STONE BROTHERS RACING HISTORY
Stone Brothers Racing is one of the premier teams in the Australian V8 Supercar Championship Series and has built an enviable record since its inception in 1998. SBR has won three championships for Ford; in 2003 and 2004 with Marcos Ambrose and in 2005 with Russell Ingall.
Brothers Ross and Jimmy Stone, New Zealanders born and bred, operate the team from the Gold Coast in Queensland. Behind the scenes a crew of 60 works around-the-clock to maintain SBR's high level of motor racing professionalism.
In 1998, in its inaugural season, Stone Brothers Racing (SBR) recorded a memorable win in the ‘Great Race’, the Bathurst 1000, with the Pirtek Falcon driven by Jason Bright and Steven Richards. Ford Falcons have only tasted victory four times at the Mount Panorama circuit in the V8 Supercars era – 1998 – with SBR and in 2006, 2007 and 2008 with cars powered by SBR Engines.
In 2003, with the highly publicised signing of ex-Holden driver Russell Ingall, SBR’s on track performance included eight wins from 13 rounds and saw Marcos Ambrose crowned V8 Supercars Champion. SBR also won the 2003 V8 Supercars Development Series with Mark Winterbottom. Mark finished on the podium in six of six rounds including four round wins and five pole positions.
A 1st and 2nd finish in the 2004 Championship Series included six round wins as well as a 1st and 2nd finish at the Sandown 500 endurance round.
The 2005 V8 Supercars Championship Series belonged to Russell Ingall. A round win at Oran Park and consistent podium finishes saw him placed at the top of the table at the close of the Bigpond Grand Finale at Phillip Island giving him his first V8 Supercar title. The SBR team again took out the V8 Supercars Championship team honors in 2005, providing just rewards for the hard-working crew.
SBR entered a new phase in 2006 after Marcos Ambrose announced that he would leave V8 Supercars to try his hand at NASCAR in America opening the door for James Courtney to join the team. Among the highlights of 2006 SBR finish 3rd and 4th at the Bathurst 1000, the race between team-mates coming down to the line, Courtney edging out Ingall for the podium by 0.005 of a second. James Courtney was named the Mike Cable Rookie of the Year.
In 2007, Stone Brothers Racing entered its 10th year on track, with Russell Ingall and James Courtney again competing for the V8 Supercar Championship. SBR expanded its racing operations to contest the Fujitsu V8 Supercar Development Series with young driver Jonathon Webb. SBR employs over 60 staff making it the largest V8 Supercar team in the business.
Continuing their deliberate, seemingly uncanny, strategy to discover emerging, young drivers with natural ability and develop them into accomplished professionals within the sport, SBR promoted rookie, Shane van Gisbergen, to drive the #9 SP Tools Racing car in 2008.
For a more detailed History and Comments on each Year from Ross Stone click a season below
1998 - “Winning the BIG One”
1999 - “A Learning Curve”
2000 - “Missed Opportunity”
2001 - “Fresh Faces, Fresh Challenges”
2002 - “Almost There”
2003 - “Finally”
2004 - “Stellar Season”
2005 - “Russell’s Turn&rdquo
2006 - “The Champ and the Rookie”
2007 - “That’s Racing”
2008 - “Rebuilding”
