The Jesus Ute in action in Adelaide.
Illawarra driver Andrew ‘‘Fishtail’’ Fisher and the Jesus Racing team have made a fantastic start to the 2013 Auto One V8 Ute Series, taking out a race win and claiming second on the podium in Adelaide on the weekend.
Additionally, in a virtually unheard of result in V8 Ute Racing, Fisher managed to finish the weekend without a scratch on the Jesus Ute.
‘‘It’s been a great start to the year,’’ Fisher said.
‘‘We were smart in our approach and made some brave decisions in setting up the car, but they certainly paid off.
‘‘Such a satisfying result means we received plenty of TV coverage over the weekend, which is great for our supporters, and hopefully will help us to secure the sponsorship we need for the remainder of the season at both a local and a national level.’’
The racing was hard and fast on the streets of Adelaide for the Clipsal round of the series.
In race one, several penalties were handed out which shunted Fisher up the order to place seventh.
The Jesus Ute started in third on the grid in race two, with Fisher determined to repeat his 2012 Clipsal performance and take a race win.
Fisher threw the Jesus Ute out hard and pushed his way through the pack.
On the limit of the car’s grip, Fisher took the lead and held it until lap seven when the tyres were wearing. Then they let go.
The Jesus Ute slid out, narrowly missing the wall at turn eight, travelling around 175km/h and losing the lead to Kris Walton, crossing the line in second place.
Stewards were called in post-race for an incident involving another car, and Walton was penalised, handing the win to Fisher and the Jesus Racing team.
In race three, the Jesus Ute started off the front row of the grid.
Chasing Nathan Pretty for the first few laps, Fisher was under heavy fire and eventually succumbed to Ryan Hansford and Ryal Harris, finishing the race in fourth position, giving him second overall for the weekend, and second in he championship so far.