SURFERS PARADISE, Queensland, Australia -- An ailing Mark Winterbottom became the unofficial king of the Nikon SuperGP at Surfers Paradise street circuit this weekend by finishing first or second in all four Supercheap Auto V8 Supercar races.

Winterbottom won the opening race Saturday morning and the Sunday afternoon closing round Sunday. The Castrol Ford Falcon driver finished second to Holden Commodore driver Garth Tander Saturday afternoon and Falcom pilot Craig Lowndes Sunday morning.

Winterbottom captured the first two races of the season between visits to the pitside medical center. His tonsillitis developed glandular fever over the weekend, causing his legs to go numb in the final 150km (92 mile) race.

V8 Supercars touring car leader Jaime Whincup saw Garth pare his lead to 32 markers while he finished no higher than sixth place. Whincup and Garth are to square off in the series' 21st and 22nd races on Phillips Island Nov. 5-7.

SuperGP organizers switched the V8 touring cars from two 300 km races to four 150 km rounds after the A1GP formula car series said Oct. 20 that FIA- mandated car modifications prevented them from making the weekend.

Race organizers and sponsors, according to one published source, said that they are looking for a replacement international open wheel series. That open wheel headliner format may be similar to the invitational Formula 3 race held at Macau, China.

Queensland Premier Anne Bligh has meanwhile ordered a report on this year's race - including how the A1GP headliner deal fell apart - due Nov. 30. Bligh said that she anted to know how $11.8 million AUD in state funds were spent this year.

A1GP was to replace the IRL, who held a non-points race last year. The CART/Champ Car indy cars were the original headliner 1990-2007.

Daniel Lawrence, who won three of four Aussie Racing Cars races, may want to challenge Winterbottom's weekend crown claim. Lawrence crashed on the last lap Sunday afternoon and finished 12th to Kyle Clews in their closer. The eight-year-old ARC cars, featuring spec 1.2-liter inline four cylinder engines in a tube frame chassis, are scaled racers similar to Modified Lites, INEX Legends and Allison Legacy Cars.

Nick Ash won the Formula Ford 1600 race when rain cut the Strategic Airlines-sponsored nightcap to five laps. The former Fujitsu V8 series racer had not driven since returning from Europe in late 2008.