Motorsports

Podium for Bargs

Wed, 04 May 2011 02:19:00 GMT

Third Place for Bargwanna in Perth
Before the weekend it had been a long time since Jason Bargwanna last stood on a V8 Supercars podium - seven years to be exact!

Bargs finally managed to turn his luck around in Perth and drove the #14 Jana Living Racing Commodore up to third place in Race 8. BigPond Sport spoke with Bargwanna about his change in fortune and what it meant for him and the Brad Jones Racing team.

BIGPOND: Congratulations on your podium finish. What changed in Perth?

JB: “Thank you, yes it’s a whole new world of V8 Supercars since 2004!
“We’ve been close a few times this year, but then have been knocked off so it was pretty exciting to finally get another podium on Sunday.
I think it all just came together in Perth. We’ve got good car speed and we were close in Hamilton, so I think we’re slowly starting to get it together.

BIGPOND: You and your engineer Andrew Edwards have been working hard, it must be rewarding to get a good result this early in the season.

JB: Yes, it is difficult because there’s always a bit of a language between driver and engineer that takes time to develop. Last year with Kelly Racing we finally got the car working well, and the year before we got the Tasman car working well towards the end of the season. To get podiums and results this early in the year is a culmination of our hard work, but also the huge amount of work done by Jason (Bright) and Phil (Keed) as well.”

BIGPOND: It was a big weekend for BJR in more ways than one. What was the feeling like in the garage after Race 8?

JB: I’ve never seen a tear in Brad’s eye but there was one there on Sunday I’m sure of it. The whole team was very emotional. Kim and Brad have put a lot of effort into the sport over the years and to finally crack a win is great for them. To have two of us on the podium was bittersweet with Karl’s accident, and of course we are all thinking of him and wishing him a speedy recovery.

BIGPOND: Does your good weekend in Perth change your outlook heading to Winton and onwards?

JB: It’s funny … over the last few rounds we’ve had the worst luck. We’ve been crashed into, belted off, beaten up, and ran out of fuel, but our luck finally turned around on the weekend.

We came away with three solid results and a fantastic position in the championship so the plan is to just keep building from here.

The next championship event is at Winton Raceway from May 20 -22.

News Article courtesy of:
Jana Living Racing’s official website: Janalivingracing.com.au
Brought to you by Supercheap Auto.

Bargs wants to deliver a Maiden Bathurst Win for Seton

Wed, 06 Oct 2010 01:08:00 GMT

Bargwanna and Seton for a Win at Bathurst
Jason Bargwanna wants to deliver his Rock Racing co-driver Glenn Seton a maiden Bathurst 1000 victory at the Supercheap Auto Bathurst 1000 this weekend.

Bargwanna, who won The Great Race in 2000 with Garth Tander, believes that the #11 Rock Commodore has the pace required to score victory following a strong second-placed run in a qualifying race at the last event at Phillip Island.

Seton, arguably the greatest driver to never win the Bathurst 1000, is the most experienced driver in this year’s field as he makes his 26th start. Seton is a two-time Australian Touring Car Champion, two time Bathurst polesitter and three-time runner up in the Bathurst 1000.

“I feel very confident for Bathurst,” said Jason Bargwanna. “We are going there to win Glenn's first and my second Bathurst.

“I feel excited that we're in a position to do well. Last year people didn't write me down as being one of the favourites and with Mark Noske we were up there at the end fighting for it.

“This year with Seto we've got the experience, the knowledge and the people. Our car speed with the Rock Commodore is good and hopefully we can fly under the radar a little bit and deliver a good result. “We've seen a lot of 200 kilometre races this year where we fight our way from the middle of the field and we are battle for a top 10 position.

“If you do that for another 800 kilometres there is no reason why we can’t be one of the cars fighting in the top five. “With all the preparation and work the guys have done we have our cars really good. Our fingers are crossed and with some smart play we have what it takes.”

Bargs and Seton Team Up

Wed, 28 Jul 2010 06:23:00 GMT

Bargs and Seton Team Up

Kelly Racing has confirmed that endurance driver Glenn Seton will be paired with Jason Bargwanna in the Rock Holden Commodore at Phillip Island and Bathurst.

Seton was confirmed as a co-driver at Kelly Racing in May and is looking forward to returning to Bathurst after a year out

“Last year was the first year that I've sat at home and watched it on TV for a lot of years, probably 30 or 40 years, because I used to go there every year, even with my dad when he was racing back in the 60s and 70s,” he said.

“So it was my first opportunity to watch it on TV and I didn't like where I was watching it from! “I haven't really finished my goals at Bathurst. I've got close to winning it but I've never won it and this year I'd like to have the opportunity to hopefully finish on the podium and win it with Jason in the Rock Commodore.

“Now that the full-time drivers are split it probably gives 12 cars the opportunity to win that event and I think that we are a part of those 12 cars. There is no doubt about that.

“I'm looking forward to the challenge and I know Jason is looking forward to the challenge. We are going there to win.”

Bargwanna is keen to repeat his run last season which saw him battle for a podium with Tasman Motorsport.

“Obviously this year, with not being able to pair up your number one drivers, it’s going to make the race very interesting,” said Bargwanna. “Last year I had Mark Noske in my car and we were fighting for a podium position. “I think this year with Glenn with me in the Rock car, there is no doubt that with the experience we have between us, we are in with a good shot.”

Seton and Bargwanna have a combined total of 39 Bathurst 1000 starts, which is equal with the TeamVodafone pairing of Craig Lowndes and Mark Skaife.

Townsville 400

Mon, 12 Jul 2010 03:47:00 GMT

Bargwanna Scores Top 10
Rock Racing driver Jason Bargwanna has scored his second top 10 finish of the season in the final race of the Sucrogen Townsville 400 in far north Queensland. Bargwanna finally got to turn his strong pace in Townsville this weekend into a good result with 10th place after bad luck cost him early in Saturday's race.

The next event of the 2010 V8 Supercars Championship Series is the L&H 500 at the Phillip Island Grand Prix Circuit in Victoria on September 10-12.

JASON BARGWANNA - #11 Rock Holden Commodore:

"As we said before this event we've decided to go in a bit of a different direction in terms of the car set-up and it's starting to pay dividends," said Jason Bargwanna.

"We probably struggled a little more at the last few events but this weekend we turned it around and its only that unfortunate luck yesterday with the diffuser that stopped us having two top 1- finishes. I'm really proud of the guys and they turned the car around today really well. We had some problem on the second set of tyres, which we need to investigate, and we lost probably three or four stops after that."

"The potential for us to be a top six car is right there, so we'll just keep working away at it. "It's definitely a good way to start the mid-year break."

"I've said from the outset that when I joined Kelly Racing it was going to take a while to get on top of things. But we've certainly got all the ingredients there to get it right."

"It's not easy - we have new engineer, new driver, new team and people. You have to learn a lot in a new set-up and we are starting to find our way a little bit."

"Hopefully we can't start delivering consistent top 10 results in the second half of the season."

SkyCity Triple Crown at Hidden Valley

Tue, 22 Jun 2010 01:24:00 GMT

Tune in for the Telecast on Channel 7
This week the V8 Supercars are at the Top End of Australia, and the heat of Darwin’s Hidden Valley Raceway. For the first time in 18 months there’s a new leader in the Championship with James Courtney having displaced reigning Champ Jamie Whincup. Tune in for an action packed weekend of racing.

Saturday June 19th from 2.30 – 5.30pm
Qualifying, Shootout and Race 13 ( 120km )
Sunday June 20th from 1.30 - 5pm Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane
3.15 - 5.30pm Adelaide and 11.30am - 3pm Perth
Qualifying and Race 14 ( 200km )

Hosted by Matt White, along with commentators Neil Crompton, Mark Skaife and pit reporter Mark Larkham.

It feels like ages since the V8 Supercars last hit the track, but in reality it’s only been five weeks since the last round at Winton. So get ready, the Northern Territory is hosting the V8 Supercars for the 13th consecutive year and Australians have voted the V8 round at Hidden Valley, the best in the nation.

SKYCITY Triple Crown is also a favourite amongst the drivers, teams and the thousands of visitors who witness the action trackside every year. The event injects more than $8 million into the local economy and attracts crowds of 40,000 people. It’s not just a weekend for motor sports enthusiasts to enjoy the roar of the engines, the colour and the glamour. It’s also a chance to showcase Territory business, attractions and great lifestyle.

Both Toll Holden Racing Team (HRT) drivers will debut new Walkinshaw Racing chassis at Darwin, while Jamie Whincup also debuts a new Triple Eight one. HRT driver Garth Tander said testing the new VE Commodores at Winton in the lead up to the Hidden Valley event was very productive and encouraging. Teammate Will Davison hopes his brand new car – the first he has ever had in his V8 career – does him proud at Darwin.

Bundaberg Red Racing driver Fabian Coulthard inherits GT’s old car, but he is under no illusion that it will be the magic bullet to his below par year.

Whincup lost the Championship lead for the first time in 18 months at the conclusion of the Winton event. He said his new Commodore, which he has named Georgia, had no mechanical issues when he gave it a 20-lap shakedown earlier this month.

Each driver will compete in the 120km Saturday on the control tyre and also use one set of softs for the 200km Sunday race.

“There’s no secret the sprint tyres are my weakness at the moment, but we will be putting our focus into turning that around for Sunday’s race in Darwin,” Whincup said. New Championship leader James Courtney said the return to the control tyre does not concern him. “I’ve won races on soft and hard-compound tyres so there’s no reason why I can’t be competitive on both types of rubber in the Top End,” the Jim Beam Racing driver said. “It’s possible we might clear out and run away from them again, regardless of what tyres we’re on. “My team has momentum from four wins in a row so the pressure is back on the others to see what they can do.” It hasn’t all been hard work for the teams in the lead-up to the SkyCity Triple Crown.

Bargwanna and Ricciardello fight on at Winton

Tue, 22 Jun 2010 01:25:00 GMT

Kelly Racing drivers Jason Bargwanna and Tony Ricciardello have fought hard on deteriorating soft tyres in the opening race of the sixth round of the 2010 V8 Supercar Championship Series at Winton Motor Raceway in rural Victoria today.

Bargwanna started from 21st position aboard his #11 Rock Holden Commodore in today's 40-lap race. Bargwanna, racing in his 150th V8 Supercar event this weekend, pitted early in the race on lap 14 to get out of the frenetic pack racing and run in clear air. The strategy moved up the order but as his rear tyres wore badly, Bargwanna dropped back down the order to finish in 23rd position. “We will take the positives out of today and we set one of the fastest laps of the race today in the Rock Commodore,” said Jason Bargwanna. “Towards the end of the race we just ran out of rear tyres. We moved up a fair bit but just couldn't hang onto it. “Tomorrow's race is going to be longer and tougher so we will have to do some work on the car tonight. “We blew out almost seven seconds a lap from doing 1:23s to 1:30s by the end. It's difficult with these tyres dropping off so much. “It's hard to know how hard to push to conserve them. In this race we pitted early to try to get track position but we just couldn't hold on in the end.