Former New Zealand A1 GP driver Jonny Reid knows all too well in motorsport that when one car door closes another opens. As Robert Tighe reports, the Kiwi is back on track looking to resurrect Dick Johnson Racing.
Jonny Reid knows better than most the highs and lows of motorsport.
The New Zealand driver looked destined for great things when he finished second in the 2007 and 2008 A1 Grand Prix championships.
A brief flirtation with the Indy Lights series in the US in 2008 ended in disappointment and since then his career has stalled somewhat.
Ironically it was a mechanical failure before the start of an Australian Carrera Cup race last year that gave Reid a foot in the door in V8 Supercars and a chance to resurrect his career.
Reid qualified his Porsche on pole for the race in Philip Island last May but on the warmup lap he noticed coolant pouring from the engine of his car.
He made it back to the pits and came to a stop outside the garage of Dick Johnson Racing (DJR).
Steven Johnson, son of the legendary Dick Johnson, came running out of the garage and poured water into Reid’s car to try to get him back on the track. Johnson’s efforts failed but when Reid introduced himself to Johnson after the race to thank him for his help, the two struck up a friendship that saw Reid sign for the iconic DJR team just a week before the first race of the V8 Supercars season in Adelaide last month.
Reid replaced Johnson in the driver’s seat at DJR, with the son of Dick taking over the general manager’s role to try to save the team his father started 33 years ago when Johnson Jr was just 6.
“In January we came within a couple of days of closing the team down,” Steven Johnson said. “Because I was driving, dad and other people in the team didn’t want to burden me with what was happening with the business. When I found out how bad things were I did what was needed to keep Dick Johnson Racing cars on the track.
“When I didn’t get paid, I knew something was wrong,” Johnson said. “It was a tough decision to give up the driver’s seat. I’m a driver at heart but I’m doing this because I want to see this team succeed. I’ve made sacrifices to make sure that happens. I’m not on a wage and I won’t pay myself until this business is back on track. I’m suffering personally but the family business is more important to me.”
DJR have gone from having four cars in the V8 championship in 2012 to two this year and, in an effort to trim overheads, Johnson has slashed staff numbers from more than 60 last year to 20. The financial problems and the uncertainty surrounding the team’s future meant Reid got confirmation of his drive with DJR too late to do any pre-season testing in the Ford Falcon.
“I got 10 laps in the car before the first practice session at Adelaide,” Reid said.
“It was bucketing with rain and we had time to make sure the wheels would stay on, the brakes were working and the steering wheel turned left and right. That was about the extent of the testing we did.” The lack of testing showed at Adelaide with Reid failing to finish both races.
He’s hoping for a better showing at Tasmania this weekend and at the ITM 400 Auckland at Pukekohe Park next weekend.
“It’s been a challenging start and a character-building exercise,” Reid said. “The results in Adelaide were disastrous but I hope by the time we get to Pukekohe we’ll have a better handle on the car. We’re testing in the public eye and I’m looking forward to getting a few more races under my belt and getting behind the wheel of a much more driveable car at Pukekohe.”
Reid, who turns 30 this year, was working as a sales manager for an Auckland property company before he got the call from Johnson offering him a drive in the V8s. Reid was just starting to give up hope of making the breakthrough to the big time in Australia.
“Even after two strong seasons in the Carrera Cup I was bashing my head against a brick wall, and then Steve and DJR came along and it’s all come together for me,” he said.
Reid plans to move to Australia later this year with his wife and their 6-month-old daughter and he’s hopeful of carving out a successful career in V8s.
“If I wasn’t here to win Bathurst and a V8 Supercars Championship then I shouldn’t be in the car,” he said. “It might take a bit of time to get comfortable with the car but once that happens, we’ll show people what we can do.
“I’m not fazed by what car I’m driving; I just want to win.”
