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Evangelou to leap into V8 Supercar Championship Series at Phillip Island |
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Monday, 04 December 2006 |
 Fujitsu V8 Supercar driver Tony Evangelou and his Dexion-supported BA Falcon will make the leap into the V8 Supercar Championship Series at the Phillip Island Grand Prix circuit next weekend.
Evangelou and his team have been given the opportunity to make the step into the main game to support Team Kiwi Racing’s recent plight to raise finances following driver Paul Radisichs’ massive crash at the Super Cheap Auto 1000 race at Bathurst; Dexion Racing filling the breach to ensure Team Kiwi does not receive any financial penalties that would be forthcoming should their franchise miss the round.
 The event will mark Dexion Racing’s first start as a fully-fledged
Championship Series team, whilst Evangelou will make his solo
championship round debut after competing at the Bathurst 1000 in 2005
with Anthony Tratt.
The announcement adds further weight to an already massive weekend for
Dexion, Evangelou’s solo debut in the Championship series set to be
coupled with the strong title chances for Dexion supported drivers
Craig Lowndes and Tim Slade.
Craig and Tim head to the Phillip Island Caterpillar Grand Finale’ at
the famous Victorian circuit with real chances of winning their
respective championships.
Slade leads John Martin by three points in the Formula Ford battle,
whilst Lowndes trails Rick Kelly by seven in the V8 Supercar
championship.
Tony Evangelou, currently 11th in the Fujitsu V8 Supercar championship
series, said that the opportunity to take his team to the next level
was too tempting to pass up.
“We are taking a few risks from a team perspective doing this but it’s really a great opportunity,” Evangelou said.
“Team Kiwi Racing was a bit stuck so it’s worth the risk to step in and
fill their place for the final round. It’s a great opportunity for the
team, for our sponsors and for me as a driver and I’m really looking
forward to it.
“We will be racing against the best 30 or 31 teams and drivers in the
country, so realistically we ought to qualify last given it’s our first
V8 Supercar Championship start. You never like to be at the back but at
this stage I’d be happy if we were in and amongst the last four our
five.
“The three races are quite long and challenging so I’d like to think we
could make our way into the top twenty by the end of the weekend. I
think that’s achievable,” he said.
Evangelou added that the presence for major sponsor Dexion was another
contributing factor to his decision to run in the championship series
at the weekend.
“It should be fantastic for Dexion with both Craig and Tim fighting for their respective championships,” he said.
“We’re not in contention for our championship which is why we decided to make the step forward this weekend.
“We’ll see how it goes, but I think it should be really good.”
Dexion’s Andrew Angus said that his company was proud to be supporting
Tony Evangelou’s step into the V8 Supercar Championship Series.
“We are delighted for Tony to have this opportunity in the V8 Supercar
Championship Series for the final round, and help out Team Kiwi Racing
at the same time,” he said.
“We are in the third of a four year program with Tony’s business, A.N.T
Racing, and the relationship has been very fruitful for Dexion, as it
has encouraged our staff and customers to be involved in a team based
environment and become exposed to this fantastic sport.
“The future is also looking extremely bright for Tony’s team with Tim
Slade ready to make the next big step in his career into the Fujitsu
series in the Dexion car next year.”
The Caterpillar Grand Finale’ gets underway at Phillip Island on
Friday, with three races stretched across the weekend and televised on
Network Ten.
The first race – at 100kms – will be held Saturday afternoon whilst 2,
140-kilometer events will be held on Sunday to conclude the 2006
championship series. All three races will include a compulsory pit stop
to change Tyres.
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