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Bright prospects

05 Nov 2015
Jason Bright is hopeful development parts on his Commodore will help him challenge for victory at the track he earned his last win in 2014.
3 mins by James Pavey
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Jason Bright is hopeful development parts on his Team BOC Commodore will help Brad Jones Racing get to the front of the field at Pukekohe this weekend - the site of the V8 veteran's last Supercars win.

Bright, 42, ran upgrades on the Gold Coast and said the team was always looking forward to next year and plotting ways to get back to its Championship contending ways.

While teammate Fabian Coulthard has been a consistent front-runner the last few years and Bright a race winner, 2015 has been a leaner year for the combination, with Sydney Motorsport Park the team's last podium finish.

"It has certainly a bit longer between drinks than what I'd like, but if there's a race meeting you're going to win, I'd certainly like to win this one again, that's for sure," Bright told v8supercars.com.au.

While Brad Jones Racing hasn't announced its 2016 line-up, Bright was confidence of a place next year, despite the team going through "more change than what they've had before".

Coulthard heads to DJR Team Penske with respected engineer Phil Keed and there are questions around the third car currently steered by Dale Wood.

Bright suggested continuity would be positive for the team and revealed he was already running upgrades on his Team BOC Commodore in preparation for the 2016 season.

"You're always thinking about developments and everything - you're always thinking about next year," he said.

"At the Gold Coast I ran some new components which are a development part for next year and I was pretty happy with the car there. So I think we've got some good stuff in the car at the moment.

"Hopefully we can get the results we want to get again."

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All teams aside from Erebus have used all allocated test days this season, but that doesn't mean there isn't constant development behind the scenes as teams look for even a small advantage.

"You don't stop trying to find ways to make them go quicker - and it's all the little things these days, you're not throwing big things at them anymore ... you need to make you've got a development plan to keep improving.

"That's where you can easily fall behind still if you're not making those improvements."

This weekend would be the perfect place for Brad Jones Racing to return to form, with the Jason Richards Memorial Trophy up for grabs.

The late great Richards ran the #8 Team BOC Commodore and was Bright's teammate when he was diagnosed with a rare form of cancer.

Earning the first ever Jason Richards Memorial Trophy in 2013 in fairytale fashion, Bright sees the achievement as his career best, and would love to be in the running again this time around.

"I've been looking forward to New Zealand, think it's the sort of track that does suit us a bit better - a fast flowing track, not these start and stop tracks so hopefully we'll have a good run there and a good crack at the JR Trophy," he said.

With three rounds remaining, there is still some opportunity for Bright to break his 2015 duck and lift from 14th in the Championship.

"It would be good to get a win before the end of this year - we'll see what we can do," he said.

"I think the next couple of rounds will suit us so it'd be good to finish the year with a couple of good results and give us confidence going into next year."

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