By Matthew Agius
Shane van Gisbergen has been confirmed as Russell Ingall's replacement in Stone Brothers Racing's second car for the 2008 V8 Supercar Championship Series.
The New Zealand-born driver makes the switch to the Yatala-based Ford operation after completing the final half of the 2007 season at Team Kiwi Racing.
“This drive comes with a big responsibility; at a fairly young age I'm in a great team with a very talented team mate in James Courtne,” said Van Gisbergen.
“It's a great position for me to be in and I need to make the most of it.
“Ross and Jimmy have told me what they want me to achieve this year and I have set some higher goals for myself.
“We want to be genuine top ten contenders towards the end of the year and we can do that if we work hard and keep on learning.”
Van Gisbergen was favoured to secure the drive after post-season testing between SBR's short-listed candidates. It is understood that he outperformed ex-SBR driver David Besnard and former Autobarn Race Team pilot Steve Owen for the drive.
Team co-owner, Ross Stone, is anticipating a productive debut season with the eighteen year-old.
“Jimmy (Stone) and I have watched Shane's career with interest for a number of years and we know he has talent; he proved that last year in gaining Championship points in five of the seven rounds he competed in,” he said.
“SBR has always leaned towards taking on younger drivers and developing new talent and this move is a continuation of that tradition.
“We've set some challenging but realistic goals for Shane and he has a good head on his shoulders and has taken that on board.
“We're realistic; we know we will go through a learning and development phase with Shane. We've done it before with the likes of Marcos Ambrose and Jason Bright and with support and direction from the team, Shane and SBR will make it to the top step of the podium in years to come.”
