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SPECIAL

Ford Territory

SPECIAL

Ford Territory

Fast Fords Head to Hidden Valley

Staff, Saturday May 12, 2001.

Page 1 of 1

Ford V8 Supercar teams occupied the first four grid positions at Sydney’s Eastern Creek, and if not for a crucial safety car incident and post-race stewards hearings, should have taken at least one victory from the two races contested.

Craig Lowndes (Gibson Motorsport) finished ahead of Marcos Ambrose (Pirtek Racing) in race one, before both drivers were given 29-second time penalties, relegating them to 12th and 13th respectively.

Teams have called upon race officials to impose any penalty during the race itself, and not have to go through post-race reviews.

Although the Eastern Creek result was disappointing, the speed of the Ford Falcon AUXR8 has teams looking forward to Hidden Valley.

“With its long front straight, power is vital at Hidden Valley and the Ford engine has plenty of that,” said fourth placed finisher at Eastern Creek John Bowe (Cat Racing).

“The tight first corner is a great place to pass, and the opening laps is sure to see plenty of cars making up positions.

“The flip-side is that some guys go a little too deep into the corner and get into lots of trouble.

“The back section is quite twisty, so balance between the fast and slow sections is all-important for success.

The Hidden Valley race is extremely well organised, making it one of the most popular races of the season for teams and spectators alike.

It is the Northern Territory’s biggest annual sporting event, and Australia’s northern capital gets right behind the race.

“You feel like rock stars in Darwin, as everyone is genuinely interested in the race,” said Steven Johnson of Shell Helix Racing.

“For the teams to travel from the cooler southern states in May is a nice change, and the circuit’s layout always provides good entertaining racing.

“I’m currently the best placed Ford driver in third place in the championship race. I’m sure Darwin will bring a strong result for us and the rest of the Blue Oval brigade.

Hidden Valley will feature three races, as well as a top-10 shootout. The Shootout and race one (17 laps) will take place on Saturday with two 35-lap races on Sunday. The Sunday races feature a compulsory pit stop for tyres.

Top 10 Championship positions after Eastern Creek.

Ford will field twelve factory-supported drivers in nine teams at Hidden Valley. These drivers are:

Details for Round Four of the 2001 Shell Championship Series at Hidden Valley Raceway are:

For further information contact:
Ben Beazley
Media Coordinator
Ford Racing
Phone: (03) 9533 4455
Mobile: 0417 262 753
Email: ben@segalmedia.com.au

or

Howard Marsden
General Manager
Ford Racing
Phone: (03) 9359 8461

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