Cat Racing Calder Park Preview

CAT RACING

V8 SUPERCAR SHELL CHAMPIONSHIP SERIES PREVIEW ROUND EIGHT, CALDER PARK, MELBOURNE ISSUED: MONDAY, 18th JULY 1999

BOWE KEEN TO CONTINUE CAT ATTACK AT CALDER PARK

Cat Racing star John Bowe is hopeful of a continued strong run when the V8 Supercar Shell Championship Series returns to Melbourne this weekend.

Bowe starred in Queensland where the Caterpillar-sponsored Ford Falcon AU scored the team's first ever pole position.

Bowe was also the first across the line in the final race but was excluded from the results for allegedly passing under a yellow flag. This result remains subject to appeal by the Cat Racing team.

The Perth based team will enter the Calder event with renewed confidence and is hopeful of an impressive showing.

"We were caught out a little at the last race in finding a fast qualifying set- up that would also be kind on the tyres during the race." Bowe said.

"I am delighted and pleasantly surprised with our progress and I am sure our opposition knows we are not too far away.

"I'd love to greet that chequered flag first again, but just because we have done it once, doesn't necessarily mean it will automatically happen again.

"We have to keep working very hard on improving the car to maintain your position, let alone move forward."

Last year's Calder event was disrupted by torrential rain, with the final race actually cancelled.

"Calder can be very tricky if it is wet because of the state of the track where the drag racing events start," Bowe said.

"Coming onto the main straight can be like ice, so you have to be extremely careful.

"The level of competition is getting tougher every week and this meeting will be the same because a lot of the Melbourne-based teams test here regularly and will have a head-start in finding a good set-up."

With Caterpillar's Australian head-office only a short distance away at Tullamarine, Bowe is keen to perform well in a "home" race for the team's sponsor.

"While we were fast in Queensland, we were not consistent during the day," Bowe said.

"Our tyres really suffered in the first race and my key aim this weekend is to find a set-up that will be fast, but will still go the distance to put in a strong performance for Caterpillar."

CALDER RECORD: 1986 Volvo 240T Grid: 5th ROUND: 3rd

1988 Ford Sierra RS500 Grid: 2nd ROUND: RETIRED

1996 Ford Falcon EF Grid: 4th Heat 1: 3rd Heat 2: 2nd Heat 3: 4th ROUND: 2nd

1997 Ford Falcon EL Grid: 13th Heat 1: 10th Heat 2: 6th Heat 3: 4th ROUND: 6th

1998 Ford Falcon EL Grid: 9th Heat 1: 7th Heat 2: 7th Heat 3: # ROUND: 6th

# race not run due to heavy rain

CALENDAR: August 6-8 - Symmons Plains August 20-22 - Winton

POINTS: 1 - Lowndes - 1,098 2 - Bright - 906 3 - Seton - 864 4 - Ingall - 846 5 - Skaife - 820 6 - Tander - 742 7 - Murphy - 674 8 - Bowe - 582 9 - Richards - 560 10 - Longhurst - 558

Paul Ryan