Pukekohe Park Raceway - A lap with Marcos Ambrose.

After winning the season-opening Clipsal 500, Marcos Ambrose heads the V8 Supercar standings as the series heads to Pukekohe for the final time.

Here the defending series champion describes a lap of the New Zealand circuit...

In 2005 with the resurfacing of the Pukekohe track it really is an unknown quantity. But I feel the changes should really play in our favour providing a lot quicker surface that we'll be sure to take full advantage of.

As you cross the start-finish line you only have eyes for the first turn. This area in front of the main grandstand is not really a straight, but a sweeping right-hander into turn one which has a very, very fast entry and really is blind because of all the armco around you.

It is made a little extra difficult because of the bumps - this corner really reminds you of Paddock Hill Bend at Brands Hatch, but once you get through it you realise you are somewhere else.

Turn one is so long it really turns into turn two. You need to make sure you are on the right line for the quick left-right chicane at the end of it - Jason Richards found out you can get into trouble here quite easily a couple of years ago. With new bitumen being laid at turn two and three we'll be adjusting things a little to adapt to the higher level of grip. This part of the track really flows well and you can make up a lot of time if you can get a good run out of turn three.

You are in second gear as you aim up the back straight - there is a bit of camber in the road here and you can get a bit of wheel spin as you move into third. Once you are on the back straight it is a long ride down to the hairpin. You can watch the trains go by on the left or check out the horse racing track on the right. It is then on to the brakes HARD for the first-gear hairpin. You really need to be committed to brake as late as possible here.

The middle of the corner is not that important, but the exit is and you need to be slow enough to get a good run out. You then go up through the gears as you race into the flowing left hander.
This part of the circuit is extremely bumpy and you are doing some serious speeds by the time you hit third gear.

At the end of the left-hander is where there used to be a big bump that had become quite famous at the track. Apparently this has been levelled quite significantly so it really is an unknown quantity. I'm waiting in anticipation to see how this impacts on the way we approach what has traditionally been a difficult part of the track.

With the modifications I think we'll be able to carry more corner speed through the final turn as we come onto the main straight. There is actually quite a rise in the track as you head into the right-hander back on to the straight with armco on both sides of you. It is great on Sunday afternoon with a massive crowd cheering for you on the outside of the track.

There is no curbing at this part of the circuit, so again you need to be careful that you don't touch the grass and get spat into the wall. It is then back over the start-finish line for another lap.

All in all, this is a pretty short, but terrifically exciting lap if you get it right. The track is flowing and you tend to get into a rhythm here and you can find yourself doing eight or ten solid laps in a row during qualifying if you get into the "zone".