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ISSUE 112

6 ANALYSIS: 2020 VISION The parity measures and rules to improve Supercars racing from 2020.

8 ANALYSIS: THE RECORD BREAKERS How Scott McLaughlin’s 2019 season is shaping up against the other great winning runs.

10 ANALYSIS: HOLDIN’ ON Holden has recommitted to Supercars for the next two years, but what comes after that?

12 ANALYSIS: ENDURO TIME Getting set for the 2019 Supercheap Auto Bathurst 1000 and PIRTEK Enduro Cup. 14 WINTERBOTTOM COLUMN Winterbottom on the progress of Team 18 ahead of the endurance events.

16 LOWNDES COLUMN Lowndes on how Triple Eight Race Engineering will look to close the gap to DJR Team Penske.

18 ROGERS COLUMN Rogers on the lessons of running a successful business.

22 FEATURE: DJR TEAM PENSKE, FROM SALVATION TO DOMINATION The remarkable rise of DJR Team Penske, from the near demise of Dick Johnson Racing to the arrival of Team Penske.

30 FEATURE: THE PENSKE WAY An exclusive interview with Roger Penske on his business and racing successes.

36 FEATURE: THE POWERHOUSE TEAMS Profile of the legendary teams that have won three or more drivers’ titles in the Australian Touring Car Championship/Supercars.

42 FEATURE: 23 RED RACING, ALIVE AND KICKING Team owner Phil Munday and driver Will Davison on the progress of 23 Red Racing.

46 FEATURE: GARRY ROGERS MOTORSPORT, CONFIDENCE BOOST The transition period at Garry Rogers Motorsport with the arrival of Boost Mobile as its main backer.

50 FEATURE: MATT STONE RACING, THE BATTLERS How Matt Stone Racing and driver Todd Hazelwood are establishing themselves in Supercars.

54 FEATURE: THE BEND MOTORSPORT PARK Take a trip to Australia’s new motorsport hub, The Bend Motorsport Park in South Australia.

60 FEATURE: KEEPING UP WITH THE JONESES Macauley Jones on his full-time rookie season.

66 SHOOTOUT The 10 best drivers never to win a championship.

SUPERCAR XTRA

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/SupercarXtra @SupercarXtra @SupercarXtra

THE RISE OF DJR TEAM PENSKE

D

JR Team Penske and Scott McLaughlin are on course for a record-breaking Virgin Australia Supercars Championship season entering the second half of 2019.

It’s been a remarkable season for the reigning champions, stepping up a level in the transition to the Ford Mustang Supercar, with McLaughlin likely to clinch a second championship in as many years.

The rise of DJR Team Penske is the latest comeback for the team formerly known as Dick Johnson Racing.

Dick Johnson Racing faced extinction just six years ago, struggling with massive debts and poor on-track results. Not only did the efforts of Ryan

4

Story and Team Penske save the legendary team, they took it the top and set a new standard in Supercars.

We look back on the rise, fall and rise of Dick Johnson Racing/DJR Team Penske in the cover story of this edition, detailing the key players and factors in the team’s incredible journey over the last decade.

Dick Johnson Racing/DJR Team Penske is one of nine teams to have won three or more drivers’ championships in the 60-year history of the Australian Touring Car Championship/Supercars. We reflect back on the achievements of those teams in our profile of the powerhouses of Australian touring cars.

The print edition of this issue also includes a pullout poster with DJR Team Penske’s

McLaughlin and the powerhouse teams on either side.

Elsewhere in this edition, we look at the progress of 23 Red Racing, Garry Rogers Motorsport and Matt Stone Racing in 2019. 23 Red Racing and Matt Stone Racing are in their second full-time seasons and have taken different approaches to their single-car entries, with 23 Red Racing teaming up with Tickford Racing and Matt Stone Racing going it alone as a customer of Triple Eight Race Engineering. While Garry Rogers Motorsport is one of the oldest teams on the grid, it’s also in a transitional period with new backer Boost Mobile.

We also touch base with rookie Macauley Jones to discuss his progress in 2019 and take a tour of The Bend Motorsport Park, the new benchmark in terms of race tracks in Australia.

Mark Winterbottom, Craig Lowndes and Garry Rogers also share their thoughts in their new columns, following on from our analysis of the key issues in Supercars. We also list the best drivers never to win a championship in our Shootout section.

Remember, this edition is also available in digital form online and in the App Store and Google Play stores.

Visit us at SupercarXtra. com.au for more details, to follow the latest news and to visit our online store, or keep in touch with us on our social media channels: on Twitter and Instagram at @SupercarXtra and on Facebook at www. facebook.com/SupercarXtra.

Enjoy!

– Adrian

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Phone: (03) 9372 9125 office@supercarxtra.com.au Published by Raamen Pty Ltd Material in Supercar Xtra is protected by copyright laws and may not be reproduced in full or in part in any format. Supercar Xtra will consider unsolicited articles and pictures; however, no responsibility will be taken for their return. While all efforts are taken to verify information in Supercar Xtra is factual, no responsibility will be taken for any material which is later found to be false or misleading.

The opinions of the contributors are not always those of the publishers.

SUPERCAR XTRA

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The Virgin Australia Supercars Championship is reworking its rules with the aim of cutting costs and improving the racing heading into 2020 and beyond.

T

he Virgin Australia Supercars Championship is constantly evolving, with the upcoming technical changes for 2020 and 2021 designed to produce closer, more competitive racing.

With experienced duo Adrian Burgess and Campbell Little at the helm of the Virgin Australia Supercars Championship’s technical and sporting rules, the following changes will be implemented over the next two years:

PARITY MEASURES

Parity has been a big talking point with the introduction of the Ford Mustang Supercar in 2019, the first two-door coupe 6

to race under the currentgeneration regulations.

Achieving better parity between the Mustang, Holden ZB Commodore and Nissan Altima has been a work in progress throughout the season for Supercars’ technical team.

Initially, the Mustangs were forced to run smaller rear-wing endplates, a lower rear-wing Gurney flap and a reduced front undertray extension.

Then, a centre of gravity adjustment was made. The Commodores had 6.8kg added to the leading edge of the roof and the Mustangs 27kg clamped to their roof rollbars.

A further adjustment saw the Commodores have their

6.8kg ballast removed, while 9kg of ballast was removed from the roof and composite parts replaced by steel roof beams in the Mustang, and the engine ballast in the Altima lowered to the sump.

The changes will be reviewed ahead of the 2020 Virgin Australia Supercars Championship with further adjustments possible.

ENGINE DURABILITY

Changes to the rules around engines will extend the life of the powerplants, reducing the number of rebuilds required throughout a season.

Extending engine life with less rebuilds will save the teams approximately $50,000 and extend the range of the

engines beyond the current 5000km mark that often necessitates a service.

As a result of the changes, performance from the engines is set to decrease.

CONTROL DAMPERS

The introduction of a control damper will not only save money for teams but limit an area in which bigger teams can gain an advantage over smaller operations.

The varied performance of Sachs, Ohlins and Supashock dampers has been a big factor in recent seasons.

The move to a control damper follows the ban on twin-spring dampers and the introduction of a new transaxle gearbox this season.

SUPERCAR XTRA

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New rules will aim to cut costs and improve racing in Supercars.

DOWNFORCE REDUCTION

There are two avenues being explored to improve racing: less downforce and more tyres.

The regulations that mandated a total downforce figure (front plus rear) of approximately 350kg at 200km/h is set to be adjusted for the first time since the introduction of the Car of the Future regulations in 2013.

A reduction in aerodynamics will lead to less downforce being generated by cars, which will allow them to follow each other more closely and,

therefore, improve racing with a better ability to slipstream and overtake.

TYRES

A larger allocation of tyres in 2020 will avoid the use of pre-marked tyres in practice, giving the teams more valuable running during practice sessions over a race weekend.

From 2021, the focus will be on introducing a new compound of tyre that degrades higher than the current rubber. With longer 200km races for the Saturdays at

SuperSprint events, the softer tyres will produce better racing with higher degradation leading to more strategy options for teams.

CHASSIS

The focus for the next-generation Supercar will be on changes to the design of the chassis to allow more varied car shapes to fit over the control structure.

The introduction of the two-door coupe Mustang into Supercars prompted debate over the look of the

new Supercar on the current control chassis.

Changing the dimensions of the chassis, particularly the roll hoop height, will assist in allowing the Mustang, Camaro and other coupes to more easily fit on the chassis for 2021 and beyond.

Visit SupercarXtra.com. au for the latest regarding the 2020 Virgin Australia Supercars Championship, including the schedule of events, technical regulations, team and driver changes and more.

/SupercarXtra @SupercarXtra @SupercarXtra BREAKING NEWS ✚ EVENT PREVIEWS ✚ POINTS STANDINGS ✚ LATEST IMAGES ✚ POSTERS & PRINTS ✚ MERCHANDISE ✚ SO MUCH MORE!

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SX112 p06-7 Analysis 2020.indd 7

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12/7/19 3:23 pm

Scott McLaughlin is rewriting the Australian Touring Car Championship/ Supercars record books with his dominant run in 2019. This is how his season is shaping up against the best-ever winning runs.

R

unaway leaders Scott McLaughlin and DJR Team Penske are setting a new benchmark in the Virgin Australia Supercars Championship.

With the drivers’ and teams’ championships seemingly in the bag, attention is turning to whether the team can end a 25-year drought in the Bathurst 1000 and how high McLaughlin will set the record for wins and pole positions in a season.

At the halfway mark of 2019, with 16 of the 32 races completed following the BetEasy Darwin Triple Crown, McLaughlin had won 12 races. That’s a winning

Scott McLaughlin is on course for a recordbreaking season.

8

percentage of 75 per cent, which exceeds the current highest percentage winning seasons of Allan Moffat and Dick Johnson in 1977 and 1981 respectively at 72.73 per cent (see table). And considering McLaughlin failed to start Race 5 at the Beaurepaires Melbourne 400 due to a tangle with Cameron Waters on the out-lap, the percentage of wins per race starts is actually 80 per cent.

The record for most race wins in a season was set by Craig Lowndes, who won 16 races for the Holden Racing Team in 1996. With 30 races in 1996 and a similar amount in the modern Supercars era, McLaughlin’s feat is comparable to the dominant

MOST RACES WIN IN A SEASON PRE-2019 Wins 16 15 15 15 14 14

Driver Craig Lowndes Jamie Whincup Mark Skaife Garth Tander Craig Lowndes Jamie Whincup

Team Holden Racing Team Triple Eight Race Engineering Holden Racing Team HSV Dealer Team Holden Racing Team Triple Eight Race Engineering

Year Races % 1996 30 53.33 2008 34 44.12 2002 29 51.72 2007 37 40.54 1998 29 48.27 2014 38 36.84

BIGGEST WINNING PERCENTAGE IN A SEASON PRE-2019 % 72.73 72.73 71.43 70 66.6

Driver Allan Moffat Dick Johnson Peter Brock Jim Richards Dick Johnson

Team Allan Moffat Racing Dick Johnson Racing Holden Dealer Team JPS Team BMW Dick Johnson Racing

seasons of Lowndes, Jamie Whincup, Mark Skaife, etc.

McLaughlin already holds

Year 1977 1981 1974 1985 1988

the record for most pole positions in a season with 16 in 2017 and moved into second place in the all-time pole position list behind Whincup.

Despite being only 26 years of age, McLaughlin is also moving up in the top 10 of all-time wins and podium finishes.

He is also in the record books as the youngest winner of a race (19 years, 10 months and three days at Pukekohe Park Raceway in 2013) and the youngest polesitter (20 years, nine months and 27 days at Winton Motor Raceway in 2014).

Keep up to date with McLaughlin’s record-breaking progress at SupercarXtra. com.au.

SUPERCAR XTRA

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Holden has recommitted to the Virgin Australia Supercars Championship with a new deal for Triple Eight Race Engineering to race the Commodore ZB as the sole factorybacked outfit, bringing the fight to Ford and its all-conquering DJR Team Penske.

H

olden has responded to Ford’s return to the Virgin Australia Supercars Championship in an official capacity in 2018 by extending its own commitment to the series.

Holden and Red Bull signed new two-year deals with Triple Eight Race Engineering in July 2019, ensuring the continuation of a factory-backed presence until at least the end of 2021.

Triple Eight Race Engineering was given sole factory backing from 2017 under a then three-year deal, which included the role of developing the ZB Commodore.

The extension of the deal confirmed that Holden will continue racing the ZB Commodore for at least the next two years, ending speculation that the manufacturer could follow Ford’s example with the Mustang and develop the two-door coupe Camaro into a Supercar.

Walkinshaw Andretti United, which was formerly the factory Holden team under the Holden Racing Team guise, had been exploring the possibility of racing the Camaro in Supercars.

Ryan Walkinshaw, co-owner of Walkinshaw Andretti United, also runs Holden Special Vehicles, which imports and sells right-hand-drive converted Camaros in Australia.

Also ruled out in the announcement was a change of engines. Triple Eight Race Engineering, engine supplier KRE and General Motors had developed a twin-turbo V6 10

Holden and Red Bull have recommitted to Triple Eight Race Engineering for the next two seasons.

engine to be used this season, though the programme was put on hold indefinitely.

“Commodore is our contract car and the V8 that has been developed for it will continue on,” said Holden marketing boss Kristian Aquilina.

“We’re only interested in the Commodore with the V8.

That’s really what we’re here racing for and with. That’s our hardware, it’s what we’ve built our plans around.

“We talk to GM all the time and the only conversation we have is about Commodore.”

Holden has been a regular presence in the category with 2019 marking 50 years since the Holden Dealer Team debuted as the manufacturer’s factory-supported team.

While Ford’s commitment to Supercars has wavered over the years, its decision to retire the Falcon and import and race

the Mustang when Australian manufacturing ended has paid dividends with strong sales and performances on the race track.

In contrast, Holden rebadged the imported five-door Opel Insignia as a Commodore and took it racing despite criticism over the continued use of the Commodore name for a nonAustralian built car.

Holden dropped to 10th in the sales tally at the midway point of 2019, losing further ground to Ford. With ZB sales figures averaging around 500 per month, Holden is set to decrease the range of Commodores in the marketplace.

Ford’s offer of a performance model with a V8 option in Australia helped revitalise its interest in bringing the Mustang into Supercars. In contrast, Holden only offers the ZB Commodore with V6 engines.

“From a marketing

standpoint, that’s less important, the connection between the powertrain on the track and what’s happening on the road, being detached quite some time ago,” added Aquilina.

But with the future of the Commodore and Holden still uncertain, the two-year extension allows for a reassess in the coming years in terms of the future position of the brand and also if the nextgeneration Supercar chassis paves the way for an easier transition to the likes of a Camaro.

“It was the right amount of time for this sort of extension and commitment at the levels that we’re talking about,” said Aquilina.

“If the rules do change in that timeframe, we’ll have to obviously assess those and respond to them.”

SUPERCAR XTRA

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12/7/19 3:21 pm

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DJR Team Penske’s bid to end a 25-year winless run at Bathurst comes up against a formidable Triple Eight Race Engineering driver line-up. This is how the battle for the 2019 Supercheap Auto Bathurst 1000 and PIRTEK Enduro Cup is shaping up.

D

JR Team Penske’s dominant first half of 2019 looks set to carry the team and lead driver Scott McLaughlin to the drivers’ and teams’ championship win. According to McLaughlin, the points buffer will allow them to go allout at the endurance events.

“We want to attack and build a gap and be able to attack in the enduros and not be worried about a championship; that’s what I’m trying to build to,” he says.

“I want to have a gap that I can attack in the enduros and not worry about it, because Bathurst is the next thing on my list and I don’t want to be worried about a points gap.”

While McLaughlin will be gunning for a first Bathurst win, DJR Team Penske (formerly Dick Johnson Racing) will be out to end a 25-year drought at Mount Panorama dating back to Dick Johnson and John Bowe’s win in 1994. The team has not won a 500km or 1000km enduro since the 2001 Queensland 500 with Steven Johnson and Paul Radisich.

DJR Team Penske enters the PIRTEK Enduro Cup with an unchanged driver line-up with Alexandre Prémat alongside McLaughlin and Tony D’Alberto with Fabian Coulthard. But it’s the Triple Eight Race Engineering line-up

Jamie Whincup and Craig Lowndes team up for the first time since 2009.

that could close the gap to the form team of 2019.

Craig Lowndes and Garth Tander return to Superars at Triple Eight Race Engineering, forming one of the strongest driver line-ups since full-time drivers were no longer allowed to partner one another for the endurance events from 2010.

Lowndes and Jamie Whincup were co-drivers between 2006 and 2009, winning the Bathurst 1000 three times in a row from 2006 to 2008.

Between them they have won 10 Supercars championships and 11 Bathurst 1000s.

“In some ways it feels like we’re getting the band back together!” says Whincup.

“IF THERE’S ANYONE YOU’D WANT ON YOUR SIDE AT BATHURST, IT’S CRAIG LOWNDES!” – JAMIE WHINCUP 12

“Our previous results are no indication of how we’ll go this time around, but if there’s anyone you’d want on your side at Bathurst, it’s Craig Lowndes!”

Tander joins Triple Eight Race Engineering after losing his drive at Garry Rogers Motorsport. He has won the Bathurst 1000 three times and will be out to help Shane van Gisbergen achieve a maiden win in the endurance classic. They’ve both won the Supercars championship with a title each.

“Craig is back driving with Jamie, which is fitting, and if you can’t have Craig, then Garth is definitely the best person to have on your team,” says van Gisbergen.

“As far as experience goes, there’s probably not many better drivers. It’s pretty special to have someone of his

calibre with multiple Bathurst wins.”

With Bathurst at the start of the PIRTEK Enduro Cup, driver preparation and experience is seen as vital for teams.

Other entries to watch include Steven Richards reuniting with 2013 Bathurst 1000-winning co-driver Mark Winterbottom at Team 18; Michael Caruso alongside Cameron Waters at Tickford Racing, where reigning Gold Coast 600 winners Chaz Mostert and James Moffat are together again; and 2017 Bathurst 1000 winners David Reynolds and Luke Youlden and young-guns Anton de Pasquale and Will Brown at Erebus Motorsport.

Follow us at SupercarXtra. com.au and our social media channels (search ‘SupercarXtra Magazine’) for endurance season updates.

SUPERCAR XTRA

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SUPERCARS 2019 CHAMPIONSHIP CALENDAR

FEB 28-MAR 3 Superloop Adelaide 500

Adelaide Parklands Circuit

MAR 14-17

Beaurepaires Melbourne 400

Albert Park Street Circuit

APR 5-7

Tyrepower Tasmania SuperSprint

Symmons Plains Raceway

APR 12-14

WD-40 Phillip Island SuperSprint

Phillip Island GP Circuit

MAY 2-4

PIRTEK Perth SuperNight

MAY 24-26

Truck Assist Winton SuperSprint

Winton Motor Raceway

JUN 14-16

BetEasy Darwin Triple Crown

Hidden Valley Raceway

JUL 5-7

Watpac Townsville 400

Townsville Street Circuit

JUL 26-28

Century Batteries Ipswich SuperSprint

AUG 23-25

OTR The Bend SuperSprint

The Bend Motorsport Park

SEP 13-15

ITM Auckland SuperSprint

Pukekohe Park Raceway

OCT 10-13

Supercheap Auto Bathurst 1000

Mount Panorama Circuit

OCT 25-27

Vodafone Gold Coast 600

Surfers Paradise Street Circuit

NOV 8-10

Penrite Oil Sandown 500

Sandown Motor Raceway

NOV 22-24

Coates Hire Newcastle 500

Barbagallo Raceway

Queensland Raceway

Newcastle Street Circuit Dates correct at time of printing

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12/7/19 3:41 pm

EXPERT INSIGHT

BEYOND THE WHEEL Column by Mark Winterbottom

MAKING GAINS

I

t’s been a big learning season for us, finding our feet as a team and, for me personally, in the Holden ZB Commodore.

We didn’t quite know what to expect entering 2019, though starting the season with top 10s and a pole position at Symmons Plains Raceway made it feel like we had fast-tracked our development.

We were never going to come out of the box and compete for race wins right away, though popping up at the front of the field every now and again can sometimes confuse the real picture of where we are at on our learning curve.

We have to be realistic given how early we are in this process, with key personnel in the driver, team manager, engineer, mechanics and more new to the team this season.

It will take us some time to understand the car and the directions we can go in. There’s lots going on behind the scenes, and we’re working really closely with Triple Eight Race Engineering to assist with that development.

Running just one car in a team has its challenges, so the close relationship with Triple Eight Race Engineering is vital.

Otherwise it’s easy to lose

ground and get lost. Gaining and assessing data is vital, especially when trying to learn a car, so we’re lucky to have the association and access to the data of not only one of the leading teams but the developers of the current Commodore Supercar.

Having their data, set-ups and other information is helping to speed up our development process, allowing us to focus on where we can make gains in terms of gelling as a team.

There’s lots of maths and science behind it, but it’s also

“WE HAVE TO BE REALISTIC GIVEN HOW EARLY WE ARE IN THIS PROCESS, WITH KEY PERSONNEL IN THE DRIVER, TEAM MANAGER, ENGINEER, MECHANICS AND MORE NEW TO THE TEAM THIS SEASON.” 14

trial and error. People don’t see it from the outside, but sometimes you try something and it doesn’t work. It might push you to go in the opposite direction and can drive your development down a different path.

The bigger and more experienced teams know their stuff and can get it right more often than not. That’s what we’re trying to find – what works, what doesn’t – and we hope to be much more prepared for the second half of the season.

We are now gearing up for the endurance events and there’s no better partner to have than the reigning Bathurst and PIRTEK Enduro Cup-winning co-driver, Steven Richards.

Richo and I have been mates for years and we’ve had a lot of cracks at Bathurst together and had some really strong PIRTEK Enduro Cup campaigns but,

unfortunately, only have one win to go against our names together.

With Bathurst being the first enduro of the season, experience will be more important than ever, and Richo has plenty around Mount Panorama.

Richo also has plenty of experience with a Triple Eight Race Engineering Commodore, winning with it alongside Craig Lowndes last year, so he is the perfect asset with his ability, knowledge and talent.

I think the credibility of the team is really good at the moment and people can see good things are happening.

To land Richo is another benefit for the team. He’s played a key role all year, coming to test days, coming into the workshop, and he’s another smart head we have to help the team grow during this season.

– Frosty

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15/5/19 10:11 pm

EXPERT INSIGHT

RIGHT ON TRACK

Column by Craig Lowndes

CLOSING THE GAP

W

ith Scott McLaughlin and DJR Team Penske in such a strong position in the Virgin Australia Supercars Championship, the focus and intensity of the PIRTEK Enduro Cup will be even greater this season.

McLaughlin has been sensational this season; he’s in the prime of his life with a great team and he’s much stronger than in recent years. He’s got everything that he needs as a driver and this is his moment to shine.

The rest of the grid is working really hard to try and close that gap down. And even with the aero changes to the Ford Mustang, McLaughlin’s been able to continue on his winning ways with a gap over the rest despite the quality of the field.

Teams such as Triple Eight Race Engineering are determined to close that performance gap down, especially ahead of the PIRTEK Enduro Cup that represents a ‘championshipwithin-a-championship’.

Bathurst, in particular, is a

huge prize for teams, especially for Roland Dane, who would love nothing more than to win at Mount Panorama again to get one over DJR Team Penske.

Triple Eight Race Engineering’s focus is on getting better performance; working hard to make the cars faster and more consistent. They’ve had speed at certain rounds, though haven’t been able to back it up consistently against McLaughlin and DJR Team Penske. That’s what they’ll be focusing on.

Having a three-car line-up in

recent seasons meant they could share the development, which assisted the two Red Bull cars.

This year, with only two cars, it’s difficult to get the same amount of gains with one less car. While they’ve got a few customer cars on the grid, it’s not necessarily the same as a car from within the same team, as those other entries are going in their own directions with different aims.

The team has come out and said they do miss my input, which is nice to hear.

Even though I’ve done some

co-driving sessions and test days, it’s the race weekend input that’s the most valuable in terms of results.

We as a team have a strong pedigree in the endurance events and will be defending the Bathurst 1000, Sandown 500 and PIRTEK Enduro Cup titles this season.

Teaming up with Jamie Whincup yet again is a great feeling, a decade after we last drove together in 2009. It’s nice to be able to drive with him after so long apart, while Shane van Gisbergen and Garth Tander is a strong combination across the other side of the garage.

We’ve had a run together at the Bathurst 12 Hour and with the PIRTEK Enduro Cup starting at Mount Panorama this season, experience will count for a lot.

We can’t wait to get going with the endurance events, and hopefully the team continues to close the gap to DJR Team Penske so the battle at the long-distance events is more competitive than the championship.

– Craig

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EXPERT INSIGHT

GARRY THE GURU

Column by Garry Rogers

PERSEVERANCE PAYS OFF IN BUSINESS

I

often get asked the key to running a successful business, and I always reply by saying that there are no real secrets.

The first thing you need is energy and a ‘never give up attitude’. And when things aren’t going your way, you just need to grin and bear it, attack and keep working.

I left school at 14 years of age. I had very strict parents who taught me by example the difference between right and wrong, and equally as important, the meaning of respect for yourself and others.

The problem with people today is that they have a go at something and it doesn’t work, so they want to have a go at something else rather than persevering with it and pressing on.

You won’t get it right every time, but there is no doubt that perseverance and energy are vital.

Scholastic skills are secondary in the success of a business.

If you want a business to work, then you need a hell of a lot of common sense.

18

“THE PROBLEM WITH PEOPLE TODAY IS THAT THEY HAVE A GO AT SOMETHING AND IT DOESN’T WORK, SO THEY WANT TO HAVE A GO AT SOMETHING ELSE RATHER THAN PERSEVERING AND PRESSING ON. YOU WON’T GET IT RIGHT EVERY TIME, BUT THERE IS NO DOUBT THAT PERSEVERANCE AND ENERGY ARE VITAL.” When you are starting out it doesn’t always work, and often even when it does work well you are probably financially strapped and you haven’t got enough money. So when things aren’t going right you need to be able to juggle things around to get the money to buy your next lot of goods or pay your staff or whatever, but that all comes back to common sense. That really is something that not everyone has in my opinion.

A lot of people shouldn’t be in business. I believe a lot of people make excellent employees if they have got a leader that runs a good business and shares not only the financial gains.

If you want to encourage good people, then you have to share the good and the bad times with them.

When you get something good happening it is great and everyone’s energy levels rise and that’s a really good thing, but when it’s not quite going right, I think the people that are with you, the genuine people, they want to help you with the down times as well.

You don’t want to all sit in the corner and cry because that won’t fix anything, but if you are prepared to share the good and the bad, that is a much better scenario.

You also need to seek advice from them, involve them; that is another secret to making a

success of your business... it is important that everyone is a part of the process.

Of course someone has to make a final decision, and that in most cases is the person who is operating the business.

Believe me, I have learnt a hell of a lot from the people around me. We have all sorts of people – mechanics, engineers, composite people, cleaners, office staff and sub-contractors.

I have learnt quite a lot from those people because they have a different aspect; they see what goes on around you, when often you don’t. Don’t ever close your ears to the people around you, because they can help.

– Garry

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DJR TEAM PENSKE

FROM SALVATION TO

WORDS Adrian Musolino IMAGES Peter Norton, James Baker, Autopics.com.au, DJR Team Penske

Dick Johnson Racing stood on the brink of extinction entering 2013, facing mounting debts, a lack of sponsors and poor on-track results. Six years on, it entered 2019 as the defending champions and has confirmed its place as the current powerhouse in Supercars.

This is the latest remarkable comeback story from a team that built its legend on fighting back from adversity.

22

DO

he legend of Dick Johnson and Dick Johnson Racing/ DJR Team Penske was born with the championship and Bathurst double in 1981, a year after the devastation of crashing out of Bathurst after hitting a rock while leading. It wouldn’t be the last adversity they faced, with even more remarkable and complex fightbacks over the coming years.

DJR Team Penske now stands on the brink of a record-breaking championship win in 2019. The team will become the most successful in terms of drivers’ championships won, moving to nine, one ahead of

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D OMINATION current rival Triple Eight Race Engineering. Also, in the process, it will become the first team to win championships with three different car models – the Falcon, Sierra and Mustang.

It’s remarkable to think, then, that Johnson’s team was almost lost to Supercars just six years ago, the trough of a 10-year period in which it went from champions to also-rans and near financial collapse to champions again and the current powerhouse outfit.

Dick Johnson Racing’s championship win with James Courtney in 2010 masked the trouble the team was in following a few bleak years. The collapse of 2005 title sponsor Westpoint and the failure of Johnson’s FirstRock Mortgage Centre and V8 Telecom businesses put the team’s budget under great strain,

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DJR TEAM PENSKE

with its impact still felt despite Jim Beam’s backing leading into the championship-winning season.

The bubble burst in the immediate aftermath of the championship win. Charlie Schwerkolt, who owned 50 per cent of the business, left in acrimonious circumstances. He leased the #18 entry (his half share in the two-car team) to Dick Johnson Racing for 2011 and 2012. But with a two-year maximum lease option and Schwerkolt eager to start his own outfit, Dick Johnson Racing was left with just one entry, the #17.

Championship-winning team manager Adrian Burgess and James Courtney also jumped ship, leaving significant voids for a team with a budget deficit.

Experienced Englishman Malcolm Swetnam replaced Burgess as team manager and rookie James Moffat teamed with Steven Johnson. But they didn’t produce results befitting the reigning champions with two podiums a far cry from the previous season. The customer Triple Eight Race Engineering Ford FG Falcons were rarely competitive, while Triple Eight had moved on to Holden and Dick Johnson Racing fell down the pecking order of Ford teams.

More significantly for the long-term, though, was the arrival of Ryan Story in an official capacity. Story was a devoted Dick Johnson Racing fan who had a doctorate in mathematics and developed a lucrative data mining/statistical analysis business. He provided some sponsorship to the team before developing a business plan to attract new backers. His expertise would prove critical in the coming years.

Dick Johnson Racing doubled its operation in 2012 with expansion to four cars. The two entries that arrived were from tie-ups with Dean Fiore and his Triple F Racing license and Paul Morris and his Paul Morris Motorsport license.

The extra entries would give the team the option to hold on to a license when the Schwerkolt #18 would leave at the end of 2012. Also, with Jim Beam recommitting its sponsorship for the entries of Johnson and Fiore, internet-security company Norton could join as title sponsor of Moffat’s car.

THE FALL AND RISE: 2010 TO 2018 CHAMPIONSHIP TREND LINE

1st

1

2

1

5th

10th

12 15

15th

2010

James Courtney

2011

Steven Johnson

17

17

2012

2013

Steven Johnson

Chaz Mostert

19

19

2014

2015

Scott Pye

Scott Pye

2016

2017

2018

Fabian Scott Scott Coulthard McLaughlin McLaughlin

DJR Team Penske enjoys the spoils of victory in 2019.

THE PEAKS & TROUGHS OF DJR/DJR TEAM PENSKE

1980

1981-1984

1985-1986

TROUGH

PEAK

TROUGH

Dick Johnson Racing’s first Bathurst 1000 ended when Dick Johnson hit a rock while leading. The Ford XD Falcon was a write-off and the team’s future was in immediate doubt.

The outpouring of support after the Bathurst incident saw Johnson bounce back with a Bathurst victory in 1981 and championship wins in 1981, 1982 and 1984, becoming Ford’s lead entry.

The introduction of the Group A regulations forced the team to park the Falcon and switch to German-built Mustangs, which proved uncompetitive across 1985 and 1986.

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DJR Team Penske is now the benchmark team in Supercars.

The four-car setup proved unsustainable, though, and the team slipped further down the grid with Johnson the best-placed entry in 17th. Swetnam left the team in April with title sponsor Jim Beam and investor Maurice Pickering also departing at the end of 2012/into 2013. It was Pickering who had been working on a potential switch to Mazda for the team with the Car of the Future regulations coming in for 2013, though Dick Johnson Racing was left battling for survival entering the new era.

A potential title sponsorship deal with Hungry Jack’s fell through with the late delivery of Supercars’ television-rights deal, adding to the strain given the added cost in the transition to the Car of the Future.

Wilson Security stepped up with sponsorship and Crimsafe co-founder Steve Braback remained loyal

1987-1989

Dick Johnson can smile now after a dramatic last decade.

1990-1992

1993-1995

PEAK

TROUGH

PEAK

The team switched to the Sierra from 1987 and expanded to two cars with Shell as title sponsor.

Johnson was unstoppable in 1988 and 1989, winning the championships and Bathurst in 1989.

The Sierra lost its advantage to the Nissan Skyline R32 GT-R from 1990. The all-conquering Skyline also defeated Dick Johnson Racing in a controversial finish to the 1992 Bathurst 1000.

The change to V8s in 1993 saw Dick Johnson Racing return to a Falcon, winning the Sandown 500 in 1994 and 1995, Bathurst in 1994 and a championship win for John Bowe in 1995.

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DJR TEAM PENSKE

to Johnson, while Story became heavily involved by running the budget to ensure the team stayed afloat.

Two cars were entered in 2013, despite initial fears the team would be unable to afford to go racing. With Schwerkolt taking the #18 entry and Morris selling his license, Dick Johnson Racing held onto the #17 and leased the #12 from Fiore. Tim Blanchard and Jonny Reid were the drivers with Steven Johnson forced to vacate the seat to the pay drivers, though Reid was soon replaced by rising star Chaz Mostert.

It was in the second half of 2013 that the stars began to align for Dick Johnson Racing. Mostert claimed a remarkable win at Queensland Raceway, a just reward for those who had worked so hard to keep the team going. But it was off track at the next Queensland round on the Gold Coast when the team’s future partner came into the picture.

Roger Penske, American businessman and legendary motorsport team owner of Team Penske, had recently expanded his trucking empire into Australia with the purchase of the MAN, Western Star, Dennis Eagle and MTU brands. And, based on his business practices in North America, he would leverage those brands in motorsport.

The marketing manager for Penske Commercial Vehicles handed his business card to Dick Johnson Racing team manager Richard Swan at the Gold Coast

600 in October with the intention of opening up a dialogue between the two parties.

Penske wanted to be involved in Supercars and Dick Johnson Racing seemed a perfect fit; a legendary team in need of some support. Johnson was no stranger to North American motorsport fans, having competed in NASCAR races in 1989 and 1990. Also, Johnson was a Ford legend and Team Penske had just recommitted to Ford in NASCAR in 2013.

Dick Johnson, Story, Brabeck and sporting director

BELOW: Ryan Story emerged as a fan of Dick Johnson Racing to steering the team through its toughest years ahead of Team Penske’s arrival.

1996 – 1999 TROUGH

2000 – 2001 PEAK

2002 – 2006 TROUGH

Dick Johnson Racing lost its competitive edge in the late 1990s, with Bowe’s shock departure and Johnson’s retirement forcing a sudden change in the driver line-up.

The new combination of Steven Johnson and Paul Radisich were contenders in this two-year period, winning the Queensland 500 in 2001 and fighting for the win at Bathurst.

Shell left as title sponsor in 2004. Westpoint signed on but collapsed after a year, while the FirstRock Mortgage Centre and V8 Telecom ventures cost millions.

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Fabian Coulthard and Scott McLaughlin will remain with DJR Team Penske in 2020.

Campbell Little headed to Team Penske headquarters in Mooresville, North Carolina, in November 2013 with the meeting the confirmation of Penske’s intentions to get involved in Supercars.

Team Penske president Tim Cindric and Ford Racing boss Jamie Allison attended the 2013 seasonending Sydney 500, resulting in rampant speculation over their intentions. Supercars teams were desperately trying to work their way in, though only a handful of people knew of the dialogue that had already commenced with one team.

Dick Johnson Racing entered 2014 awaiting news from America. The team’s debt had been reduced thanks to Story’s efforts, though Mostert had been snapped up by Ford Performance Racing. And with Ford’s support funnelled into its factory team with a decreasing level of investment, Dick Johnson Racing was far from safe.

Tim Cindric made the deal between Dick Johnson Racing and Team Penske happen.

2007– 2008 PEAK

2009 TROUGH

2010 PEAK

Jim Beam became title sponsor in 2007, providing some financial relief. There was also a first race win in seven years and a new backer in Charlie Schwerkolt.

Ford pulled its funding of Triple Eight Race Engineering and Dick Johnson Racing for 2009. While Triple Eight switched to Holdens in 2010, Johnson was left with another hole in the budget.

Dick Johnson Racing scored an unexpected championship win with James Courtney in 2010. Ford had also returned to provide some backing, though the peak wouldn’t last long.

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DJR TEAM PENSKE

The license leased from Fiore was returned to Supercars and a second license acquired from Paul Morris. Scott Pye and David Wall formed another inexperienced driver line-up that failed to score a podium throughout the season. But the real focus was off-track.

As Team Penske weighed up its options, with the primary focus on its trucking business, Dick Johnson Racing was forced to play the waiting game. With Ford ending its support for its Supercars teams from 2015, the Team Penske decision was vital.

Discussions between the two parties ramped up in May and June 2014, with Cindric and Penske visiting the Dick Johnson Racing headquarters in Stapylton, Queensland, to assess the business.

It was then the deal was essentially done and the plans formulated to improve the team structure in the Team Penske mold, with a focus on disciplines, procedures, presentation and people. The personnel from both outfits had come to a rather smooth union, topped off with a lunch at a McDonald’s down the road from Dick Johnson Racing.

News of the union broke ahead of the 2014 Sandown 500, though the speculation that two-time champion Marcos Ambrose would return to Supercars after nine years in NASCAR stole the headlines. Penske had reached out to Ambrose to discuss Supercars, and he was tempted by the chance to join the new look team and return to Australia.

The name DJR Team Penske was agreed upon, crucially maintaining the Johnson legacy. The Team Penske takeover and Ambrose’s return was announced on September 15, 2014.

Story would officially become team boss, having impressed Team Penske in not only their negotiations but in keeping Dick Johnson Racing alive. Team Penske would also bring in personnel to help rebuild the technical operation.

A wildcard entry would be entered for Ambrose at the 2014 season-ending Sydney 500 in preparation for the official launch of DJR Team Penske in 2015.

The team downsized to one entry for Ambrose with its other license leased to Super Black Racing. Wilson

2011 – 2012

Security made way for a rotating sponsorship model that allowed DJR Team Penske to showcase Penske’s various businesses.

The dream team of DJR Team Penske and Ambrose was off to a flyer with Ambrose qualifying his new FG X Falcon in the top 10 at the season-opening Adelaide 500, though difficult race results prompted Ambrose to vacate the seat after two rounds, giving Pye a second chance in the driver’s seat.

Pye soldiered on and scored a podium, though the 2015 season was about rebuilding under the new structure. This included an expansion back up to two cars for 2016, with the return of the license it had leased out to Super Black Racing.

Fabian Coulthard partnered with Pye in 2016, with the duo delivering four podiums. Off-track, DJR Team Penske was solidifying the foundations for a championship charge.

Having run as essentially a customer of Prodrive Racing Australia (now Tickford Racing), DJR Team Penske sought to go its own way in terms of design, development and manufacturing. The culmination of this was the acquisition of Ludo Lacroix at the end of

2013 – 2014

ABOVE: Roger Penske’s business interests in Australia paved the way for an involvement in Supercars.

2015

TROUGH

PEAK

TROUGH

The title-winning team fell apart with Schwerkolt, Courtney and manager Adrian Burgess leaving.

Sponsors such as Jim Beam also left and the team entered 2013 on the brink.

Backing from Wilson Security and the efforts of Ryan Story saved the team in 2013. It paved the way for a deal with Team Penske to take over as majority owners in 2014.

Two-time champion Marcos Ambrose returned from NASCAR to drive for the new-look DJR Team Penske in 2015. But his full-time comeback lasted just two rounds.

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2016. The Frenchman was a key ingredient in Triple Eight Race Engineering’s success in Supercars, designing cars that had dominated over the last decade.

Joining Lacroix was Scott McLaughlin, the former Dunlop Super2 Series champion who had stunned Supercars with his performances in Garry Rogers Motorsport’s Holdens and Volvos. McLaughlin replaced Pye from 2017, forming an all-New Zealand line-up alongside Coulthard.

Long-time backer Shell also returned as title sponsor, allaying fears that the Johnson heritage would be squeezed out under Team Penske’s ownership.

The McLaughlin-Lacroix combination nearly delivered a championship in their first season with the team, losing out following a last-lap tangle in the final race of the season in Newcastle. The heartbreaking defeat galvanised the team, which consoled itself with the teams’ championship win. Meanwhile, DJR Team Penske was working on its next masterstroke.

With Ford having pulled out of Supercars and the Falcon retired after the closure of the Blue Oval’s Australian manufacturing plant, DJR Team Penske faced the prospect of a switch of brands. Johnson was a Ford loyalist, sticking with the Blue Oval despite wavering levels of support over the years, so a switch away from them risked alienating the team’s fan base.

However, with Penske’s backing and his close ties with Ford’s head office, it seemed inevitable that the Blue Oval would be tempted back. In April 2018, Ford Australia and Ford Performance confirmed they would provide backing for DJR Team Penske and Tickford Racing to race a Mustang Supercar from 2019. DJR Team Penske would be the team charged with designing the car, tapping into Lacroix’s expertise.

DJR Team Penske and McLaughlin overcame the demons of 2017 and won the title in 2018. Fittingly, it was the 17th and final championship win for the Falcon courtesy of the #17. Penske and Cindric were on hand for the historic occasion, the culmination of a remarkable four-year period.

The record-breaking start with the Mustang in 2019 confirms DJR Team Penske’s rise to the top of Supercars. In the history of not only Dick Johnson Racing/DJR Team Penske but also Australian motorsport, the story of the fall and rise of the team between championship wins in 2010 and 2018 is quite remarkable. And it’s continued with the level of success in 2019 and continuity heading into 2020.

ABOVE: The arrival of Ludo Lacroix and Scott McLaughlin in 2017 vaulted DJR Team Penske into championship contenders.

2016 – 2019 PEAK DJR Team Penske climbed up the grid steadily in 2016 before becoming genuine contenders and then champions with the arrival of Scott McLaughlin.

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ROGER PENSKE

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Team Penske has been the dominant force in IndyCar for decades and has become the team to beat in NASCAR in recent years, bringing that winning culture to the Virgin Australia Supercars Championship with DJR Team Penske. We met with Roger Penske to discuss the rise of Team Penske.

WORDS Andrew Clarke IMAGES Team Penske, Peter Norton

oger Penske was beaming at the 2019 Indy 500 at Indianapolis Motor Speedway. This is his home. A Team Penske car won the Indianapolis GP on the road course and claimed pole position and the race win in the Indy 500, another month of May masterclass from Penske’s team.

For the man known as ‘The Captain’, his playground is the biggest single-day sporting event in the world: 320,000 people fill the grandstands that line the iconic 2.5-mile (4km) track on the same day he had three cars lining up at Charlotte Motor Speedway for NASCAR’s Coca-Cola 600 and, on the other side of the world, two Supercars at Winton Motor Raceway. Only his International Motor Sports Association (IMSA) team was sitting idle on that one weekend.

Team Penske is in action week in, week out in the United States of America. The season starts in January and ends in November with more than 65 weekends of racing. There are 14 regular series drivers across the four categories, between 60 and 80 cars in action or being prepared at any given moment with about 600 staff making it all happen.

It is a phenomenal enterprise that effectively

started when Penske was just a driver. He retired from driving in 1965 to focus on his first business, a Philadelphia Chevrolet dealership. However, racing remained a key element in Penske’s overall business plan, and he soon entered cars in a variety of categories in North America.

Mark Donohue led the team on the track, delivering Team Penske’s first Indy 500 and NASCAR race wins.

The American was killed following a crash at the 1975 Austrian Grand Prix. Team Penske raced on and fittingly won in Austria the following season, becoming one of only two American teams to win a Formula 1 grand prix in Europe.

From there Penske used motor racing and his team ownership to build his business enterprise. Great drivers such as Mario Andretti, Al Unser, Rick Mears, Emerson Fittipaldi and more drove Team Penske forward to the benchmark in North American racing and, now, in Australia.

Penske’s wealth is estimated at $1.5 billion and he recently received the Presidential Medal of Freedom from President Donald Trump, making him only the second motorsport recipient of the award behind Richard Petty.

We sat down with Penske at Indianapolis Motor Speedway to discuss the rise of Team Penske, in North America and Australia.

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ROGER PENSKE

How important is motor racing to Roger Penske?

And then, as a second part, to the Penske business overall?

Roger Penske: Racing is really the common thread that runs throughout all of our Penske businesses and ties it all together.

We are racers at heart and the lessons and philosophies we have learned in motorsports certainly carry over to the business world.

The core principles of teamwork, technology, putting together a game plan and going out and executing that plan have served us well in both racing and business, along with identifying opportunities and making the most of those opportunities.

Did it all start with a sportscar and Mark Donohue, is that how you view it?

Well, to me it really started in 1951 when my father took me to the Indianapolis Motor Speedway and I was able to watch the Indianapolis 500 in person for the first time.

That really ignited a spark for me, and my passion for racing burns just as bright today as it did back then.

That eventually led to racing cars and then the transition to forming our race team.

Certainly, Mark Donohue and his success with us helped lay the foundation for Team Penske, and we have grown from there.

You started with IndyCar in 1968. Did you think then it would become what it has become?

When we first started our IndyCar program we certainly had high hopes and set some specific goals, but I am not sure anyone would have envisioned where the program would go and what it is today.

We are certainly proud of our success, not only in IndyCar but across all of our racing programs, and it is really a credit to all of the hard work and dedication from our team members, and the support of their families, that have helped us achieve all that we have in the sport.

RIGHT: Team Penske’s racing operations in North America: IndyCar Series (right), International Motor Sports Association (IMSA, far right) and NASCAR (bottom right). Team Penske has won races and is contending for the championship in all three classes, in what could be a historic season for the racing giant.

Does IndyCar hold a soft spot amongst all the categories Team Penske is involved in?

We are focused on winning in all of our racing programs. It really comes down to which team is competing at that specific time, and if we have several cars on track at the same time, I utilise the technology we have available to follow as much of the action across all the series that I can.

I continue to call the race strategy for one of our IndyCars – working with our No. 12 Verizon Chevrolet team and Will Power – so sometimes that dictates where I will be on a given race weekend.

You started in NASCAR four years after IndyCars. Can you explain the size of the NASCAR operation? It took a while to succeed there, so is that just the complexity of the series?

The sport of NASCAR has experienced so much growth and it is completely different today than when we first began competing in stock-car racing.

We are fully committed to our NASCAR program and I think you can see that focus and commitment both at the track and at our racing facility in North Carolina.

Our team has worked very hard to build our NASCAR program, identifying the right combination of partners, personnel and equipment, and we believe we have found the formula that allows us to consistently compete for wins and championships in NASCAR. Team Penske seems to do well in very restricted, controlled formulae, especially when it is shocks and dampers that seem to matter.

So much of our success in all of the series where we race comes down to having the right people in place.

“WITH THE KEY PARTNERS AND RELATIONSHIPS WE HAVE BEEN ABLE TO CULTIVATE THROUGH DJR TEAM PENSKE, WE BELIEVE IN THE SUPERCARS FORMULA AND THE PLATFORM IT PROVIDES. IT HAS BEEN A TERRIFIC PROGRAM FOR US AND WE THINK THERE ARE OPPORTUNITIES TO BUILD FOR THE FUTURE. IT HAS BEEN EXCITING TO SEE HOW THE TEAM HAS GROWN AND WHERE WE CAN TAKE IT DOWN THE ROAD.” – ROGER PENSKE 32

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ROGER PENSKE

TEAM PENSKE

BY THE NUMBERS US$31 BILLION Consolidated revenue of Penske Corporation 3660 & 63,000 Locations and staff size of Penske Corporation 600 Approximate staff size of Team Penske and DJR Team Penske 34 National championships won 18 Indianapolis 500 victories 15 IndyCar Series championships won 14 Contracted full-time drivers in 2019 2 NASCAR Cup championships won 2 Daytona 500 victories

We have said it before, but that really is our most important resource – what we call our ‘human capital’.

Our technical team works very hard to prepare in the off-season, and once the season begins our teams are focused on gathering and analysing the data on the equipment we race.

Then they do a great job of working with our drivers, and listening to the feedback they provide, to maximise our performance on race weekend.

How much and in what ways does what you do in North America impact how you have gone about racing in Australia?

When we first began competing in the Virgin Australia Supercars Championship we knew that what has worked for us in the series where we race in the United States of America might not necessarily translate to Supercars.

Working with Dick Johnson, Ryan Story and the team at DJR Team Penske, we were able to adapt and bring some of our philosophies and strategies and combine that with the experience and knowledge of their team.

It has really been a true collaborative effort, and we are proud of the success we have achieved together over the last few seasons.

Do you see more growth to what you are doing in Australia?

With the key partners and relationships we have been able to cultivate through DJR Team Penske, we believe in the Supercars formula and the platform it provides.

It has been a terrific program for us and we think there are opportunities to build for the future. It has been exciting to see how the team has grown and where we can take it down the road.

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LARGE FORMAT ALL POSTERS ARE 500 x 400 mm

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SUPERCAR XTRA MAGAZINE is now offering reproductions of our popular poster collection for sale – uncreased, unfolded, unstapled and on high-quality photographic stock!

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Available to order via the form below or online at SupercarXtra.com.au POSTAGE $55 EACH INCLUDING & HANDLING

112A SCOTT MCLAUGHLIN 2019 DJR TEAM PENSKE

107A BATHURST LEGENDS

110A CLASS OF 2019

101A 1977 BATHURST 1000 108B CRAIG LOWNDES: THE TRIPLE EIGHT YEARS

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109B MUSTANG LEGENDS 110B 2019 MUSTANGS

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THE POWERH O

IMAGES Autopics.com.au, Justin Deeley

The domination of Scott McLaughlin in 2019 will lift Dick Johnson Racing/DJR Team Penske to the top of the all-time Australian Touring Car Championship/ Supercars drivers’ championship wins. Dick Johnson Racing/DJR Team Penske along with eight other teams have won three or more drivers’ titles and enjoyed periods of domination across the championship and Bathurst 500/1000. These are the dominant teams of Australian touring cars.

TOTAL TEAM

Bob Jane Racing

Championships: 1964, 1966, 1967, 1968, 1969 Bathurst wins: None

Ian Geoghegan and his Total Team first won the Australian Touring Car Championship in a Ford Cortina in 1964, but they’re best remembered for the run of four consecutive titles with the Ford Mustang from 1966 to 1969. Geoghegan won by a narrow margin in the single-race decider in 1964, the final championship event run to the Appendix J rules. He ran a Ford Cortina Mark I Lotus under the new Improved Production rules in 1965, a race won by Norm Beechey in a Ford Mustang that proved the car to have.

Geoghegan purchased his own Mustang from 1966 and went on a run of four championships in a row, the last one in 1969 the first to run under a multi-round format. The team continued on with the Mustang and then the Ford XY Falcon

GTHO Phase III and Chrysler VH Valiant Charger R/T E49, but a new generation of drivers and teams had arrived and Total Team was parked as brothers Ian and Leo Geoghegan stopped racing.

Total Team

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BOB JANE RACING

Championships: 1962, 1963, 1971, 1972 Bathurst wins: None

Bob Jane became the first driver to win the Australian Touring Car Championship multiple times by defending the title at Mallala Motor Sport Park in 1963. His privateer team had developed the Jaguar Mark 2 into a winner before the rules changed to Improved Production from 1965. Jane opted for the Ford Mustang like most of his opponents, though he was no match for Total Team’s Ian Geoghegan. A switch to the Chevrolet Camaro ZL-1 paid immediate dividends, defeating the Mustangs of Geoghegan and Allan Moffat to the title in 1971. Despite a forced reduction in power from a sevenlitre 427 V8 engine to a 5.7-litre 350 V8 in 1972, Jane went back-to-back yet again with a bigger margin to his rivals. Bob Jane Racing wound down over the years

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H OUSE TEAMS Allan Moffat Racing

as Jane stepped out of the driver’s seat to focus on his business interests, bringing the same intensity to the likes of Bob Jane T-Marts and Calder Park Raceway.

ALLAN MOFFAT RACING

Championships: 1976, 1977, 1983 Bathurst wins: 1977

Allan Moffat was the driver to beat when the Australian Touring Car Championship turned to the locally-derived Group C rules in 1973, taking the Ford factory team to victory in the championship and Bathurst. When Ford withdrew from the sport in 1974, Moffat picked up the pieces and formed Allan Moffat Racing.

Ford returned to support what became known as Moffat Ford Dealers Team in 1976, with Moffat winning his first title in his own entry. The team continued its winning run into 1977, boosted by the recruitment of Colin Bond from the Holden Dealer Team. Moffat won a second consecutive title and led the team to a one-two formation finish at Bathurst.

Ford once again withdrew its support and prompted Moffat to team up with Mazda, winning the championship in 1983. Allan Moffat Racing returned to running Fords with the Sierra RS5000 and Falcon in the late 1980s and into the 1990s, though the

team’s successful years were when Moffat was in the driver’s seat.

HOLDEN DEALER TEAM

Championships: 1974, 1975, 1978, 1980 Bathurst wins: 1969, 1972, 1978, 1979, 1980, 1982, 1983, 1984, 1987

Holden took the fight to early championship and Bathurst dominators Ford with the creation of the Holden Dealer Team in 1969. Harry Firth, who led Ford’s factory team, switched to Holden and led the Holden Dealer Team to victory in its Bathurst debut. Peter Brock became

the star of the team with a Bathurst and championship win in 1972 and 1974 respectively in his first stint with the team, with Colin Bond adding another title in the wake of Brock’s departure in 1975. John Sheppard took over as team manager and Brock returned in 1978, winning the championship and Bathurst in that season. The Brock-Holden Dealer Team combination claimed two threepeats at Bathurst and transitioned from the Torana to the Commodore with a championship win in 1980. The team’s position of strength ended with a one-two formation finish at Bathurst in 1984, the swansong for Group C. A controversial win at Bathurst in 1987 coincided with Holden’s split with Peter Brock, who had assumed control of the Holden Dealer Team. Brock ran BMWs and Fords with the team that became known as Mobil 1 Racing/Advantage Racing, which closed at the end of 1993 with Brock’s move to the Holden Racing Team, the successor to the Holden Dealer Team.

DICK JOHNSON RACING/ DJR TEAM PENSKE

Championships: 1981, 1982, 1984, 1988, 1989, 1995, 2010, 2018 Bathurst wins: 1981, 1989, 1994

It would’ve been impossible to predict the impact Dick Johnson’s privateer outfit

Holden Dealer Team

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Dick Johnson Racing

would have on Australian touring cars when he rolled out with his own Ford XD Falcon in 1980. The heartbreak of crashing into a rock while leading the Bathurst 1000 in that year made Johnson a household name with the outpouring of support that followed setting the foundations for a stronger Dick Johnson Racing.

Johnson rebounded with the championship and Bathurst double in 1981 with a further two titles in 1982 and 1984 rounding out the team’s first dominant spell. The next came under the Group A regulations with the Ford RS5000 Sierras of Johnson and teammate John Bowe unbeatable in 1988 and 1989 and crushing its rival at Bathurst in 1989. The team transitioned well into the V8 era from 1993 and won another Bathurst in 1994 and the title for Bowe in 1995. A surprise title win for James Courtney in 2010 showed the team’s resilience after a bleak few seasons following ownership and sponsorship problems. But worse was to come with the team struggling to survive in the seasons that followed that title win.

The efforts of Ryan Story and arrival of Team Penske as a majority owner paved the way for a return to the top, with Scott McLaughlin giving the Falcon its final title win in 2018. The title win this season would give the team the record for most drivers’ championship wins and make it 38

the first team in history to win with three different models, the Falcon, Sierra and Mustang.

GIBSON MOTORSPORT

Championships: 1990, 1991, 1992, 1994 Bathurst wins: 1991, 1992, 1999

Bathurst 1000 winner Fred Gibson was entrusted with running Nissan’s factoryentries in 1985, though the fast yet unreliable Bluebirds would be parked as a result of the switch to the Group A rules that year. Gibson’s team returned with the Skyline and became an unstoppable

force with the introduction of the Nissan Skyline R32 GT-R in the latter stages of 1990, securing the title courtesy of Jim Richards to end the winning run of the Ford RS500 Sierra. Championship and Bathurst 1000 doubles followed in 1991 and 1992, with Richards and Mark Skaife’s level of domination accelerating calls for the championship to move on from the Group A rules. While Gibson Motorsport is best remembered for its success with the Skyline in Group A, the team did add a championship and Bathurst win to its tally under the V8 regulations. Skaife won the championship in a Holden VP Commodore in 1994,

Gibson Motorsport

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Holden Racing Team

though the loss of title sponsor Winfield the following year was a near-fatal blow.

Gibson Motorsport rebounded with an unexpected Bathurst win in 1999, though it couldn’t add another title with the hope of the arrival of Craig Lowndes and Ford backing in 2001 ending abruptly in the final year for the team.

HOLDEN RACING TEAM

Championships: 1996, 1998, 1999, 2000, 2001, 2002 Bathurst wins: 1990, 1996, 2001, 2002, 2005, 2009, 2011

The Holden Racing Team was created as the successor to the Holden Dealer Team as the Generals’ factory outfit. But despite winning the Bathurst 1000 at its first attempt in 1990, it took time for the team to find its feet even with the introduction

of the V8 regulations that vaulted the Commodore back into contention following the unfavourable Group A rules.

Under the leadership of John Crennan and Jeff Grech, the team brought Peter Brock back to the Holden fold and groomed young-gun Craig Lowndes as the protégé. The breakthrough came with a dominant 1996 season, in which Lowndes won the title in his rookie season and rounded out a perfect year with wins in the Sandown 500 and Bathurst 1000 alongside co-driver Greg Murphy.

Lowndes added a further two championship wins in 1998 and 1999 before Mark Skaife gained the ascendancy in 2000. It was Skaife who led the team in its most dominant period, winning two consecutive championship and Bathurst doubles in 2001 and 2002 with the Holden VX Commodore, notching up a record fifth

consecutive title for the team. The pendulum swung to the sister Kmart Racing/ HSV Dealer Team outfits in the second half of the 2000s, as ownership wrangles between Walkinshaw and Skaife derailed the Holden Racing Team. While further victories at Bathurst followed, the Holden Racing Team was in a steady decline that led to the loss of factory-team status and the heavy shadow that looms over the outfit under its current guise, Walkinshaw Andretti United.

STONE BROTHERS RACING

Championships: 2003, 2004, 2005 Bathurst wins: 1998

Stone Brothers Racing ended the dominant run of the Holden Racing Team in 2003, beginning its own period

Stone Brothers Racing

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of championship success. The team, run

by New Zealand brothers Ross and Jim Stone, won Bathurst in its debut year in 1998, though the troubled Ford AU Falcon proved no match for the Holden Racing Team’s Commodores. The implementation of the Project Blueprint regulations, designed to level the performance of the Falcon and Commodore through extensive parity measure, represented a fresh start from 2003. Marcos Ambrose took the new Ford BA Falcon to a maiden title for the team and backed that up with an even more convincing championship win in 2004. Teammate Russell Ingall won the title in 2005 in what was Ambrose’s final season with Stone Brothers Racing before a move to NASCAR, leaving a team that never replicated that level of success over its remaining seven seasons, eventually morphing into Erebus Motorsport from 2013.

TRIPLE EIGHT RACE ENGINEERING

Championships: 2008, 2009, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014, 2016, 2017 Bathurst wins: 2006, 2007, 2008, 2010, 2012, 2015, 2018

Roland Dane’s Triple Eight Race Engineering entered Supercars with the purchase of Briggs Motor Sport in 2003 and would set to a new standard over the coming years. The signing of Craig Lowndes in 2005 elevated the team into a contender with the recruitment of Jamie Whincup the following season forming a driver pairing that would be dominant for a decade-plus. The duo won Bathurst three times in a row from 2006 to 2008 with Whincup the driver to beat in the championship, notching up a record seven championship wins over a decade from 2008 to 2017. Even when key personnel were lost, such as team manager Adrian Burgess and engineer/design guru Ludo Lacroix, Triple Eight kept winning and earned sole factory Holden team status from 2017.

The only championship defeats over the last decade were narrow final-round deciders against Dick Johnson Racing/ DJR Team Penske in 2010 (with a Triple Eight-built car) and 2018 and Prodrive Racing Australia in 2015. But the gap to DJR Team Penske, in what will be the loss of the share of the record of most drivers’ championship wins, will force Triple Eight to lift its game to match the new powerhouse in Supercars.

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1973: 1977: 1978: 1980: 1981: 1989: 1991: 1992: 1996: 2001: 2002: 2008: 2012:

Ford Works Team Allan Moffat Racing Holden Dealer Team Holden Dealer Team Dick Johnson Racing Dick Johnson Racing Gibson Motorsport Gibson Motorsport Holden Racing Team Holden Racing Team Holden Racing Team Triple Eight Race Engineering Triple Eight Race Engineering

MOST DRIVERS’ CHAMPIONSHIP WINS FOR TEAMS

8 – Dick Johnson Racing/DJR Team Penske, Triple Eight Race Engineering 6 – Holden Racing Team 5 – Total Team 4 – Bob Jane Racing, Holden Dealer Team, Gibson Motorsport 3 – Allan Moffat Racing, Stone Brothers Racing 2 – Neptune Racing Team, JPS Team BMW, Glenn Seton Racing, HSV Dealer Team 1 – Scuderia Veloce, Bill Pitt, Ford Works Team, Ron Hodgson Motors, Volvo Dealer Team, Prodrive Racing Australia

Triple Eight Race Engineering

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23 RED RACING

WORDS John Bannon IMAGES Peter Norton, 23 Red Racing

In quite an extraordinary short period of time, the now defunct Lucas Dumbrell Motorsport operation has been salvaged from cellar-dweller regulars at the end of 2017 to genuine frontrunners as 23 Red Racing in 2019. We spoke to owner Phil Munday and driver Will Davison about how they’ve achieved such a quick jump.

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T

here’s a bit of a mutual man crush going on at 23 Red Racing between team owner Phil Munday and driver Will Davison.

And it’s not difficult to see why.

When Munday created 23 Red Racing at the end of 2017 and signed two-time Bathurst 1000 winner Davison, it was a bold move for both men.

While Munday was taking over a backmarker operation, Davison was trying his luck with another one-car team after a mixed time at Tekno Autosports.

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Eighteen months on and Davison has made a welcome return to the top 10 in the championship standings for 23 Red Racing. So how did this partnership start? Munday explains that it was his strong relationship with Lucas Dumbrell that led to 23 Red Racing being created.

“Lucas and I had sort of talked for quite some time about how he could move out of Supercars without losing all of his money,” he says.

“So we sort of put together a bit of a plan in 2017

for him to sell one of the RECs to Tickford or to Rod Nash Racing.

“Rod bought it and then with the other REC I would take over 60 per cent and he’d keep 40 per cent and we would just build the team from there.

“Before we got to racing, Lucas and I had a bit of a sit down and I said to Lucas, ‘I don’t actually know why you are doing it, mate, you should just move on’, but we’re happy for you to still be part of our team.

We love you being around, we love you as a person.

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23 RED RACING

“We decided I would buy his 40 per cent, which put me as the owner of the whole lot.

“I always said I wanted to do a three-year term and see how it could go in three years. I always reckon your first year is your learning curve, the second year is what you’ve learnt put into practice and your third year in this sport you should be pretty well on the money, I hope. And that’s exactly what’s happened.”

Munday explains his reasons for initially setting up his own team and workshop last season with technical support from Tickford Racing, before moving his REC to be prepared and operated under the Tickford Racing stable in 2019.

“I built my own team, my own workshop, bought my own truck and transporters, everything as a single-car team,” he says.

“But it’s a really tough sport to do on our own. You need the support of those around you. Even though we had a Tickford engineering and engine deal, we were still a bit removed at the other end of pitane from where we needed to be.

“Then when Ford announced that they were going to go to the Mustang and they were going to back the sport, that was a pretty big boost for me, which set me up on a bit of a path of trying to work out how I can get up into the front of the field here, in the garages to be amongst the six Fords that were there.”

And it was a big deal for Munday to switch from the Holden Commodores Lucas Dumbrell Motorsport was running to the Ford package.

44

“People say to me, ‘Phil, you’ve been a Holden man for all of your life and then you go and race a Ford!’” he says.

“Well, I guess I looked at the Holden deal and because my background is panel beating, I found that the panels were a bit tied up with one supplier and I felt that was a little bit harsh in the fact that you couldn’t make your own panels unless you go and buy the rights to them.

“I liked the idea that Ford were a bit progressive in what they were doing for a car that was 11 years old.

And they were still fairly competitive.

“I knew they couldn’t stay in an FG X Falcon forever, so they had to either go to a Mondeo or Mustang.”

At the same time Davison was contemplating his switch from Holden team Tekno Autosports to Munday’s operation.

“I didn’t just sign for the sake of signing to stay on the grid,” Davison says.

“At that last minute there was limited options, and when I spoke to Phil he had pretty big plans and big commitments for what he wanted to do. He needed some guidance along the way.

“He’s been around motorsport for a long time, but in terms of what it entails to run a Supercars team, he needed to learn a lot.

“His initial steps last year were certainly enough for me to want to work with him and be on board knowing that he was financially and personally committing to the program.”

BELOW: Phil Munday and Will Davison have built up a strong relationship over the last year and a half.

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ABOVE: 23 Red Racing joined the Tickford Racing fold this season.

Munday says the ability to offer Davison a three-year deal was a situation which suited both parties.

“I looked around and I have the utmost respect for Will,” he says.

“Man, he’s had some tough gigs. He’s sort of been in and out of teams and people have sort of hung shit on him that he’s been in so many teams.

“When I spoke to Will at the outset, we talked about it, I said, I want to put a three-year deal together. He said, ‘Wow, that would suit me really well!’”

The 36-year-old admits that the comments made about switching teams can frustrate at times.

“I know what’s actually happened which has made it look like I just chop and change teams, but that hasn’t been the case,” he says.

“It’s very tricky and I’m just hanging on and trying to do my best for every team I’m with. I think I’ve found a good home now: we’ve got a great commitment to one another and it’s gone full circle. If you do the right thing by people, I’ve ended up back at Tickford where all those years ago I was right up there in the series.

“We realised that at our level last year to take the next step we were going to have to make some changes.

“This option came up quite early and Phil ran it by me. It was a huge decision for him having set up his own factory and our own equipment

and after not one year to then move it all in-house, effectively, to Tickford.

“It was, I think, a no brainer at the end of the day when you weigh it all up as a business model and what we require as a team.”

Munday also sensed that to get the most out of Davison as a driver, moving into the Tickford Racing stable was a smart move.

“He’s a very good steerer and I’m very proud of what he has done for us,” Munday says.

“In saying that, Will needs to have that support around him. He loves having people to bounce off and support.

“When you are on your own down the back of the field, I can see that it’s really difficult for him. Mid-year I thought we had to make a decision, we had to move and look at how we can do it. So that’s what we did.

“I could see that [confidence] was an issue for him earlier on in the year. The single-car team is really difficult.

I have faith in him.

“Will is an amazing person and an exceptional driver and needs to constantly be given the opportunity to do stuff. I think now giving him the opportunity to go from an old Falcon to a new Mustang with all the things he needs, to be able to move into a group now at Tickford, to be part of a bigger team, has built up his confidence, and I think next year he’ll be unstoppable.”

The strong 2019 form has already seen the goal posts realigned, moving from the back to the front of the field in just 18 months.

“I started in business when I was 19,” says Munday.

“I had my panel-shop businesses for 40 years. I think you bring a bit of that business acumen into a sport. A lot of people look at this sport as a very expensive hobby.

I look at it as it’s a possibility to bring this into a business and to be able to sustain our sport going through into the future.

“Part of that is you’ve got to be up the pointy end of the field; you can’t be down the back.

“I always said that first year I’d like to finish in the top 15 and Will finished 15th. This year I said I’d like to finish in the top 10 and then I said to Will, no, top eight this year.

“Next year, rattling the cages at the front end in the top three or four and then, hopefully… I don’t want to be as presumptuous to say we could win a championship because that’s way above where we are punching at the moment.

“But to be in the front of the field where we are now, next year consistently up in the top three or four would be awesome. And lots of podiums!”

“I THINK I’VE FOUND A GOOD HOME NOW: WE’VE GOT A GREAT COMMITMENT TO ONE ANOTHER AND IT’S GONE FULL CIRCLE.” – WILL DAVISON SUPERCAR XTRA

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BOOST GRM

There was a collective paddock gasp when it was revealed 2007 Supercars champion Garth Tander lost his seat at Garry Rogers Motorsport to Richie Stanaway, as part of a deal with new sponsor Boost Mobile. The team has struggled for results ever since but remains resolute that its youth policy and strong team culture can lift the squad back up the grid.

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WORDS John Bannon IMAGES Peter Norton

B

arry Rogers doesn’t hold back when assessing the progress of the team his father Garry Rogers built. “To look where we currently are, to be honest with you, is embarrassing.” That’s the brutal assessment of the 2019 Virgin Australia Supercars Championship season so far from Boost Mobile Racing team boss Barry Rogers. This talent spotting and generally top-10 running outfit has gone backwards in 2019, at least in terms of results on the track.

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RIGHT: Barry Rogers (left) with Boost Mobile founder Peter Adderton.

“WE’VE JUST GOT TO CONTINUE TO WORK HARD. THERE’S IMPROVEMENT IN EVERYBODY, INCLUDING ALL OF US AND THE DRIVERS.” – BARRY ROGERS

Off the track, they couldn’t look better. New sponsor Boost Mobile has brought an additional layer of professionalism to the marketing and promotional piece, but in a results-driven game the only gloss that counts is being inside the top 10 more often than not.

For a team that won races with Holden and Volvo under the current-generation rules, the slide backwards is more pronounced.

“We are 100 per cent disappointed about where we are,” Barry Rogers admits.

“It does get frustrating. You have to stay strong as a team when it’s like this because if you start finger pointing and things like that the whole thing implodes.

We have an incredible workforce and the same group of people, the same nucleus of people that built the first Car of the Future for us in 2013.

“We are looking internally. We never stop developing the car. We feel as though our car is a good car. Is it the best car? No, it’s not, but it’s a good car. We’ve just got to continue to work hard. There’s improvement in everybody, including all of us and the drivers.

“So we’ve just got to keep at it and dig ourselves out of it. Let’s be honest, we are in a bit of a slump, a bit of a hole, and we’ve got to get out of there. So we’ll just keep chipping away and working hard and we will get there.”

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BOOST GRM

But how they did get here? In November 2018 longtime sponsor Wilson Security had a change of management and overnight motorsport was no longer a part of their marketing structure.

Garry Rogers Motorsport heard whispers that Boost Mobile were set to move away from Walkinshaw Andretti United, with the fellow Holden squad acquiring a new sponsor. Rogers got in touch with Boost Mobile founder Peter Adderton, who confirmed the company was looking at its options. Before Christmas a deal was done with Adderton and their Australianbased general manager Jason Haynes with driver Richie Stanaway to come as part of the package.

Rogers says that while it was tough to lose Tander, financial security for all their staff was paramount in their decision making.

“Part of their requirement was they wanted Richie Stanaway,” Rogers says.

“They said we want youth and we want Richie in, and that is what happened. We had to make a decision at that point. Garth was nearing the end of his career.

“It wasn’t a nice way for it to end, and there is no doubt about that. There is no nice way of putting it. To be honest, Garry was quite emotional about the whole thing. It wasn’t easy for him. But to Garry’s credit he fronts up and makes whatever the right decision is by the team.

“It’s very hard when there are individuals involved, particularly someone with the history of a guy like Garth. It was very, very tough for Garry to make that decision, but by the same token financial security for all of the staff is what counted at the end of the day.”

Tander was the team’s best-placed Virgin Australia Supercars Championship finisher last year in 13th, nine places ahead of rookie teammate James Golding, who explains what impact Tander’s departure has had on the team.

“Garth’s experience is one of the best in the series over the past few years,” he says.

“He brought a lot to our team last year, and I learnt a lot off him myself. But, unfortunately, that is how motorsport goes; these things happen.

“At the end of the day, you can’t close the doors because you want to keep someone racing and you don’t have any money.

“Anyway, it’s just how it went, and I’d love to have Garth in the team still, but by the same token it’s really good having Richie.

“He has come from a different background, with a totally different level of knowledge.

“As a team having Garth last year and Richie this year, I think overall it has been pretty good. And as a group I think we are gathering more information, so it is definitely a good thing.”

Would Boost Mobile Racing be further up the grid if Tander was still with the team?

“That’s a tough one to answer really,” Golding says.

“I don’t believe so. I think it is more of an overall team effort. There have been some results that have been a bit different but nothing major, I don’t think.

As a team even towards the end of last year, me and 48

Garth were pretty close on track, and I see this year not being too much different from last year.”

The Boost Mobile and Stanaway move was a major off-season story and was always going to draw a strong reaction from fans. When Stanaway’s 2018 Tickford Racing struggles continued into 2019 and were punctuated by a neck injury that sidelined him from the Truck Assist Winton SuperSprint in May, the spotlight became more intense on goings on at Boost Mobile Racing.

“People that criticise don’t really know the full picture, and people don’t know you personally,” he says.

ABOVE: Garry Rogers Motorsport has been at the back-end of the grid in 2019.

RIGHT: James Golding became the unofficial team leader following the sudden departure of Garth Tander.

“TO LOOK WHERE WE CURRENTLY ARE, TO BE HONEST WITH YOU, IS EMBARRASSING… WE ARE 100 PERCENT DISAPPOINTED ABOUT WHERE WE ARE.” – BARRY ROGERS

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“They don’t know your story… I also see that no matter who it is, even if it is guys who win races, there are still people who criticise them online.

“So I don’t really take it personally because it is the nature of society. I think it’s something that I’ve definitely got better at dealing with over time because it affected me a lot more last year.”

Rogers also leaped to the defence of Stanaway, especially over any question marks about his talent.

“The thing people often forget about Richie is that he is an exceptional race driver,” Rogers says.

“Has he mastered Supercars? No, he hasn’t. But he has gone to a level that probably nobody in pitlane has.

People probably don’t give him respect. In this grid out here and with these drivers has he earned respect at this stage? Probably not. But he gets a pretty rough edge for what he has done.

“He’s one of the nicest, most honest guys that you’d ever want to meet. He never has an agenda; if you talk to him he just tells it as it is. A lot of people are very political about the way they approach things and the way they go about their conversations. But Richie is just up front and straight.

“He is misunderstood; he’s certainly from a personality side of things not the most outgoing type of person and in some ways maybe a little bit shy. People often mistake shyness as arrogance, and I think that is probably where he is misunderstood.

“If people took the time to come and shake his hand and talk to him, they’d realise that he is a bloody ripper fella.”

Another factor in Boost Mobile Racing’s slide has been the speed of the new Mustang, which all Holden teams have struggled to combat.

“There is no doubt that you have to give a lot of credit to the Penske organisation and Tickford for the car they managed to get homologated,” he says.

“It’s obviously a very, very good car, but it has also been very, very well run out of both DJR Team Penske and Tickford.

“In the position we are in, we would be fools to be talking about the Mustang, because we’ve got six or seven other Commodores and three or four Nissans to worry about before we even get to the Mustang.”

And while the new sponsor has a keen interest in the marketing opportunities Supercars provides, we ask Rogers if that relationship has begun to be tested.

“We are fortunate that they are as keen on the marketing side of the business and the promotion as they are on the results,” he says.

“But they get frustrated and they want answers. You wish you could just pull it out of your pocket and say here is the answer and we’ll just go and do that, plug that in the car and we’ll be brand new.

“It’s a dynamic sport, and there is so much going on. And, when you really look at it, when you’re in a hole, you’re probably three-tenths away from being out of the hole. It’s not three-seconds or 30 seconds, it’s a minute.

“So you said, ‘Is it testing the relationship?’ Look, they are very, very supportive, but again they want answers to where we are going, and we just need to put the head down, bum up and get there because there is not a simple answer. If there was, we’d just be reeling it in.”

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MATT STONE RACING WORDS John Bannon IMAGES Peter Norton

THE

From the euphoria of claiming the Dunlop Super2 Series title in 2017 to rookie backmarkers in the main game in 2018, Matt Stone Racing has experienced the highs and lows of life in Supercars. But while their swift improvement in 2019 has turned heads, their fate highlights the challenges of surviving in the main game. hen Matt Stone reflects on the challenge his Matt Stone Racing faced in stepping up from the Dunlop Super2 Series to the Virgin Australia Supercars Championship in 2018, he admits they probably underestimated the huge task.

The Queensland-based customer team finished 26th and last in their main-game rookie season in 2018.

However, they are a squad with a winning pedigree.

Team boss Matt Stone is the son of Jim Stone, who along with brother Ross took Stone Brothers Racing to three championship titles in a row.

Matt was a mechanic with Stone Brothers Racing before creating Matt Stone Racing (MSR) and entering the second-tier Supercars series in 2011.

Current driver Todd Hazelwood has been with the team since his very first Dunlop Super2 Series season back in 2014.

“It was certainly one hell of a journey starting

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back in 2014 when I had my first race meeting with Matt Stone Racing,” he says.

“It’s been a very long road and a great partnership to get where we are today.

“Obviously, we had a lot of high moments throughout the years, and it was fantastic to get the first Dunlop Super2 Series title win for Matt Stone and be able to create what we’ve been able to do today and now racing in the main series.

“I’ve been very proud of what we’ve been able to achieve as two families working together.”

Hazelwoood admits 2018 was tough after the success of claiming the 2017 Dunlop Super2 Series.

“Look, it’s frustrating at first because it’s a results-driven game,” he says.

“It affects everyone within the team, not just myself.

“The other aspect is we are a brand new team, a brand

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“I’VE ALWAYS BELIEVED THAT I CAN DO IT AND TO NOW ACTUALLY BE ABLE TO SHOW EVERYONE ELSE THAT WE ARE MORE THAN CAPABLE IS A REALLY GOOD FEELING.” – TODD HAZELWOOD

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MATT STONE RACING new driver combination in the main series, so we certainly weren’t kidding ourselves that we were going to come in and sweep the floor with what we had. We knew that we had a lot of learning to do and we embraced that opportunity.

“We knew that it was going to be a tough road, so there is certainly no silver bullet in this game and there is no overnight success either. So we had to tough it out.”

They toughed out the 2018 campaign by choosing to focus on 2019 reasonably early on.

“The best thing is that it was always a two-year program,” he says.

“Towards the end of last year we really started to put all our energy into 2019 and what that looked like. I think we made the right choices, and it has been proven with all the success that we’ve had.”

Stone is the first to admit the adjustment to the main game was a bigger challenge than expected, especially on the commercial side with a rotating sponsorship package in 2019 highlighting the volatility of the market.

“We probably definitely underestimated it; we’ve done a lot of racing in a lot of different categories both nationally and internationally, and although stepping up was just taking on one extra category, that one [category] in itself is the equivalent of a lot of the other things we do put together,” he explains.

Stone says while they’ve always been able to get up to speed pretty quickly in other categories, Supercars is a much tougher project.

“It doesn’t matter who you are, if you look at when Team Penske came into the sport or Walkinshaw Andretti United,” he says.

“No one just shows up and wins the next day. But for us as a team we’ve always been pretty capable of that in other categories.

“It was definitely an adjustment in expectations.

We never expected to win, but we probably didn’t expect to come last. But once we went back to our roots and the way we do things, we put ourselves on a path that has got us capable this year.”

One of the big changes that the team made midseason last year was to switch from the ex-DJR Team Penske FG X Falcon they started the year with to their ex-Triple Eight Race Engineering VF Commodore which they won the Dunlop Super2 Series with.

“Look, to be honest, we put a lot of thought into that one,” Stone says.

“We probably should have put a lot more thought into the initial switch from 2017 through to 2018.

We kind of took that one a little bit too casually and didn’t really consider all of the aspects involved. We went from a Holden that we were familiar with to a Ford which we knew nothing about.

“We considered all of the implications of changing back to the Holden and we copped a bit of flack for it from a few sources in the media and whatnot.

“Ultimately, though, we showed up at Adelaide 52

this year, put the thing in the shootout and showed everyone that we made the right decision last August. The very first thing we said about that decision was that it was about starting 2019 right.

We showed up at Adelaide and showed all the critics that there was method to our madness.”

However, so far in 2019 the Mustang package has proved superior in the Virgin Australia Supercars Championship. Does Stone regret the switch back to Holden?

“Absolutely not; it’s not been the Ford or Holden that has been the defining shift for us, it has been a relationship with a team and getting simulated teammates in the Triple Eight cars,” he says.

“If we were running a Mustang this year, we would still be running equipment that we don’t understand. Arguably, we would have an aerodynamic advantage, but I won’t put that definitively.

“We would still be running older spec equipment that we don’t understand. Whereas now we’ve got a package that I believe, while it may not have the advantage that the Mustang does, for us it’s better than what we would be in based on what we ran last year in a Ford.”

While the close relationship with Triple Eight Race Engineering is a factor in their success, it’s not the only reason Matt Stone Racing has moved forward this year.

“Yes and no, as it’s the partnership in general and the fact they supplied us a car that is of a racewinning quality,” Stone says.

“The partnership with them has been very much back and forth and an open book. It’s not like they are doing the work for us; we’re still having to do the hard work, the engineering.

“Early in the season when we were out-qualifying them in a couple of instances, that shows it really was a two-way partnership. But, definitely, a single-car team without that alliance would be very difficult.

BELOW: Todd Hazelwood and Matt Stone Racing celebrate their Dunlop Super2 Series title win in 2017.

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Matt Stone Racing has made significant gains in 2019.

BELOW: Matt Stone and father Ross Stone.

“Essentially what that does for us is turn us into a three-car team from our perspective with two teammates who are both former champions.

“So that relationship is what has given us the ability to be able to move our program forward.

So we’re still steering it, but that just gives us the resources and the horsepower to make it happen.

“We’re all racers and if you don’t think you’re the best out there, then you are in the wrong industry.

Confidence is key in those few moments this year.

“Although come our actual race results we’ve had

a few things that have not gone our way, like being turned around, our underlying pace on some tracks has given us a very big confidence boost that we do know what we are doing. We are showing people what we can do.”

Hazelwood admits racing further up the field has provided him with the confidence boost he needed.

“It is fantastic for me as, obviously, confidence grows and that shows in results as well,” he says.

“I’ve always felt that I’m more than capable of being able to run with those guys. But to actually do it on a race weekend and start up the grid, it’s a great thing. I’ve always believed that I can do it, and to now actually be able to show everyone else that we are more than capable is a really good feeling.”

Stone says the performances Hazelwood has put in this year help change perceptions after the year they had in 2018.

“I think this year Todd has proved that he is capable of being on this grid,” he says.

“Last year people outside looking in might have looked at the team and Todd with criticism. But I think Todd has shown that he’s more than capable of being on the grid and being competitive.

“That is why we always said it is a two-year deal. It wouldn’t be fair on Todd or us to try and showcase our ability in the first year when everything is so new, especially the extra challenges with the car shift. I think he has proven himself.”

And Matt Stone Racing is proving itself in the main game.

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THE BEND

AUSTRALIA’S

WORDS Adrian Musolino IMAGES James Baker, Peter Norton

MOTORSPORT HUB

The Bend Motorsport Park has set a new standard for Australian motorsport and is looking to improve as it prepares for its second Virgin Australia Supercars Championship and, from 2020, an endurance event.

I

n a few short years, The Bend Motorsport Park grew from what seemed to be a fanciful idea to what is now considered the benchmark for Australian motorsport facilities. What was a few years ago a dustbowl at the former Mitsubishi test track at Tailem Bend is now a hub for all manner of motoring activity.

There hadn’t been a new motorsport facility built in Australia in close to two decades, and with permanent circuits at risk of closing across the country, it seemed an ambitious project for the Peregrine Corporation to build a world-class motorsport hub 100 kilometres south-east of Adelaide.

Yet South Australians knew not to doubt the Shahin family and their Peregrine Corporation, which grew from humble beginnings with a single petrol station in 1984 to one of the top 15 private companies in Australia and the largest in South Australia.

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The Shahins are motorsport fanatics, with Sam and brother Yasser regular competitors in the Australian Porsche Carrera Cup and Australian GT categories respectively, and the desire to build The Bend Motorsport Park was to give something back to the community, sport and country. And the Peregrine Corporation has done just that, confounding the sceptics who didn’t believe the grand project would see the light of day.

“It’s a grand vision, a grand project, a very optimistic project, but in tough economic times, and when the chips are down and times are tough, you need people to step forward of the line up,” said Sam Shahin.

“I’m very motivated to build a facility in Australia that ranks alongside some of the great circuits and facilities around the world.”

The Bend Motorsport Park is now fully operational. An ‘On The Run’ petrol station, the Peregrine

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THE BEND

Corporation’s core business, sits on the entry of the circuit off the Dukes Highway.

Inside the facility is a 100-room Rydges Hotel, which forms part of the pit building. The foyer for the hotel doubles as the base for the circuit, where fans and competitors can mingle over a race weekend.

The hotel rooms look over the pitlane and circuit, a first for an Australian motorsport facility. The view from the top fourth level gives the best vantage point to appreciate the size of the facility.

The track is designed so it can be split into eight different configurations, constructed with all forms of motorsport in mind. The 7.77km long ‘GT Circuit’ is the second longest permanent race track in the world, second only to the Nordschleife, Nurburgring.

Supercars races on the 4.95km-long ‘International Circuit’, while the facility can be split into an ‘East Circuit’ and ‘West Circuit’, run independently of each other.

Undulations and a mix of high and low-speed corners make for a challenging circuit. Given the size of the circuit and facility, an endurance event is a better fit for The Bend Motorsport Park with the track set to host the 500-kilometre PIRTEK Enduro Cup event from 2020.

Erebus Motorsport’s David Reynolds declared that “The Bend Motorsport Park is the best thing that has happened to Australian motorsport for 20 years”, one of many to praise the facility.

“It’s the best facility in Australia, hands-down,” added Triple Eight Race Engineering’s Shane van Gisbergen, winner of the first Supercars race at The Bend Motorsport Park in 2018.

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“It’s always awesome to have a new circuit, and with this one there’s been no expense spared; it really is second-to-none.

“It’s like a European-style circuit in terms of the runoff areas, but I’d call it more a mixture of Phillip Island and Eastern Creek [Sydney Motorsport Park] because it’s quite open and flowing. It’s a proper, proper race track.

“Out the back of the circuit, the middle part of the lap, there’s a lot of flowing corners where one links to the other, so that’s very hard on the tyres.

“The start of the lap is quite technical to drive, and into Turn 1, the cars come over a little crest right before braking, which is pretty tough on our cars because we brake not long after that hump.

“Then there’s a couple of fast corners at the end of the lap. The second-last corner is a nearly 90-degree right-hander, so that’s the best passing spot.”

The Bend Motorsport Park also features drift, gokart, rallycross and off-road facilities, with a dragway being considered.

Trackside villas and camping facilities in addition to the hotel will keep fans at the facility across an event – 1400-plus guests and 600 campers booked in to the holiday park – while an industrial/business park in the works will create an automotive hub that will help fill the void left by the closure of the Holden car manufacturing plant in South Australia.

The Bend Motorsport Park regularly hosts manufacturers and other automotive-related companies for launches and ride days, while the circuit’s own calendar of events now includes Supercars, Asian Le Mans

ABOVE & RIGHT: The array of facilities currently in operation at The Bend Motorsport Park.

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THE BEND

RIGHT: The Bend Motorsport Park’s four circuit layouts. Top is the 3.41km West Circuit and 3.93km East Circuit, which can be run independently of each other. In the middle is the 4.95km International Circuit, which the Virgin Australia Supercars Championship uses for its SuperSprint round. Below is the 7.77km GT Circuit, which is the second longest permanent race track in the world, second only to the Nordschleife, Nurburgring, in Germany.

Series, Asian and Australian Superbikes in addition to state-level events and regular track drive/ride days.

Despite being fully operational, work continues to improve and grow the facility.

A permanent pit straight grandstand has been built since last year, while landscaping across the facility has included the planting of 3000-plus trees.

Plans are also in place to assist in improving entries and exits from the venue, easing the drive to and from Adelaide for the majority of attendees.

“We received a lot of fantastic feedback from people who attended the inaugural event, and we have been working hard to make sure that year two is even bigger and better,” says Shahin.

“The venue is constantly evolving, and we are looking forward to providing another first-class experience for visitors.

“People have really enjoyed exploring the circuit, and finding different viewpoints to watch the racing – our internal circuit shuttle will allow fans to jump on/off at different stops.

“Due to the popularity of Park ‘n’ View, we’ve also increased the capacity and split it into two zones.

Seeing cars parked and campers lining the circuit and being so close to the action creates such a unique atmosphere.

“Regardless of your ticket type, fans can watch the race from different viewpoints around the whole track, which is one of the great advantages of a permanent circuit.

“Fans loved the accessibility we offer at The Bend together with the opportunity to roam the paddock and get up close to the support category garages and pitlane garages.

“Every spectator can access this area for free, which is rare across the Supercars calendar.”

The Bend Motorsport Park is indeed an Australian facility that ranks alongside some of the great circuits from around the world. And with the improvements and recent additions and a Supercars endurance event on the horizon, it will only get better.

“THE VENUE IS CONSTANTLY EVOLVING, AND WE ARE LOOKING FORWARD TO PROVIDING ANOTHER FIRST-CLASS EXPERIENCE FOR VISITORS.” – SAM SHAHIN 58

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CLOSER TO THE

N O I T C A GET

IR C U IT C E H T D N U O R A R V IE W IN G O T A T AC C E S S C K E C P O S D D D E A L P L E A E R IV F R N + W IT H U KIDS ZON E + T N E M IN A T R E + ALL DAY E N T TRACKSIDE CAMPING + PARK N VIEW +

tickets on sale now

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MACAULEY JONES

WORDS James Crocker IMAGES Peter Norton, Supercars

The Joneses have been regulars in Supercars over the last two decades. And in 2019, the next generation arrived with Macauley Jones, son of team boss Brad Jones, stepping up from the Dunlop Super2 Series into the Team CoolDrive entry at Brad Jones Racing.

M

acauley Jones’ rookie season coincides with Brad Jones Racing’s 20th in the main game of Supercars and marks a return of the Jones name to the full-time field for the first

time in 11 years.

Having spent the last five seasons with Brad Jones Racing’s Dunlop Super2 Series team, Jones took over from Tim Blanchard in the #21 Team CoolDrive entry in 2019, with Blanchard stepping back into a team management role.

For those who have kept a keen eye on the Dunlop Super2 Series, there are few questions against Jones’ readiness for the step up. Having been a perennial contender over his time in the series and a winner of the Bathurst mini-enduro race in 2017, the only thing that stopped him from having a glittering pre-Supercars CV was luck, with part failures at crucial times robbing him of wins and a chance at a title.

Jones is no rookie when it comes to racing in the top tier, with wildcard appearances at Winton and Darwin in 2017 and Darwin and The Bend Motorsport Park in 2018 along with co-drives in the PIRTEK Enduro Cup over the past four seasons giving him invaluable experience against the best in the country and opening Jones’ eyes to the difference between the tiers.

“It just makes you realise the jump that you’re getting into,” says Jones.

“It sets you up a little bit better to understand data, maximising everything you’ve got and managing tyres, which is something that Super2 doesn’t really get you much of a feel for, in particular those longer races where you’re having to manage the car over the longer distances, manage different sets of tyres, hard versus soft tyres as well.”

Finally entering the top tier of Supercars is vindication for Jones’ efforts over the last five seasons and somewhat of a relief for the rookie.

“It’s definitely something I’ve been working for the whole time,” he adds.

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“It’s definitely a bit of a dream come true and a bit of a relief for me, but now it feels like the hard work is just about to begin.”

Despite the increased workload that the Supercars main game demands, Jones still finds time to give back to the racing community, spending time at the karting nationals helping out some of the nation’s aspiring young racers, while also coaching Brad Jones Racing’s Kumho Super3 Series talent Madeline Stewart as she negotiates her first season in a touring car.

Unfortunately for Jones, the demands of Supercars have forced him to cut back on spanner work on the Brad Jones Racing fleet, something that he has done over his entire career and something that is somewhat rare for a modern racing driver to do.

“I was a full-time mechanic for the last six years, whereas now I’ve definitely had to take a step back because I can’t be relied on to be at the workshop 24/7,” he says.

“If I come and go it makes it inconsistent with working, and a lot more sponsorship commitments with CoolDrive have definitely been important parts of this year.

“It’s a huge step up from Super2 and it’s a full-time commitment. It’s something you’ve got to keep chipping away at.”

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SX112 p60-62 Macauley Jones.indd 61

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16/7/19 4:08 pm

MACAULEY JONES

But for all the excitement, relief and hard work put into making it into the main game, bad luck followed Jones up the ladder with an enormous accident at the 2019 season opener on the streets of Adelaide following brake failure. This wrote off the CoolDrive chassis and forced him to miss out on the opening race of his rookie season.

“It definitely affected the whole team really, having to be on the back foot rebuilding a car instead of being able to develop the car,” he says.

“That was definitely a big upset for us and to miss the first race, I mean, how’s your debut missing the first race and watching from the sidelines!

“That was a big setback for us, but we’re slowly starting to get there and now understanding this new car.”

The accident at Adelaide was followed by another big hit at Albert Park, which saw more damage done to another chassis.

The rough opening rounds saw Jones fall behind on his own development as he came to grips with the newer car. This forced Jones to re-evaluate his goals for his rookie season.

“I wanted to leave this season probably being the top rookie and getting closer to the top 20, but starting the year with virtually no points after the first-round kind of made you step back,” he says.

“Now it’s about learning and building on your best results each weekend.”

An inspired Jones has taken these hits in his stride, producing some strong runs through the middle of the season.

Heading into the endurance season, Jones is looking to turn around his year with a particular emphasis on Bathurst.

Brad Jones Racing is still searching for a first Bathurst 1000 win. Brad Jones finished in second place three

62

times at Mount Panorama, including in 1994 just four days before Macauley was born.

Macauley’s win in the Dunlop Super2 Series race at Bathurst in 2017 was an emotional moment for the team, father and son, providing encouragement for the second-generation racer’s first assault on the Great Race as the lead driver.

“It’s Bathurst, so anything can happen,” says Jones.

Jones won’t get drawn into discussing the future either and whether he will remain with the family-run team for the long-term, preferring to work hard on this season as he continues his upward curve.

“I’m getting through this season first, so I haven’t really had time to think about next year,” he says.

“I just need to build on what I’ve got at the moment, build with the crew that I’ve got and try and be as fast as I can right now.”

ABOVE: Father and son, Brad and Macauley Jones.

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Todd Kelly

Tony Longhurst

Jason Bright

in a variety of categories. He was a semi-regular entrant in the Australian Touring Car Championship, often in privateer cars such as the Craven Mild Racing team with which he finished in third in 1975, notching up 12 race wins across his career.

2 GREG MURPHY

10 TODD KELLY

Kelly enjoyed a two decade-long career in Supercars, highlighted by victory in the Bathurst 1000 in 2005. His best championship years were with the Holden Racing Team in the mid-2000s, finishing fourth in 2005 and notching up 19 race wins across his career.

championship success eluded the versatile racer with third places in 1991 and 1992, best of the rest behind the all-conquering Nissan Skyline R32 GT-Rs of Jim Richards and Mark Skaife.

6

KEVIN BARTLETT

Goss is the only driver to have won the Bathurst 1000 and the Australian Grand Prix. With his racing career split between open wheelers and touring cars, Goss had limited outings in the Australian Touring Car Championship and instead focussed on endurance events.

Bartlett, like John Goss, split his career across open wheelers and touring cars, with victory in the Bathurst 1000 alongside Goss in 1974 the high point of his tin-top career. Bartlett claimed third place in the Australian Touring Car Championship in an Alfa Romeo GTA in 1966 and in a Chevrolet Camaro Z28 in 1982, highlighting the longevity of his career.

8 GEORGE FURY

5 STEVEN RICHARDS

9 JOHN GOSS

The rally champion turned his attention to tarmac racing and spearheaded Nissan’s touring-car effort in the 1980s, finishing runner-up in the championship twice and scoring a pole at Bathurst in 1984.

7 TONY LONGHURST

Longhurst won the Bathurst 1000 in the Group A and V8 Supercar eras, though

66

specialist, winning the race five times. His championship best was fifth for Perkins Engineering in 2004, winning 10 races across his Supercars career.

4

JASON BRIGHT

3

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