Red Bull Ampol Racing have unveiled their stunning Indigenous livery for the upcoming Darwin Triple Crown, designed by the amazingly talented Brock Compton; a proud Warumungu man, a student of Brisbane’s Ambrose Treacy College, and a member of the school’s Clontarf Academy.
The Clontarf Foundation has been a longstanding community partner of the team’s co-naming right’s partner, Ampol, and operates to improve the education, life skills, self-esteem, and employment prospects of young Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander men through academies in schools across Australia.
Artist Brock Compton, age 17 and ironically named after Australian motorsport icon Peter Brock, is completing his year 12 studies at Ambrose Tracey College, and is completing his apprenticeship as a carpenter.
The artwork, aptly named ‘The Spirit of the Driver,’ was created to describe the life of a Red Bull Ampol Racing driver. The unique elements of the artwork symbolise the driver’s journey into the competitive sport of Supercars, their challenges and difficulties faced throughout their journey, and their achievements and supporters. A full story of the artwork can be found here.
Red Bull Ampol Racing, in conjunction with Ampol, will also sell a limited-edition collection of Darwin Triple Crown merchandise which features Compton’s artwork, with a percentage of sales from every item sold being donated to the Clontarf Foundation. The team will also auction both Shane van Gisbergen and Broc Feeney’s race suits from the event, with all proceeds being donated to Clontarf.
The special livery will be emblazoned across both the #88 and #97 Chevrolet Camaros. On-track action from the Darwin Triple Crown will begin on Friday, 16 June.
Broc Feeney – Car #88
“I love the artwork on the car, it looks awesome! I always like change; the matte, the white, it’s come together well – it looks pretty damn cool.
“I just remember last year how special it was showing the kids through the design on the car. You remind yourself how cool it is for those guys to come in and experience what’s normal for us. I’m looking forward to having them join us up in Darwin for the race weekend.
“The student who has designed this year’s artwork is also named Brock so that’s a cool coincidence. The story behind the artwork which he’s created is pretty special – hearing him and the other students talk through the artwork was really interesting.”
Shane van Gisbergen – Car #97
“It’s a great thing what Ampol and the Clontarf Foundation do for these young kids and then to give them the opportunity to design a livery is a pretty incredible thing.
“To hear from the students about the story of the artwork, really helped me to get a better understanding of their story – there was a lot more behind it than I initially thought. Learning what all the elements represent was really cool to get a full understanding of what it all means as a whole. There is a lot more to the story than it looks like, but once you understand it, it’s pretty cool.
“The students are joining us up in Darwin which will be great. We’ll take them into the garage, and they’ll come to the race, and get to hear the cars live. Having them there to see it, breathe it, hear it and be a part of what they’ve created is going to be cool.”
Jamie Whincup – Team Principal
“What an incredible design Brock (Compton) and his fellow Clontarf Academy school mates have put together for our Red Bull Ampol Racing cars – I can honestly say when I saw it for the first time I was truly blown away. I’m so thankful that all our major partners, led by Ampol, were forthcoming by letting us represent their brands through this amazingly unique Indigenous livery.”
“To have the Clontarf students travel to Darwin with the team, many of them not having been on a plane before, is really humbling. I commend Ampol for making this happen and congratulate them on their continued partnership with the Clontarf Foundation. I can’t wait to give these kids an unforgettable experience at the Darwin Triple Crown.
“Finally, I want to acknowledge the guys and girls back at Triple Eight for their hard work putting three spectacular cars together. It certainly isn’t an easy task to prepare and re-wrap three cars and their respective spare panels in a short period of time following our mid-season test day, but in typical Triple Eight style, they nailed the brief.”
Brock Compton – Artist, Student of Ambrose Treacy College’s Clontarf Academy
“Having the team reveal the cars to us was really special. Seeing all of the boys [Clontarf Academy classmates] smiling, cheering and clapping when they saw the cars for the first time made me feel amazing. I’m really proud of how they turned out.
“The design is represented nicely on the car and the team have done an amazing job applying the decals to the cars – I’m really proud to see it represented this way.
“Meeting Broc and Shane for the first time was really cool. They were both easy-going to talk to and really chilled people – they just wanted to talk about regular life things with me which was really appreciative.
“I’m so keen for Darwin, but the most exciting thing is taking the rest of my classmates with me. Not only going to the Supercars for the first time is a big thing for them, but many of them have never been on a plane, so I can’t wait for them to experience everything.
They’re all so excited to see some car racing and hopefully the drivers can get a win for them.
“It’s such an amazing opportunity for us and we really appreciate everything that Ampol and the wider Red Bull Ampol Racing team have done for us.”
Jenny O’Regan – Chief Brand Officer, Ampol Australia
“It is truly special to once again see our partnerships with Clontarf and Red Bull Ampol Racing connect in the form of this beautiful Indigenous livery ahead of the upcoming Darwin Triple Crown.
“Our relationship with Clontarf is longstanding and plays a crucial role in Ampol driving positive change in the communities in which we operate. I am pleased that Clontarf will be represented across the entire weekend with the presence of livery designer Brock Compton and his peers from Brisbane’s Ambrose Treacy College Academy.
“Brock’s outstanding ‘Spirit of the Driver’ design couldn’t be more apt as it personifies the ongoing journey and successes of Shane and Broc, and the manner that they continue to proudly represent Red Bull Ampol Racing.”
