A fresh start for Bright

A rejuvenated Fujitsu Racing and Jason Bright head to the opening round of the 2008 V8 Supercar Championship Series, the Clipsal 500 in Adelaide this weekend.
Following a tough debut season for his own team, a fresh new paint scheme and promising outlook has Bright optimistic for a strong showing at the opening round on the demanding street circuit.

The Fujitsu Racing Falcon completed a detailed test last week at Winton Motor Raceway, where he set the seventh fastest time of the 30 cars on the day.

“The best test day we have ever had,” said Bright.

“We learnt more about the car this time at Winton than any other test or race meeting throughout 2007.

“The car is working extremely well and with a couple of new things for Adelaide, we can step it up. It’s important to start the year on the right note.

“Considering we have had next to no time in the off-season, I’m really pleased to be where we are.

There has been literally no time to reflect on 2007. Since the final round of last year’s championship in early December, the Fujitsu Racing team has only had the short Christmas/New Year break away from the workshop.

Extensive work has been carried out on Bright’s Falcon, while also building a new Fujitsu Racing Ford V8 Supercar set to debut in the first half of the season.

“The off-season is far too short,” said Fujitsu Racing Chief Engineer Geoff Slater.

“It’s a credit to the guys who have really given that extra effort at a time when they should have been taking time off.

“The improvements made have been on the drawing board for a while, but it’s just been about time.

“We squeezed three years worth of work into one in 2007, now we can look at getting results for all that work.

“We will have new specification race engines for the weekend. We are quietly confident in that giving us an improvement in power.”

“Other improvements include engine design, suspension and even fuel tanks. It’s not the entire answer, but certainly puts us in a better position.

The Clipsal 500 has previously been run March, but this year will see it kick-start the season in February.

The major challenge will be the expected hot weather, with air temperatures in Adelaide at this time of the year hitting up to 40°C.

“Clipsal is the toughest race of the year,” said Bright

“It is physically and mentally the hardest event. The track is unforgiving, plus the crew have to be on their game. Fighting in the heat of the battle will take-on a new meaning with expected warm conditions.

“As they say it is the same for everyone, so we will not be using the heat as any excuse for our performance.

The Fujitsu Racing Falcon hits the track on Friday for practice and qualifying. Saturday has the opening 250km race, with Sunday’s 78-lap race rounds out the 500km of racing. Both races include separate compulsory pits stops for fuel and tyres.