In its debut season in the Champ Car World Series, the Aussie Vineyards-backed Team Australia has been making progressive improvements with every round.

Lead driver Alex Tagliani, from Canada, has already secured a podium finish for the first full-time Aussie outfit in the series, in Monterrey, Mexico in round two. While Gold Coast rookie Marcus Marshall achieved his first-ever top-10 finish in Edmonton, Canada in round seven.

Currently after eight rounds, Tagliani sits in eighth position but only two points from fifth in a tight battle for those positions. Marshall, 26, has risen to 16th out of the 24 drivers that have entered the Champ Car World Series this year.

VISA is the latest of a list of major corporate partners to join Team Australia, which was created at the beginning of this year by Australian businessmen Craig Gore and John Fish and Indianapolis racing identity Derrick Walker.Team Australia also has great support from Aussie Vineyards, WPS Financial Services, Qantas and the R.M Williams clothing company.

The VISA announcement, which has been signed with VISA Australia, is the beginning of a major partnership with the Team Australia organisation which will incorporate six different categories, racing in eight different countries on four different continents next year.

The total program will be exposed to a live audience of 10 million fans, a TV viewing audience of more than 1.4 billion and produce a minimum of between five and six hours of branded viewing.

The full program, including cars and drivers, is expected to take a total investment of almost $US20 million and will be officially launched in September. Part of that Launch will be Team Australia’s campaign of two cars in next year’s new-look Champ Car Atlantic Series as part of its growing development program.


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