Team Bray Racing has gone all the way to the finals at the weekend’s Sydney Jamboree, collecting three personal best efforts along the way.
Ben Bray and the Gulf Western Oil Toyota Solaro took on George Rehaymen in the final, and while a swing at the bat might not have gone the way the team would have liked, it was still smiles all round after a strong showing at an exceptionally competitive event.
“Our weekend just got better and better all the way until the final,” Ben enthused.
“Our four test passes on Friday allowed us to collect data and fine tune our set-up even though we were shutting off early at approximately the 800 feet mark.
“Our tuner Justin Simpson was all over everything data-wise and we also appreciated some assistance from Mitch from Haltech as we looked to make sure we were as prepared as possible for the big day.
“Saturday started well with a personal best in the first qualifying session, (qualifying ET and speed – 7.371s/288.56kmh), and we would go on to finish fifth on the ladder.
“A big end bearing change for the engine before racing and a 40-degree air temp couldn’t hold us back, and round one saw us taken on our mate Rod Harvey. In that race, a 0.041 reaction time and a personal best speed saw us take the win on the hole-shot with a 7.529s/291.19kmh pass over his 7.451s/329.93kmh run.
“In round two we took on our fellow Queenslander Jerry Kehl before proceeding to round three for another ET and speed personal best effort 7.205 at 303.22klms and with three wins from three runs, we were off to the final.
“Taking on George Rehayem and the PAC boys is never a small ask, those guys have been doing this for a very long time and we gave it everything we had. We dipped into some unchartered territory with our tune-up and that didn’t pay off this time, but anytime you make the final is a great day as far as we are concerned.
“We had a great time off the track as well, the Sydney Jamboree is a brilliant event and just keeps on growing – we have to send our congratulations not just to George on his win but also the event organisers, they have done another brilliant job.”
Team Bray Racing will next be on track for the Southern Thunder event at Adelaide International Raceway across March 23-24.
