Ford Performance Racing team boss Tim Edwards has taken a swipe at the critics who have maligned his team for the last two seasons, challenging them to take a look at his V8 Supercar Championship favourites now.

Edwards’ stable of Orrcon Steel Racing’s Mark Winterbottom and Tradingpost Racing’s Will Davison are dominating the first half of the Championship, form that is echoed through the emerging talent of The Bottle-O Racings’ David Reynolds and the satellite car of Hiflex Racing's Tony D'Alberto.

Davison extended his Championship lead over TeamVodafone’s Jamie Whincup in a scintillating finish today with the final two laps a dogfight between the two best mates. Winterbottom won the race from Whincup and Davison.

A technical issue due to a satellite link failure meant the last two laps were replayed by Seven in Australia. V8 Supercars apologised to fans for the technical error that was out of their control.

Edwards was pointed in his reaction to the critics who have watched FPR through hot and cold moments in the last two seasons. Now, with his two drivers and the team firing, he took the opportunity to stress the point.

“Everybody in the team is ecstatic,” Edwards said.

“It’s been a lot of hard work. It’s my 8th year now with the team and obviously there’s been a lot of criticism over the last couple of years that we haven’t delivered, but Rome wasn’t built in a day.

“We’ve been chipping away at it and for various reasons we haven’t got there until now. We’ve been bridesmaid on too many occasions but hopefully this year we can be the bride.”

Winterbottom won the race despite an enormous amount of pressure from Whincup who was literally sideways through the last few corners in a desperate attempt to get past.

“t was on that last lap he obviously had better tyre life but I made sure the car was as wide as possible because I could see where he (Whincup) was on the track,” Winterbottom said.

Winterbottom won the final Mark Porter Trophy for his efforts. It’s the final time V8 Supercars will race at the ITM400 in Hamilton.

“The Mark Porter Trophy is pretty special race so it’s really nice to finish the last time here with a win,” he said. “I think I got the lap record and the Mark Porter Trophy so I’ve had a pretty special day.

“A win anywhere is fantastic but definitely when they can’t take it off you and you’re the last one to win it.”

Whincup continues to haunt the FPR boys but as yet is yet to return serve on their domination. He crashed his car in qualifying earlier in the day.

"I give it everything I had, but it was a crazy battle in tough conditions," said Whincup.

"I got very close. I thought I was odds-on. The car hung onto its tyres well. I had to push Frosty back down the pit lane at the end coming back to the podium because he was out of fuel.

“Of course you can see the big screens but coming through that roundabout section it was a classic Ford versus Holden battle and I think everyone appreciated it and that’s the main thing.

“The last time at any venue is always quite special so the Championship was way out of my mind, I just really wanted to win this weekend for the last time but I came close and I think Frosty should grab this one with two hands.

“We’ll probably never come back to Hamilton so he’ll keep that for the rest of his life.”

Craig Lowndes finished fourth from the best of the Kiwis, Fabian Coulthard in the Lockwood Racing Commodore. Lee Holdsworth was sixth from Reynolds, D'Alberto, Todd Kelly and Shane van Gisbergen.

It was a day of drama for the Holden Racing Team. Garth Tander ended up 26th, 12 laps down, after pitting for repairs from contact with a tyre bundle while trying to pass D'Alberto.

A range of cars received pit lane penalties for triggering the timing sensors at the turn four chicane - the worst of them Frenchman Alex Premat who picked up three - plus a post-race 28-second penalty for a fourth indiscretion too late in the race to be brought into the pits.

Also given post-race 28-second time penalties were Jason Bright and James Courtney for the same reason, the duo ending up 21st and 22nd respectively in the final results.

The V8 Supercars Championship now moves back to Australia for the Tradingpost Perth Challenge at Barbagallo Raceway in Perth in a fortnight's time on May 4-6.

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