Sport

New Zealand drivers just miss out on podium

08:03 am on 19 September 2011

A tyre problem denied Stone Brothers Racing's New Zealand pairing of Shane van Gisbergen and John McIntyre a place on the podium in the main race at the ninth round of the V8 Supercar championship at Phillip Island.

After starting the race from the second row of the grid van Gisbergen's Nelson-based co-driver John McIntyre quickly settled into second place before losing several places in the first round of pit stops.

When van Gisbergen took over the SP Tools Falcon on lap 48 the 22-year-old put in a blistering performance to climb back up into second place behind the Triple 8 Holden of Craig Lowndes and Mark Skaife.

However with just a handful of laps to go the #9 Falcon picked up debris on its right-front tyre, which, coupled with fading tyre life, caused van Gisbergen slip back to fifth place at the chequered flag.