PRESS ROOM

SBR and Hidden Valley Celebrate 10 Years of V8 Supercars

Hidden Valley Raceway

Round 6, SkyCity Triple Crown

22-24 June 2007

Stone Brothers Racing will join with the SkyCity Triple Crown in tenth birthday celebrations when round six of the V8 Supercar Championship Series visits Hidden Valley Raceway in Darwin this weekend.

Hidden Valley Raceway will host its 10th round of the V8 Supercar Championship Series, the inaugural event taking place in 1998. SBR was established the same year and 2007 sees the team celebrate 10 years on track.

SBR has tasted success at the 2.9km circuit in the past, the Gold Coast-based team achieving a total of 11 race podium finishes at the venue, including four race wins, three round wins and two pole positions.

Caltex Racing’s Russell Ingall and JELD-WEN Motorsport’s James Courtney are fans of the event, enjoying the trip north for both the change of scenery and some impressive past performances.

Ingall won the inaugural event in 1998 and has claimed two podium finishes at the venue in 1999 and 2004, taking six race wins along the way.

For Courtney, last year’s SkyCity Triple Crown was the turning point for the V8 Supercar rookie, with the JELD-WEN Motorsport crew and driver finding a common ground at the event and going on to produce improved results in the second half of the year.

Courtney and Ingall are currently inside the top ten in the V8 Supercar Championship standings after five rounds; Courtney is in eighth position on 124 points, just ahead of Ingall in ninth on 118 points.

The SBR duo hit the track on Friday afternoon at 1:15pm for the two-and-a-half hour practice session. Saturday’s action includes V8 Supercars qualifying and the opening 42-lap race. The event concludes with two 42-lap races on Sunday.

Points of Interest…

SBR has won the round in Darwin three times; in 1999 (Jason Bright), 2001 and 2003 (Marcos Ambrose).
Caltex Racing’s Russell Ingall will make his tenth appearance at Hidden Valley Raceway in Darwin, having raced at all rounds since the event’s inception in 1998.
Ingall won the inaugural round at Hidden Valley in 1998.
Ingall finished seventh for the round at last year’s event; Courtney was 14th after receiving a 27-second penalty in race three (knocking him out of the top ten).

Russell Ingall, car #9, Caltex Racing

“This one is an event that I really enjoy and I think that’s the case for many of the drivers and teams.

“It’s a well run event and the atmosphere is pretty laid back; it feels a bit like mid-year break.

“In saying that, the pressure is on for us to come up with some results in the Caltex Racing Falcon. We’ve consistently had pace but haven’t been able to produce the goods so far.

“I’ve had some success at this circuit so now’s the time to do it.”

James Courtney, car #4, JELD-WEN Motorsport

“I’m excited about going back to Hidden Valley as it was a real turning point for us last year, more in terms of the team as opposed to results.

“The JELD-WEN guys and myself all started talking on the same page at Darwin. That led on to Queensland Raceway where we got on the podium in a couple of the races.

“Hidden Valley has a good long straight which will be good for us. We are just starting to really get the new engine online and this will give it a chance to stretch its legs. The D3 has come a long way in a year so we will definitely have a gain there.

“Darwin is a great event. We all love going up there; it’s a great place to visit and its always enjoyable.

“My wife Carys and I both have our birthdays next week so we are going to stay on for a bit of a holiday. It will be a good chance to relax.”

Ross Stone, Team Manager, Stone Brothers Racing

“James has run a D3 engine in the development process for nearly 12 months but we’ve now got both cars online with the new spec D3 engines.

“The guys at the SBR Engine Shop have done a great job and the long straight at Hidden Valley will be a good test for the engines.

“I think we have been a lot closer this year than our recent results show. Hidden Valley has always been good to SBR so we are really looking forward to this race meeting.”

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