John Bowe: My Most Asked Question

Hello my V8 Supercar friends! I’m honoured to have been asked by V8 Supercars to share my thoughts, view and opinions on matters V8 Supercars in this weekly column. I have a free rein on subject matter, so here we go.

I’ve only missed a few V8 Supercars events since retiring in 2007. I’m competing in the Touring Car Masters category and we are a support category to V8 Supercars – so I’m pretty close to the action. 

I’ll start with the question I’m most asked. How do you feel about the arrival of Mercedes and Nissan, and Volvo next year?

There needed to be change, given the position of both Holden (Commodore) and Ford (Falcon) in Australia. Both manufacturers’ sales have seriously declined in terms of volume. I feel the change was overdue. V8SC was a fantastic business model (I was there at the start); things have changed significantly in the Australian car market. Ford announced its plant closure and I think in the end there will be no Australian vehicle manufacturing, as sad as that is.

I think the inclusion of Mercedes and the reappearance of Nissan is fantastic news – when I heard Volvo was returning, I thought, maybe dust off the ol’ race suit… Nah, just kidding folks! My first drive in a Touring Car was in a Volvo in 1985, just like it was yesterday!

Our sport needs new money, new ideas and a new direction and I think we now have the ingredients.

The change to Car of the Future was the likes of the morphing from ATTC to V8 Supercars, except the mouse trap every team got was very close. The close racing is a testament to the fact – how many different winners have we had this year? (Ed: 12 main series drivers so far in 2013)

Finally, I think Tony Cochrane (former V8 Supercars chairman) did a brilliant job and laid the foundation for today; he took a quasi amateur sport and turned it into a business. This allowed drivers to make a career out of motorsport in Australia.

I think the appointment of (new CEO) James Warburton is outstanding – his arrival has provided new direction and he sold Townsville, Sydney and the Gold Coast to New South Wales and Queensland Governments in very difficult times.

James is very visible in pit lane and I know the teams appreciate his open style. I fancy he’s one hell of a salesman. I like his vision, consolidation and willingness to introduce new tweaks – racing under lights sounds exciting!

Don’t you love this time of the year... not many sleeps now til Bathurst!  

I was invited to speak at the Rodney Crick Tribute Dinner over the weekend, which was a celebration of Rodney’s life by his family, friends and fans. He was an Aussie larrikin and a Champion – some wonderful stories were told. Special Guest was Rodney’s close friend Mark Webber.

What a class act Mark is, he was relaxed, candid and told some terrific stories. The dinner was a sell out; I understand a significant amount was raised to help Lisa and her children – a big thanks to those attending who dug deep. Greg Rust was MC and did an outstanding job – he knows his subject matter, motorsport!

Cheers,

JB 

Follow John Bowe on Facebook. Bowe is supported by Wilson Security and Dunlop Super Dealers, competing in the 2013 Touring Car Masters Championship.