What the hell was in the water at Bathurst?

I thought we can all get home, have a little rest before the Gold Coast Indycar GP and then get into it for New Zealand - but no!

No sooner do I chuck my dirty clothes in the washing machine but the silly season starts up.

As I write this blurb it's official that John Bowe has left the CAT Racing Team and there is also a parting of the ways with Bud Racing Team and co-founder Tony Noske.

I'm sure this is just the tip of the iceberg as you just have to log onto any V8 Supercar forum on the web to see all the rumours going around. Rumours they all are but one can't help thinking where there's smoke, there's fire.

I believe part of the challenge for teams and especially team owners is the fact there are a lot of cars for available 2002 and only so many top shelf drivers to go around.

Taking John Briggs for example; he is going from a one car team to a four car operation in 2002 so he will need to find four drivers (Simon Wills will probably be one).

You can bet your bottom dollar that Briggs is looking to find the best drivers he can get his hands on. This begs the question: does he go for raw youth and take a punt on untested talent or does he go for experience? Everybody wants youth but young experienced pilots aren't growing on trees. Our bet is that Briggs will go with a mixture of new and experienced.

The fact that there is a lot of cars available makes the 'A list' drivers more expensive as teams, manufacturers and some sponsors try to get that winning combination.

On the other side there are the teams that have the equipment and know how to win and several drivers will be trying to get their butts into one of those seats.

For many drivers it is not just a case of how much money can be made. Most want to have the equipment to win even if it may mean taking a pay cut (don't cry for them yet, most still get OK bucks as it is).

Adding to the mix is the human factor, no two are alike, everybody has their individual set of circumstances and that just makes it more interesting.

To me as an Editor this is all good stuff as it keeps the interest in the sport in the off season. I reckon it is going to be a very interesting 'silly season' as there is a good chance some big bombs could be dropped.

In this issue of V8X we have a feature on Steve Johnson that I know you will enjoy, Big Kev and a full wrap up of Bathurst in the V8X style.

Just a reminder for the next issue (issue #7), we will be bringing it out just before Christmas so keep an eye out for it on the shelves between Chrissy and New Years. We at Club V8X thought that we would bring it out two weeks early so you would have something fresh to read in the holiday season.

Cheers

Big Hair Nev