Mark Duggan will make a return to full time Sports Sedan racing in 2023 and in doing so has brought an iconic look back to the sport.
Duggan will drive a freshly rebuilt Aston Martin DBR9 for Duggan Family Hotels racing in the 2023 Precision National Sports Sedan Series alongside Scott Cameron.
Commodore competitor Cameron has extensive experience driving with the likes of Craig Baird and John Bowe at Bathurst and collected a string of top 10 results in Sports Sedans last year.
The Duggan Family Racing team alongside the Commodore and Aston Martin Scott Cameron and Mark Duggan will drive at Winton.
But the experienced Duggan will stand out from the crowd with his Aston Martin being easy to spot roaring around the straights and sweeps of Winton Motor Raceway in this weekend’s season opener carrying the iconic colours of Victoria Bitter.
The green and red has hardly been seen in the Australian motorsport scene since the company stopped sponsoring Supercars at the end of the 2007 season.
But Duggan has brought it back with a striking Aston Martin that rekindles memories of the VB Challenge cars and he is excited at the prospect of taking it to the track in the Precision National Sports Sedan Series, which heads to famous Supercars circuits such as Bathurst and Gold Coast.
“We have four sponsors, but through hospitality I have been associated with Carlton United Breweries for a long time and we’re very excited to carry the VB branding,” he told AUTO ACTION.
“With Supercars rounds on the calendar, Sports Sedans is a resurgent series and racing at Bathurst has certainly helped us with sponsors etc.
“It is great to have a very iconic brand on the side of the car and with Sports Sedans being an iconic category, it is the perfect blend.”
Despite the fresh rebuild, the Aston Martin itself has plenty of pedigree in Sports Sedan racing winning the 2012 title with Kerry Baily.
For the arrival of Supercars star Andre Heimgartner, the Duggan Family Racing Team painted its Aston Martin DBR9 red last year.
The car was designed by famous Australian Formula 1 car engineer Ralph Bellamy and has also been raced by Supercars star Andre Heimgartner over the years.
Under the bonnet is a “technically brand spanking new” SB2 NASCAR based Chevrolet engine built in Australia by Peter Wallace, while it is also armed with an IndyCar style transaxle.
Having raced with his now team in the late 1990s and early 2000s Duggan has only appeared in a handful of Sports Sedan races in recent years,
However, he is excited at the prospect of feeling the adrenaline rush of racing full time again in 2023, which shapes up as a “development” campaign.
“We are all very excited for a strong season for the category that is full of great people and unique cars,” he said.
Victoria Bitter used to be a major supporter of Australian motorsport in the early 2000s. Image: Mark Horsburgh/LAT Photographic
“This year is more of a development year and in the following years we may put a more dedicated full time driver in like Andre when he has time.
“I am hoping to be in and around the top 10 at the beginning of the year because the car is more than capable, which I don’t say lightly because there are many competitive entries out there.
“This year is more about having a good year and doing some more development and being more competitive.
“I love the adrenaline that racing the car gives you.”
His Duggan Family Hotels Racing teammate, Cameron, is looking forward to the “old school” challenge of racing his Commodore with engineer Nigel Bolling.
“We have an have an old school car with no electronics and just a couple of gauges,” he said.
“But that suits Nigel, so we will just do what we can do and try our best.”
The Duggan Family Racing not only loves racing, but it loves watching it with a V8 Supercars club set up for people to enjoy a drink and some company.
The heart of that club is the Pendle Inn Hotel, where the team launched its new Precision National Sports Sedan challenger.
“We had the launch at the Pendle Inn Hotel and there were over 200 enthusiasts who all turned up, which was great,” he Duggan said.
“The hotel has its own V8 Supercars Club that goes back to 2003 and they are very excited they are on a Sports Sedan.
“We are all excited.”
The Precision National Sports Sedans Series begins at Winton this weekend with three races.
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Andrew Clarke and Auto Action’s Bruce Williams and ARG’s Barry Rogers sat down for a candid chat ahead of the SpeedSeries trip to Winton.
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