Season can be gone in 60 seconds

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ONE hundred and fifty points, gone. Drained in 60 seconds.

And Mark Winterbottom still can't wipe the memory — not when he finished up 300 points on the bum end of the closest V8 Supercars championship in the sport's history, and half his total season deficit detonated on the opening lap of the opening race of the 2013 season in Adelaide.

MORE: CHECK OUT ALL THE LATEST ON THE CLIPSAL 500

Defending Bathurst champion Winterbottom was an outside chance for his maiden driver's title heading into the final race of last year in Sydney in December.

Hindsight says had his Falcon not locked in second gear while he held the lead in the first minute of Race 1 at Clipsal 500 last year, he could have been more than just a Steven Bradbury chance of challenging Red Bull pair Jamie Whincup and Craig Lowndes for the crown.

Instead, for 54 laps of Clipsal's 78-lap opener, he sat in his Ford Performance Racing garage, watching rival cars tussle for points while mechanics tried desperately to repair his car's problem.

WHINCUP: ATTITUDE WORTH MORE THAN SKILL

V8 Supercars drivers, from left, Craig Lowndes, defending champion Jamie Whincup, Mark Winterbottom and Chaz Mostert.

"But that's Clipsal," Winterbottom shrugged on Wednesday.

"You do go pretty hard and try to win it — but you also have to finish.

"There's no doubt you have to start the season not being behind.

"Last year I had a gearbox failure on the Saturday and I'm 150 points down on day one.

"To get 150 points back over the season on these guys, who are all so talented, it takes so much — and that's if you ever can get it back.

"So going for broke and crashing, around here, isn't ideal. That's the idea — but when you put a helmet on, well, it's always different."

Winterbottom resumes his quest to dethrone five-time champion Whincup on Adelaide's streets this weekend.

The pair, whose 15-year racing history dating back to teenage go-karts battles, are among the 25 drivers who will start the 2014 season at Clipsal 500.

HIGHLIGHTS: CLIPSAL 500'S 10 BIGGEST MOMENTS

Winterbottom said while all races were crucial, Adelaide's notoriously tough conditions coupled with a need to avoid a leaderboard duck to start the season meant a win-at-all-cost approach was not on the menu.

"You can bend the car being conservative or you can bend it being aggressive," he said.

"If there's half a gap you've just got to go for it because if you hesitate that's when you usually come off second best.

"But you've also got to smart because this track can catch you out at the best of times.

"You can be absolutely on your game and then on whatever lap, a bit of oil, or anything can happen. It's that easy."

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