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HomeNewsFEENEY’S SUPERCARS NUMBER CHOICE REVEALED

FEENEY’S SUPERCARS NUMBER CHOICE REVEALED

BROC Feeney will race with a number that is very familiar to Triple Eight Race Engineering in his rookie Repco Supercars Championship season.

Feeney has adopted the #88 for his debut year, a number synonymous with Jamie Whincup’s time driving for the squad.

Whincup took the number to three of his seven Repco Supercars Championship titles and 47 of his 124 championship race wins.

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“The first time I saw the car in the workshop with 88 and ‘Feeney’ on it was pretty surreal,” Feeney said.

“It was sitting in the bay that JDub’s car usually is, but to see my name on it and all the partners that Red Bull Ampol Racing represent is pretty cool.

“I knew six months ago that the deal was done, but to finally see my name on the side of the car, and to know we’re only a few weeks away from racing is so exciting.

Broc Feeney with the #88 Red Bull Ampol Racing Holden Commodore ZB. Pic: Supplied

“It’s pretty busy at the moment juggling all of our pre-season responsibilities, and it’s all very new to me.

“I’m dealing with a lot of stuff that I normally wouldn’t be, namely media and partner commitments, but my biggest focus is my training so I’m best prepared for when we hit the track in Sydney.”

The number was first adopted by Triple Eight in 2004 for its first full-time season in the category, when it replaced the #65 and #66 inherited from Briggs Motorsport for #88 and #888.

Campaigned in that inaugural season by two-time Touring Car World Cup winner Paul Radisich, Steve Ellery took over the number in 2005 before Whincup’s arrival at Triple Eight in 2006.

Steven Ellery made four race ATCC race starts in 1994, the most recent time a car with an engine capacity other than five litres has started a championship race. Pic: an1images.com / Graeme Neander

In a twist of fate, Ellery had previously used the number for his maiden championship round starts in 1994, albeit with a two-litre class Ford Sierra rather than a five-litre V8 Ford Falcon.

Whincup, Radisich, Ellery, and co-drivers Adam Macrow, Andrew Thompson, Sebastien Bourdais and Paul Dumbrell have all driven Triple Eight-entered cars carrying #88 to podium finishes in championship races.

While it was predominantly used by smaller capacity class cars in its pre-Triple Eight history, the #88 had visited the dais prior to its use by the Banyo squad.

Alan Hamilton took the #88 to the podium in its very first championship appearance, driving his Porsche 911T to second place in the Bathurst round of the 1969 Australian Touring Car Championship, while veteran privateer Lawrie Nelson claimed a pair of podium finishes in 1973 with the #88 on his Valiant Charger.

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