Tander delight as win drought ends

"We had a good car yesterday and the car was absolutely fantastic in qualifying. It was the first time ever I think in my V8 Supercar career that I haven't changed the car through qualify - it just kept getting better and better and better."

But he paid tribute to the role of co-driver Cameron McConville in securing race one glory.

"It was Cameron's first stint that won us the race. When he got his 10-second penalty for allegedly rolling at the start, he had Steve Owen behind him - who everyone seems to rate - and he pulled away very, very easily."

He explained the fluid leaking problem that threatened to get him a black flag, which would have killed any hopes of victory.

"The drinks bottle was over-filled and the team told me to drink it. Cameron likes to drink a lot and I don't, so they filled it right back up and it was coming out the breather so I had to quickly drink down a litre of water in a lap to get the level down."

Tander's win hinged on a controversial penalty given to James Courtney for his driving behind the safety car. "I was confused as to what was going on because you're supposed to hold your speed at a constant 80km/h not accelerate/brake, accelerate/brake. And then he went in to the final corner very early, before we'd even been told on the radio that the safety car was coming in, so I actually thought he got it for going early."