SkyCity Triple Crown at Hidden Valley

Tue, 06 Jul 2010 01:04:00 GMT

Tune in for the Telecast on Channel 7
This week the V8 Supercars are at the Top End of Australia, and the heat of Darwin’s Hidden Valley Raceway. For the first time in 18 months there’s a new leader in the Championship with James Courtney having displaced reigning Champ Jamie Whincup. Tune in for an action packed weekend of racing.

Saturday June 19th from 2.30 – 5.30pm
Qualifying, Shootout and Race 13 ( 120km )
Sunday June 20th from 1.30 - 5pm Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane
3.15 - 5.30pm Adelaide and 11.30am - 3pm Perth
Qualifying and Race 14 ( 200km )

Hosted by Matt White, along with commentators Neil Crompton, Mark Skaife and pit reporter Mark Larkham.

It feels like ages since the V8 Supercars last hit the track, but in reality it’s only been five weeks since the last round at Winton. So get ready, the Northern Territory is hosting the V8 Supercars for the 13th consecutive year and Australians have voted the V8 round at Hidden Valley, the best in the nation.

SKYCITY Triple Crown is also a favourite amongst the drivers, teams and the thousands of visitors who witness the action trackside every year. The event injects more than $8 million into the local economy and attracts crowds of 40,000 people. It’s not just a weekend for motor sports enthusiasts to enjoy the roar of the engines, the colour and the glamour. It’s also a chance to showcase Territory business, attractions and great lifestyle.

Both Toll Holden Racing Team (HRT) drivers will debut new Walkinshaw Racing chassis at Darwin, while Jamie Whincup also debuts a new Triple Eight one. HRT driver Garth Tander said testing the new VE Commodores at Winton in the lead up to the Hidden Valley event was very productive and encouraging. Teammate Will Davison hopes his brand new car – the first he has ever had in his V8 career – does him proud at Darwin.

Bundaberg Red Racing driver Fabian Coulthard inherits GT’s old car, but he is under no illusion that it will be the magic bullet to his below par year.

Whincup lost the Championship lead for the first time in 18 months at the conclusion of the Winton event. He said his new Commodore, which he has named Georgia, had no mechanical issues when he gave it a 20-lap shakedown earlier this month.

Each driver will compete in the 120km Saturday on the control tyre and also use one set of softs for the 200km Sunday race.

“There’s no secret the sprint tyres are my weakness at the moment, but we will be putting our focus into turning that around for Sunday’s race in Darwin,” Whincup said. New Championship leader James Courtney said the return to the control tyre does not concern him. “I’ve won races on soft and hard-compound tyres so there’s no reason why I can’t be competitive on both types of rubber in the Top End,” the Jim Beam Racing driver said. “It’s possible we might clear out and run away from them again, regardless of what tyres we’re on. “My team has momentum from four wins in a row so the pressure is back on the others to see what they can do.” It hasn’t all been hard work for the teams in the lead-up to the SkyCity Triple Crown.

Bargwanna V8 Launch 2010

Tue, 06 Jul 2010 01:18:00 GMT

JASON BARGWANNA AIMS FOR BEST V8 SEASON YET WITH ROCK RACING CLICK HERE TO SEE VIDEO OF THE ROCK RACING UNVEILING

Jason Bargwanna says that driving the Rock Commodore for Kelly Racing will give him the ability to achieve his best results yet in V8 Supercar competition.

Bargwanna unveiled the new-look #11 Rock Racing Holden Commodore at the team's headquarters in Braeside, Melbourne today, where it was announced that Rock Energy Drink would be the major sponsor of Bargwanna's effort in a multi-year deal with Kelly Racing.

Bargwanna is adamant that joining Kelly Racing gives him his best opportunity yet in V8 Supercars. Realistically this team has all the ingredients that you need, said Bargwanna. The one thing that you want as a driver is to know that you've got equipment good enough to do the job and I've definitely got that in the #11 Rock Commodore.

I'm excited about working with Rick and Todd (Kelly). Between us we've got a few trophies on the shelf, so if you put all that experience together, then there is no reason why we can't be a very successful race team. It's going to take that united front to take on the likes of Triple 8 and Walkinshaw. They are very strong operations so to knock them off we need to all put our heads together to make it work.

The 144-event veteran and 2000 Bathurst winner scored seventh in the championship standings in both 1998 and 2000 with Garry Rogers Motorsport.

Having raced for under-funded teams in recent years, Bargwanna now has his sights set on a career-best performance in 2010 as part of a formidable driver line-up alongside fellow Bathurst champions Todd and Rick Kelly.

The last three teams I've been with have closed their doors and that's been the reason I've departed the team, so this is completely different for me, said Bargwanna.

This team is focused on winning car races. Everything you do from the moment you open the front door is all about winning car races.

That is what every driver dreams of, to be part of a championship-contending team.
There is no compromise in this operation. The last few seasons have been character building years and now it's my time to put it all together and make the most of this genuinely great opportunity.

Bargwanna will use the chassis raced by Todd Kelly in 2009 this season, with that chassis (PE049) completely rebuilt over the off-season and now virtually a brand new V8 Supercar. Bargwanna will has also been given the privilege of using the number 11 made famous by six-time Bathurst winner and V8 Supercar legend Larry Perkins.

In terms of V8 Supercar event starts, Kelly Racing now boasts the most experienced driver line-up in the field with 388 combined starts between Bargwanna and the Kelly brothers.

We all have high hopes for Rock Racing in terms of what we want to achieve and this is the exciting beginning of this new relationship.

Motorsports

SkyCity Triple Crown at Hidden Valley

Bargwanna V8 Launch 2010