| Leaving Ford as one of the hottest men in racing to drive for his own smaller scale outfit, Britek Motorsport was always going to take guts.
The Bathurst-winning driver recently walked away from the motor racing giant in favour of making sure his own team hits the top 10.
It’s a bold move, but Jason Bright is a bold man.
Having come up through the ranks the hard way, door knocking for funds in the rural town of Victoria’s Newborough to get off the ground, the 33-year-old knows a thing or two about starting from nothing.
But from going to Calder and Sandown as a five-year-old with his race mad father, Bright quickly got the fever – and it’s never left.
“I would have liked to have got into go-karts at seven but we didn’t have the money for it back then,” Bright said.
“We still had this old go-kart which I used to roll up and down the driveway in.
“Then dad built a lawn mower motor into in it and I had my first track in the backyard and I used to spend the day going round and round in it.
“Back then being a race car driver was a dream but by 16, I had it in the back of my mind. I wanted it for sure.”
In 1992 the family bought an old Formula Ford race car and a career was born.
The experience came loaded with learning curves but the most important lesson came courtesy of his father.
“The biggest thing I value now is having done things the hard way and worked on my own cars,” he said.
“I learnt things the hard way.
“I remember having an argument with my Dad one day.
“I didn’t think I was up to the job of preparing a race car. I didn’t really know what I was doing and Dad said ‘Well we can sell it today if you want because if you’re not prepared to work on the car yourself no-one else is going to do it.’
“I was scared because we’d spent a bit of money on the car and it’s easy to make mistakes – we didn’t have the money to just throw it away.
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“It sort of forced me to learn about the car. I’m able to sympathise with mechanics now but at the same time I know what’s involved. So if I ask for something it’s not just a fickle request.”
Just rewards came three years later however with Bright winning the Australian Formula Ford Championship in 1995.
By that point Bright was preparing his car full time and had moved into a workshop with his father.
“At first I had to chase my own sponsorship. Local businesses helped me but we were working hand to mouth the whole time. Indy in 1994 was going to be my last race – we just didn’t have the money to keep going.
“It’s a prick of a sport in a lot of ways. It’s not just a matter of buying a pair of boots or a racquet and then going and joining a club - there’s so many more aspects to it.
Luckily, Bright qualified on Pole Position at that race and things started to get easier.
Overseas success and a V8SVS Supercar race in 1997 etched Bright’s name in motor racing history.
And he’s had a good run of late too. Having won the Desert 400 in Bahrain last year as well as the Sandown 500 earlier in the season, Bright is riding high but he admits he’s ready to move on.
“I’ve driven for the top teams in V8 supercars and I just feel I’ve been fortunate to win races for each of those teams but the next challenge is to win races for my own team.
“I’m ready. The priority is to make Britek successful and sustainable and then to diversify.
“It’s a pretty bold move. I haven’t seen too many guys doing the same thing.
“Everyone thinks you have to drive for a big team but my ambition is to prove that’s not necessarily so. A modest budget and good people will get you further than anything.
“I don’t mind being the underdog.”
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