FPR Looks To Translate Promise

Frosty and Richo want results

Ford Performance Racing is rebuilding its 2009 V8 Supercar Championship assault starting with this weekend’s racing at Hidden Valley, the glory-ground of its 2008 campaign.

Steve Richards and Mark Winterbottom both won a race at the Darwin track last year before scoring FPR’s first-ever 1-2 result in a round.

So far this year the team’s speed has been race-winning but the results have not followed often enough.

“The car has actually been quick so we go to Darwin with confidence, but we’ve got to be smarter about how we approach the racing side; we’ve just got to make sure we finish it off,” said the Orrcon Steel FPR Falcon driver Mark Winterbottom.

“We’ve had a bit of bad luck, like being in bad positions at bad times, but you can’t keep blaming it on luck when it happens regularly. I’ve got to put myself in a position that gives me the least amount of risk and as a team we need to stop putting so much pressure on ourselves to win every race.”

Now FPR has gone back to basics, addressing organisational approach to race weekends to ensure its potential is translated into podiums.

“This year we qualified on the front row at the last three race meetings before the top ten shoot-out,” said the Castrol FPR Falcon driver Steve Richards. “We’ve got really good pace so my confidence levels are high going to Darwin.”

Cars take to the track at 12:25pm this Friday for Practice.