2 June 2003. Retrieved 9 April 2023 – via www.abc.net.au.
^ "Holden completes V8 racing team sale". The Age. 6 June 2003. Retrieved 9 April 2023.

External links

Official V8 Supercar site
2003 Racing Results Archive Archived 14 October 2007 at the Wayback Machine
Images from the 2003 V8 Supercar Championship Series Retrieved from www.motorsport.com on 27 September 2009

[1] "Skaife named owner of Holden Racing Team". 2 June 2003. Retrieved 9 April 2023 – via www.abc.net.au.

[2] "Holden completes V8 racing team sale". The Age. 6 June 2003. Retrieved 9 April 2023.

[1]

[2]

2003 V8 Supercar Championship Series