August 12, 2011
Daniel teams up with BRD, Bosch for his racing return
Daniel's last appearance with the factory Spectrum team was in the final round of the 2008 Australian Formula Ford Championship
at the now-defunct Oran Park Raceway. He won the race and set a lap record that will stand forever.
After almost a year out of the cockpit, Daniel Erickson will return to his car racing 'roots' when he contests the fourth round of the Australian Formula Ford Championship at Queensland Raceway on August 19-21.
Daniel will drive the Bosch Batteries Spectrum 012 for Borland Racing Developments, the team that nurtured the young Sydneysider's career between go-karts and 'wings and slicks' openwheelers. He drove BRD-built Spectrums to successive Rookie of the Year titles in the NSW and Australian Formula Ford Championships in 2007-08, and was the highest placed British Formula Ford debutant in the 2009 MSA Formula Ford Championship.
His last race meeting was in September 2010, when he won the final race of the American F2000 Championship Series at Mid-Ohio to clinch the Rookie of the Year title and third overall in the series, despite missing four of the 14 rounds.
Daniel, a former CAMS and AMSF Rising Star, will take over the car previously driven in the AFFC by Jesse Fenech. The vacancy occurred when Fenech lost a secondary sponsor, preventing him from completing the season.
Although Daniel is happy about racing again, he has no illusions about the task ahead. "I'm glad to be getting back into a racing car, especially the Bosch Batteries Spectrum because Borland Racing Developments and Bosch are great supporters of Australian junior development motor racing," he said.
"But challenging the frontrunners at Queensland Raceway won't be easy. It's been nearly a year since my last F2000 race, and close to two years since I last competed in Formula Ford, so it will take time to get used to racing a car with treaded tyres and no downforce again.
"The competition in the Australian Formula Ford Championship is always tough - no-one will do me any favours just because I haven't been racing this year! All I can do is my best, and try to put the Bosch Batteries Spectrum as close to the front as possible."
BRD's Paul Zsidy had mixed emotions about the mid-season driver change. "We're very disappointed for Jesse Fenech," he said. "Jesse has done a terrific job in this year's Australian Formula Ford Championship, and he was the leading rookie when he had to withdraw purely for financial reasons.
"But we have to deliver to our commercial agreements, and we're delighted to welcome Daniel Erickson back to our team."
Follow Daniel's progress at Queensland Raceway at Natsoft Race Results.
MORE INFORMATION
Borland Racing Developments website
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