The Crittenden Automotive Library

‘Hamish’ Disrupts QLD Test Day

‘Hamish’ Disrupts QLD Test Day

Stone Brothers Racing
March 12, 2009

After successfully completing their 20 lap pre-test ‘shakedown’ the new SBR Ford FG Falcons took to the track at Queensland Raceway yesterday for the first official test of 2009. Rain from the fringe of cyclone Hamish, off the Queensland coast, produced varied track conditions resulting in mixed outcomes for the team.

David Stuart – Team Manager “The weather made things hard for us, but it was the same for everybody. We weren’t able to get through our whole program as planned, however, in the long run we managed to do some important system checks for Adelaide. The test was an opportunity to confirm the balance from the 20 lap shakedown and to learn more information on the FG aero kit.”

In his first test for SBR, IRWIN Racing’s Alex Davison posted the 7th fastest time while his young team mate SP Tools Racing’s Shane van Gisbergen finished 9th of the 18 car field on track from both the V8 Supercars Championship Series and Development Series.

Alex Davison – Driver IRWIN Racing Car #4 “Overall looking at the big picture, the day was pretty good, considering the weather conditions. I feel very confident in the team, we have some small changes to make with the IRWIN Racing Falcon, being that this was its first time out of the box it was just good to get out there and work out where we are at.”

Shane van Gisbergen – Driver SP Tools Car #9 “It was just good to be back out there driving again after such a long off season. The car was good and I was really comfortable in it. We worked not so much on the pace of the car but more on trying to find a good balance.

My new engineer Paul and I are working well together; I could feel a big difference in the car after each change we made yesterday which was good.

I can’t wait for Clipsal; we went well there last year so I am hoping for a strong top ten finish and plan to return home with a straight car as a good solid start to the championship.”

Jason Bright in the SBR prepared #25 BF Falcon persevered with setup changes in the difficult conditions finishing 11th quickest. SBR are keen to utilise the testing capabilities and experience of Bright to assist with the development of its young drivers.

After a busy off season readying the new FG Falcons for the 2009 series, the team were pleased with the gains from the test and are eager to race at the Clipsal 500 round next week (March 19 – 22).

Ross Stone – Team Principal “When a new model is introduced, preparing two new cars in time for the first test is a big job. At least 1200 to 1400 hours go into the chassis’ before they move into paint and assembly. The team have been working around the clock on these cars.

We were only able to get through a quarter of the test program we had planned. But, that being said we have done enough laps around the Clipsal circuit to know what is needed and I know we will be strong there.”