Five things we learned at the Sydney Motorsport Park SuperSprint

The championship is alive

Chaz Mostert's continuing hot form and an off weekend for Mark Winterbottom means the gap between the two Pepsi-Max team-mates has narrowed to just 174 points.

With Pirtek Enduro Cup about to kick off and big points on the line, there is no doubt Frosty's grip on his first title has slipped. It shapes as a classic youth versus experience battle. The fact they are team-mates and friends just adds to the mix.

Don't forget that Winterbottom led the championship by more than 160 points at one point last year and ended more than 560 points off the pace.

Courtney's championship is in tatters - fortunately he will be okay

James Courtney has sustained some significant injuries in the course of his motor racing career, but none of them have come about in circumstances as bizarre as the two broken ribs and collapsed lung he copped at SMP, courtesy of a Navy helicopter.

Although the Holden Racing Team is refusing to formally rule him out of the Wilson Security Sandown 500 in three weeks, the reality is he won't be there. The Supercheap Auto Bathurst 1000 is a more realistic target, but by no means a lock.

Jack Perkins subbed ably over the weekend, but Courtney is a super-talent who also adds plenty of feistiness with his outspoken views. Get well and get back in a car soon James!

Here comes Whincup

The six-time champ broke a 15-race losing streak on Saturday at SMP, signalling his reunification with engineer Mark Dutton is heading the previously recalcitrant 2015 Holden Commodore VF in the right direction. In fact Whincup was racier than Red Bull team-mate Craig Lowndes all weekend, a reverse of the recent norm.

If it was anyone else and any other team, you'd dismiss Whincup's championship chances as he trails Winterbottom by 449 points.

But it is Whincup and it is Triple Eight. Even if he misses title number seven you just know a front-running Whincup will play a role in determining who does win it.

What do we make of the Volvo?

Scott McLaughlin nailed his second ARMOR ALL pole position of 2015 at SMP and then finished fifth in the 200km mini-enduro on Sunday. Post-race he declared "we are back on board."

At the equivalent event in 2014 he also snared pole and won his second race of the year. He was then eighth in the championship. This year he sits 11th and is yet to win a race.

Hopefully, partnered with French Wildman Alex Premat, Scott will be a frontrunner in the Pirtek Enduro Cup, and salvage something from a year in which he and Garry Rogers' team expected to challenge for the championship.

Life in the old dog yet

At 42, Jason Bright is now the senior citizen of the V8 Supercars grid. Up until Sunday his season had been a struggle, running very much in the shadow of his Brad Jones Racing team-mate Fabian Coulthard.

But Bright came out firing in the 200km race, forging forward to second in his Team BOC Commodore when the heavens opened and then survived a late-race centre-punch from Shane van Gisbergen to finish third.

Post-race he declared his desire to race on again full-time in 2016 - pending a handshake with Jones. Based on Sunday, you'd have to ask 'why not?'.