200 V8 Supercars rounds for Brad Jones Racing

Racking up its first win in the Sandown 500 would be a great achievement for BJR this weekend - and given the team celebrates 200 round starts at the Wilson Security Sandown 500, it would be even more special to record a strong result.

Team boss Brad Jones is, of course, proud of the milestone and while specific wins do rank as highlights over the years, he seemed to think more fondly of the quality people who have helped keep the racing team - and dream - going.

"Our first race in our own car was at Phillip Island in 2000," Jones reminisced with v8supercars.com.au.

"We'd been racing Super Touring Cars and my first recollection is, I don't think I'd qualified worst than third or fourth and we were about 20th - and it was difficult.

"We thought we'd just take all our Super Touring people and make some magic happen and it turned out to be a lot harder than that.

"So for fond memories, just some of the success I had with JB [John Bowe], getting the team built up.

"Probably the most successes we've had was when I stopped driving the car-"

"I was just going to say that," cut in a nearby Roland Dane.

Both Jones and Bowe, who joined the team in 2002, raced at the team until 2007, during which Jones retired mid-season.

Nephew Andrew Jones - son of Kim, who is the team's co-owner and also a force behind the scenes - jumped in a seat alongside Simon Wills, with a number of quality drivers to follow in the coming years. Cameron McConville, Karl Reindler, Jason Bargwanna and David Wall have all steered a BJR car over the years, as well as current crop of stars Jason Bright, Fabian Coulthard and 2013 Dunlop Series winner Dale Wood.

There has been one other - the late, great Jason Richards, who the team had a huge involvement with throughout his brave battle with an aggressive form of cancer.

One of the undoubted highlights in V8 Supercars racing was Richards' return behind the wheel in 2011 for the Australian Grand Prix support category races.

In a gutsy drive, Richards - who had stepped down from full-time driving after being diagnosed in November the previous year - almost pulled off the fairytale win in his Commodore, just 0.4 seconds behind Garth Tander.

"One thing that really reminds me of the grit and determination that the team is capable of producing was when Jason Richards came second," Jones said.

"I think he was one lap short - he would've either passed Garth (Tander) the next lap or they both would've ended up in the wall somewhere. So that's a harsh but fond memory.

"Stuff like that - our first win in Perth, the way the team's developed over the last few years, how successful and strong we are and competitive we are."

That first win was in 2011 at Barbagallo Raceway in Perth. And while Bright stood on the top of the podium, there was focus on the team for more than one reason, with Reindler caught in a huge accident off the startline, his BJR Commodore bursting into flames after being hit from behind.

"If you're going to have a weekend like that, best you win a race!

"That was one of the lowlights, turning that thing into a fireball."

While the team didn't get the fairytale win with Richards at the AGP, that magic did happen in New Zealand in 2013, when Bright took home the Jason Richards Memorial Trophy in the Team BOC #8 Richards had raced.

"That's definitely a highlight, that's a target that we got," Jones said.

"Just the way the whole team operates, we're all very close and tight. But the JR trophy was a very special time - and going through all that stuff with JR."

Across 200 hundred starts, the team has achieved nine race wins (two this season), two round wins, and scored 11 ARMOR ALL Pole Positions (five this year).

The team has been one of the standout performers since the shift to the new generation V8 Supercars, finishing third in the teams' Championship, behind manufacturer supported Red Bull Racing and Ford Performance Racing (Pepsi Max).

Jones and the team are keen to break its enduroduck this weekend,and keep Coulthard's Championship hopes alive, with the Kiwi 313 points behind leader Jamie Whincup.

And while we are looking back - click here to see a much younger Brad Jones from Sandown 20 years ago, when he paired up with Craig Lowndes, who this weekend celebrates 20 years since his debut in the category!