AN ex-Brad Jones Racing Holden V8 Supercar damaged in a recent crash at Silverstone in England will be sent all the way back to the Australian squad’s workshop for repairs.
BJR 001, the first V8 Supercar to be built completely in-house at BJR back in 2012/13, has resided in the United Kingdom since late ’19 having been bought by British club racer Alex Sidwell.
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The COVID-19 pandemic meant the car did not turn a wheel on British soil until April 2021 and last month it copped heavy right-side damage during a Super Saloons and TinTops race.
Sidwell was fortunate to escape uninjured when he was T-boned by another competitor who had aquaplaned off the track in wet conditions.
Sidwell’s Holden Racing UK, which owns several ex-V8 Supercars including two recently purchased Garry Rogers Motorsport VFs, has stripped BJR 001 to a bare chassis ahead of its return to Australia.
“The only way to ensure it is 100 percent repaired back to like new is by having it done by the people that built it,” the team explained on social media.
“They built it and have the COTF (Car of the Future) jig it was built on, can’t get better than that. Yes, it’s a lot more costly due to transportation but it’s definitely the right decision.”
The car was stripped in a matter of days but may not be dispatched Down Under for some time while the team waits for a container shipment from GRM headed in the opposite direction.
Although the Silverstone crash was a cruel blow for Sidwell’s team, it’s not the biggest accident BJR 001 has endured in its time.
Driven by Jason Bright to win the inaugural Jason Richards Trophy at Pukekohe in 2013, it suffered a spectacular accident with Bright at the wheel in Adelaide the following year.
Initially thought a write-off, the bare chassis was stripped of its components and offered for sale by BJR for just $10,000.
However, it was eventually rebuilt by BJR and returned to action in the Super2 Series, driven by Jack Smith in 2017 and Zane Goddard in ’18 before being sold to Sidwell.
With BJR 001 set to be out of action for some time, Sidwell will turn his attention to getting his ex-Alex Premat Fujitsu Commodore (GRM 15) ready to race.
