First pics! Dumbrell’s 2010 Falcon fighter
Paul Dumbrell will drive the #55 The Bottle O Racing Falcon next year
Paul Dumbrell’s The Bottle O Racing Ford Falcon was unveiled this morning at the Sydney Telstra 500.
Dumbrell turns from a factory Holden man to factory Ford
The car will run as part of the factory Ford Performance Racing team in a three-year deal between FPR, Dumbrell (driver), The Bottle O (sponsor) and Rod Nash Racing (Racing Entitlements Contract owner).
Earlier this year, The Bottle O had confirmed it would support Nash’s V8 entry (currently campaigned by Tony D’Alberto) until the end of 2011, however, the company has decided to extend its deal by a further year to run conjointly with the RNR/FPR/Dumbrell arrangement.
The Bottle O has, in turn, doubled its original investment to support the new alignment with Ford Performance Racing.
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Furthermore, a new sponsorship addition to the car is signage from Victoria Bitter. That deal has been put in place in conjunction with The Bottle O.
The Bottle O Racing Falcon will feature signage from Victoria Bitter
Nash told Speedcafe that the whole deal has fallen into place perfectly.
“The Bottle O thought that it was worthy of the investment and have stepped it up significantly,” he said.
“Because we ended up signing a three-year deal between RNR and FPR, The Bottle O decided to re-do its contact with us. Instead of having two years to run on their deal, we’ve realigned again and we’ve got now three years with them.
“This is not a customer operation – it’s a full-on factory backed car. Everything operates under the FPR banner. It’s a great package for everybody.”
Nash said his selection of Dumbrell as a driver – effectively poaching him from rival Holden factory team Walkinshaw Racing – was the icing on the cake.
“I’ve been watching Paul right from the beginning and he’s been stepping up nicely,” Nash said.
“When I was just about to make a decision on the driver, I learned that he might be available, so I stalled my decision.
“I think a drive in a new factory unit as a team-mate to the likes of Mark Winterbottom and Steven Richards, it will be very good for him.
“It’s a good opportunity for him and a good opportunity for me. But he was no easy get. He really weighed up his options – there’s nothing shabby about the team he’s currently with on the Holden side.
“From what I can see, he’s had a good time there and it was a difficult decision for him to make. At the same time, there’s a difference between the factory red cars and the factory blue cars. It will be a good change for him.”