Van Gisbergen and McLaughlin taking Eseries down to the wire

McLaughlin and van Gisbergen battle at virtual Michigan
McLaughlin and van Gisbergen battle at virtual Michigan

The inaugural BP Supercars All Stars Eseries will go down to the very last race, with Shane van Gisbergen and Scott McLaughlin splitting wins in the penultimate round this evening.

Round 9 featured three races, all at the famous Michigan International Oval Speedway with Van Gisbergen entering the round holding a 146-point lead.

Everything went to script early for the Red Bull Holden ace, winning the opening two races, McLaughlin finished 2nd and 3rd in those races.

However the 2016 Supercars Champion came unstuck in the final race of the night and McLaughlin pounced. The Shell Ford ace claimed victory while van Gisbergen finished back in 14th.

The result cut Van Gisbergen's overall Eseries lead to just 78 points with just one round remaining, next week's visits to iconic Australian circuits Oran Park and Mount Panorama.

As was the case heading in the 2018 Virgin Australia Supercars Championship, McLaughlin and van Gisbergen will enter the final round of the competition with the winner taking the Series victory.

Fellow contenders Cam Waters, Anton De Pasquale and Chaz Mostert all fell out of contention for the Eseries title with mixed results tonight.

RACE 27 RACE 28 RACE 29
Shane van Gisbergen Shane van Gisbergen Scott McLaughlin
Scott McLaughlin Bryce Fullwood Jack Le Brocq
Anton De Pasquale Scott McLaughlin Jordan Boys

PROVISIONAL COATES HIRE LEADERBOARD – ROUND NINE

POS DRIVER TEAM TOTAL BEHIND
1 Shane van Gisbergen Red Bull Holden Racing Team 2165 -0
2 Scott McLaughlin Shell V-Power Racing Team 2087 -78
3 Cameron Waters Monster Energy Racing 1842 -323
4 Anton De Pasquale Penrite Racing 1833 -332
5 Chaz Mostert Mobil 1 Appliances Online Racing 1675 -490
6 Andre Heimgartner NED Racing 1405 -760
7 Fabian Coulthard Shell V-Power Racing Team 1371 -794
8 Will Davison Doric Racing 1370 -795
9 Jack Le Brocq Supercheap Auto Racing 1340 -825
10 Lee Holdsworth Truck Assist Racing 1326 -839
11 Garry Jacobson Yellow Cover Racing 1257 -908
12 Bryce Fullwood Mobil 1 Middy's Racing 1251 -914
13 Todd Hazelwood Brut Military Racing 1134 -1031
14 Jake Kostecki NTI Racing 1096 -1069
15 Nick Percat Brad Jones Racing 1086 -1079
16 Zane Goddard Unit Racing 1045 -1120
17 Scott Pye DeWalt Racing 1042 -1123
18 Macauley Jones Team CoolDrive 960 -1205
19 Mark Winterbottom Irwin Racing 958 -1207
20 David Reynolds Penrite Racing 897 -1268
21 Alex Davison Local Legends Racing 882 -1283
22 Jamie Whincup Red Bull Holden Racing Team 816 -1349
23 Rick Kelly Castrol Racing 805 -1360
24 Chris Pither Coca Cola Team Sydney 587 -1578
25 Jack Smith SCT Logistics 491 -1674
26 James Courtney Team Boost Racing 119 -1968