Lowndes lifts the covers

Racing legend Craig Lowndes has today unveiled the new TeamVortex livery ahead of its debut in the 2016 V8 Supercars Championship.

The formation of TeamVortex is a natural extension of the strong partnership between Lowndes, leading fuel supplier Caltex Australia and the highly-successful team at Triple Eight Race Engineering.

Lowndes, a six-time Bathurst winner and Caltex brand ambassador for almost a decade, is set to take the wheel of the number 888 Holden Commodore VF, with Steven Richards joining him as co-driver for the third consecutive year.

The pair claimed a memorable win at last year’s Supercheap Auto Bathurst 1000 and between them have now won The Great Race an incredible 10 times.

Caltex Australia’s Executive General Manager Commercial, Bruce Rosengarten, said the iconic fuel brand was proud to unveil the TeamVortex V8 Supercar with Lowndes behind the wheel.

“Caltex has backed Craig for almost a decade and we’ve got a strong history supporting Australian motorsports," Rosengarten said. 

“Vortex is the most popular premium fuels brand in Australia, so we’re excited to be extending our partnership with Australia’s most successful V8 driver.

“TeamVortex is the beginning of a new chapter, further demonstrating our continued dedication and commitment to the V8 community. For our customers, look out for exciting new promotions with Vortex premium fuel as we celebrate Craig and TeamVortex taking to the track in 2016."

Lowndes cannot wait to hit the track and test out the new-look car.

“I couldn’t have asked for a better team around me heading into the 2016 V8 Supercars Championship,” Lowndes said.

“Both the team and I have a brilliant relationship with Caltex, so I couldn’t have been happier when I found out I’ll be driving the TeamVortex Holden. 

“I’m really looking forward to getting on track and getting the 2016 season started at the Clipsal 500. Hopefully Steve Richards and I will be able to bring home the Bathurst trophy again later in the year, and really give Caltex and all our other sponsors a debut season to remember.”

Triple Eight veteran Ludo Lacroix will be engineering Lowndes as he shoots for his fourth series title.

The Frenchman joined the team in 1999 and was instrumental in leading them to category domination in the British Touring Car Championship.

Having moved to Australia with Triple Eight in 2003, Lacroix has been influential in shaping not just the engineering direction of the team, but of the sport as a whole.

Together, he and Lowndes will be a formidable pairing.

Meanwhile, Andrew Simpson takes on the role of team manager and John McGregor moves across to TeamVortex as data engineer.

Triple Eight Team Owner and Managing Director Roland Dane said he was pleased to further expand the team.

“We’re delighted to have Caltex step up for 2016 and beyond with TeamVortex_,”_ Dane said. 

“The partnership, which has grown and strengthened over the last decade, has allowed us to build engineering expertise here for the betterment of the Triple Eight team, giving us a unique opportunity to give Craig a platform to continue to rack up race wins.

“We’re all greatly looking forward to what we’re sure will be a tremendous debut year for TeamVortex and we’re proud to have the support of an excellent group of team partners around us.”