Ford Performance Racing is eager to debut its expanded four-car line-up at the season-opening Clipsal 500 in Adelaide. Returning favourites Mark Winterbottom and Will Davison suit up in the colours of Pepsi Max, while 2012's breakout star David Reynolds is also back at the wheel of the No. 55 The Bottle-O FPR Ford. The trio is joined by Alex Davison who will drive the newly-added No. 18 entry for Team JELD-WEN. FPR returns to Adelaide as the defending event champions after Will Davison led home Winterbottom in last year's Sunday race.

DRIVERS' VIEW

Mark Winterbottom -- No. 5 Pepsi Max Crew FPR Ford:
"It is an exciting new era but with excitement comes the anticipation of not knowing how we will perform. Everything has gone smoothly but you still have nerves on the eve of the first race with a new car. Working with [new engineer] James Small has been fantastic, though the whole team is working towards one goal and with a stable engineering team it is the perfect scenario. It will also be interesting to see where the allegiance of the fans lies with the addition of two new brands. We are holding up the blue oval end so that brings pressure but we know our fans are loyal and give us great support."

Will Davison -- No. 6 Pepsi Max Crew FPR Ford:
"We are all very anxious and excited to get the season started. We all start the new era out of our comfort zones with a technical package we don't know as well as the previous one but that just adds to the excitement and the challenge. We've got a big program ahead of us this weekend and team-work will be important but everyone at FPR works so well together so that will help us. We've all done a lot of work since the Eastern Creek test and we are very well-prepared."

David Reynolds -- No. 55 The Bottle-O FPR Ford:
"I'm very much looking forward to a brilliant year. I've had a really good off-season and have trained well and I feel really good. Testing has been okay and while we'd all like to do more miles, we did a lot last year so we are probably better off than most of the other teams. I'm looking forward to having a strong start to the season in Adelaide which also marks an exciting new era."

Alex Davison -- No. 18 JELD-WEN FPR Ford:
"The start of the season has really rushed up and the team has done a great job to be so well prepared considering the massive task of building new cars. Last year was spent on the sidelines and I've been chomping at the bit to get back into V8 Supercars full-time so I am very excited to be back in the car and hitting the track at Clipsal as part of Team JELD-WEN. Charlie's done a great job to pull it all together so quickly so I can't wait to get started."

Tim Edwards -- FPR Team Principal:
"I think everyone agrees it has been a mammoth effort to get to Clipsal this year but it is a relief to finally start racing as that is what we've all been working towards. Our expanded four-car line-up is working well and while the true development race starts this weekend, we have a very good foundation and we are optimistic we can start the season on a high. We are the defending event champions and to repeat last year's result would be just reward for the efforts of the whole team."

EVENT NAME: Clipsal 500
DATE: 28 February – 3 March
LOCATION: Adelaide, South Australia
EVENT NUMBER: 1 of 14
FORMAT: Friday -- 4 x 30-minute practice, 1 x 20-min qualifying, 1 x Top-10 Shootout; Saturday -- 1 x 20-min warm-up, 1 x 78-lap race; Sunday -- 1 x 20-min warm-up, 1 x 78-lap race

CIRCUIT: Adelaide Parklands
LENGTH: 3.22-kilometres
DESCRIPTION: Most of the 3.22km circuit uses the former Australian Formula One Grand Prix street circuit designed in conjunction with former F1 World Champion, Keke Rosberg. Renowned as the best street circuit in the world after its 11 year tenure as the home of the Grand Prix, the fast layout leaves absolutely no room for errors and its concrete barriers have often provided a stark reminder to V8 Supercar drivers of just how hard it can bite if mistakes are made. The event is one of the biggest domestic sporting events in the country.
TRACK RECORD: 1:28.38 -- Craig Lowndes, 2011
FPR BEST RESULT: 1st -- Will Davison, 2012