Dick Johnson Racing is not letting anyone forget that a Jim Beam Falcon took James Courtney to the V8 Supercars Championship last season.
With Courtney having taken the coveted No. 1 plate to the Holden Racing Team in 2011, Dick Johnson Racing rolled out its No. 17 and 18 cars with some interesting graphics on their doors yesterday at Eastern Creek.
As pictured right, the numbers have been displayed such that the No. 1 is highly prominent.
“We just put numbers 17 and 18 on the cars a little bit differently to what they have been in the past,” a smiling Dick Johnson told Speedcafe.com.au.
The 65 year old said that the signage is fitting, given the way his team performed last season.
“It’s not any one thing that wins races, it’s a combination of everything, and the team did a magnificent job, as well as the driver,” he said.
Courtney’s replacement at DJR, James Moffat, finished yesterday’s pre-season test with the 26th fastest time.
Regardless of the testing order, Johnson said that the second-generation racer is fitting into the team well.
“He’s going well – he’s a youngster, it’s early days, but he’s easy to get along with, he listens, and if he keeps listening he’ll learn,” he said.
“There’s a good synergy there with a couple of father and son deals.
“I think we all need to be bringing some younger guys on now, and obviously he comes from the right genes.
“It’s just about bringing everything together and making sure we give him the right sort of car, and teach him the way it should be done in these types of cars.”
Steven Johnson drove the team’s 2010 championship winning Triple Eight chassis for the first time yesterday – ending the sessions 18th fastest.
