CATEGORIES

• Ask ColCam
• Commercials
• Full Ford
• Going Ford
• Industry News
• My Wheels
• Racing
• Events
• Test Drive
• Ford Dealer List

SPECIAL

Ford Territory

SPECIAL

Ford Territory

Ford Ready for Battle at the Creek

Staff, Thursday April 19, 2001.

Page 1 of 1

A victory to Craig Lowndes (Gibson Motorsport) in the first 250km race, as well as podium finishes for Shell Helix Racing’s Steven Johnson, has the Blue Oval brigade on a high going to the former home of the Australian Motorcycle Grand Prix.

Ford had six cars in the top 10 at the 2000 Eastern Creek round. Two of the four Holden top 10 finishers from that event, Lowndes and Steven Richards (Ford Tickford Racing), have switched to Ford in 2001.

Eastern Creek is one of the most successful circuits for Glenn Seton (Ford Tickford Racing) with two round wins since the introduction of the V8 formula in 1993.

“Eastern Creek works very well for me, not only have I won two rounds there, I also took third place overall last year,” said Seton.

“I won at Eastern Creek in 1993 and ‘97, the same years I went on to take the championship, so I will be looking further ahead if I win at the Creek this year.

“Power is vital, especially during qualifying, as passing in the races will not be all that easy despite the long front straight.

One driver who showed plenty of speed in qualifying in Adelaide was Mark Larkham (ICS Ford Team Smartcar), who was second fastest before a disappointing run in the shootout.

“The top 10 guys after qualifying all have a one lap shootout to decide the first five rows of the grid,” said Larkham.

“I had a great qualifying run, then had a poor shootout in Adelaide. I need to make sure of getting both runs together at Eastern Creek, as starting up front is a whole lot easier than fighting in the pack.

“The first turn at the end of the main straight is one of the most thrilling in all of motor sport. It’s flat-out in sixth gear at some 260 km/h, with guys right on your door handle.

Other Ford drivers set to shine include fifth place finisher in race one at Adelaide, Steven Ellery (Super Cheap Auto), and impressive debutant Marcos Ambrose (Pirtek Racing) who went from 36th to sixth in race two.

Young gun Paul Weel (K & J Thermal Products) will be out to erase his bad memories of Adelaide, which included a heavy accident in practice, as well as mechanical dramas in both races.

Weel’s Gold Coast based team has been working around the clock to have his car in top shape for Eastern Creek.

The Eastern Creek round of the 2001 Shell Championship Series features two 26-lap races; both will include compulsory tyre pit stops, as well as a top-10 shootout on the Saturday.

Ford will field twelve factory-supported drivers in nine teams in Adelaide. These drivers are:

2001 Shell Championship top-10 standings after two Rounds:

Details for Round Three of the 2001 Shell Championship Series at Eastern Creek 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

Previous Article: More in Store as Falcon Ute Sets New Record
Next Article: The Creek a Happy Hunting Ground for FTR