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SPECIAL

Ford Territory

SPECIAL

Ford Territory

Ford V8s Ready to Rock the Shaky Isles

Staff, Tuesday April 12, 2005.

Page 1 of 1

Marcos Ambrose and Craig Lowndes lead the way in the championship, but attention will also be focussed on Jason Bright who?ll aim to repeat as the NZ winner, this time aboard a Ford Falcon.

The extremely fast 2.8km track presents several challenges to V8 Supercar teams and drivers given the circuit's uneven surface, off camber corners and the unpredictability of Auckland's weather during April.

Jason Bright broke Greg Murphy's stranglehold on the Placemakers V8 International event last year, winning two of the three races to take the round victory, ahead of Marcos Ambrose and Murphy.

Bright has participated in each of the previous four point-scoring events held in New Zealand, finishing each round sixth or higher. His complete record is fourth in 2001, fifth in 2002, sixth in 2003 and overall winner in 2004.

?I am looking forward to heading back to New Zealand after the success I enjoyed there last year,? said Bright.

?Strong development is starting to flow to make the CAT FPR Falcon better suited to my driving style.

?Pukekohe is a track that I enjoy, mainly due to its mixture of very fast and slow corners. This is also the first Championship round where we see the introduction of the two hour practice session which will give us a better opportunity to develop our cars as opposed to the two 30 minute sessions we have seen in the past."

This is the final time that the V8 Supercars will visit Pukekohe, with series organisers AVESCO stating that New Zealand's round will be held at another venue from 2006.

For defending two-time V8 Supercar Champion Marcos Ambrose Pukekohe is one of the few tracks he?s yet to win a round at, despite being the home track for team owners Jimmy and Ross Stone.

?If I can deliver one thing to Ross and Jimmy for everything they've done for me over the past four years it would be to deliver them a round victory at their home track,? said Ambrose.

?This is an important race for them and for the entire SBR team. It's one title that's eluded us and there'll only be this final opportunity in 2005 before the New Zealand round is switched elsewhere.

?It was great to capture the first race win in the rain last year but we didn't complete the deal and that was disappointing.

?With improvements to the track this season we want to have good pace and step things up a notch.

?With a new diff ratio and a few other things that have been updated on the Pirtek Falcon I'm excited with what can be achieved on the long straights of Pukekohe.?

Lowndes is just nine points behind Ambrose in the championship chase and is keen to get his first win aboard the Team Betta Electrical Falcon.

?Adelaide was a great start for us, now I want a fantastic weekend in NZ,? said Lowndes.

?Winning at Pukekohe would be great for me, the team and all the Ford fans who have yet to enjoy a Blue Oval championship round win in New Zealand.

?The format for NZ includes three separate races. As always qualifying up front is important but you have to be consistent throughout each race and get good pit stops.?

Teams first take to the track on Friday for a two-hour practice session. During this period cars can complete no more than 50-laps. Saturday includes qualifying, top-10 shootout and the opening 36-lap race. Sunday concludes the weekend?s action with two 50-lap races.

All Ford V8 Supercars will this weekend run a special decal to mark the passing of Ford Public Affairs Manager Louise Teesdale.

Championship points after 1 of 13 rounds

1: Marcos Ambrose : Pirtek Racing : Ford Falcon BA 192pts
2: Craig Lowndes : Team Betta Electrical : Ford Falcon BA ?9pts
3: Todd Kelly : Holden Race Team : Holden Commodore ?30pts
4=: Steven Johnson : Westpoint Racing : Ford Falcon BA ?51pts
4=: Paul Weel : Super Cheap Auto Racing : Holden Commodore ?51pts
6: Russell Ingall : Caltex Racing : Ford Falcon BA ?54pts
7: Paul Dumbrell : Castrol Perkins Motorsport : Holden Commodore ?57pts
8: Cameron McConville : Valvoline Cummins Racing : Holden Commodore ?63pts
9: Rick Kelly : Team HSV : Holden Commodore ?66pts
10: Jason Bright : CAT Ford Performance Racing : Ford Falcon BA ?84pts

Details for Pukekohe:
Top 10 Shootout - Saturday 16 April 12.30pm
Race 1 (36 laps ? 100.8km) ? Saturday 16 April ? 3pm
Race 2 (50 laps ? 140km) ? Sunday 17 April ? 12.05pm
Race 3 (50 laps ? 140km) ? Sunday 17 April ? 4.30pm

Circuit: Pukekohe Park Raceway
Length: 2.8km

Estimated top speed: 275km/h ? Back Straight
Estimated average speed: 155 km/h

Ford?s V8 Milestones for NZ

Ford?s official V8 Line-up for NZ

For Further information contact:
Ben Beazley
Media Coordinator
Ford Racing Australia
Phone: 03 9359 8190
Mobile: 0417 262 753
Email: benb@global-marketing.com

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