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Who'll replace departing Vodafone?

Crack Australian V8 Supercar squad Triple Eight Race Engineering might have just lost its lead sponsor Vodafone, but don't bet against it coming up with something special, reckons Andrew van Leeuwen

Andrew van Leeuwen Jun 15, 2012, 12:19 PM

Way back in 2006, an interesting rumour did the rounds in the V8 Supercar paddock.

Triple Eight Race Engineering was backed by a failing whitegoods chain called Betta Electrical, which had spent the majority of the year financially eroding away. Right before that year's Bathurst 1000, Betta finally went into administration.

Nobody was particularly worried about the future of Triple Eight (or Team Betta Electrical, as it was known at the time). It was odds-on favourite to win Bathurst (which Craig Lowndes and Jamie Whincup duly did), and Lowndes was embroiled in a heated championship battle with Rick Kelly. With fast cars and the most recognisable face in Australian motorsport at its disposal, finding a new sponsor for 2007 was going to be a doddle.

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Author Andrew van Leeuwen

Andrew van Leeuwen is Motorsport.com's Australian Editor and provides award-winning coverage of Supercars. He started his career working for Australasian Motorsport News in Melbourne, working his way into the top digital editor role before relocating to Mainz, Germany, in 2012. During his three-year stint in Europe he covered a number of series, including the DTM, while working for Autosport, before returning to Australia as part of Motorsport.com's global expansion in early 2015. Alongside his Motorsport.com commitments Andrew is one-third of the successful Below the Bonnet podcast. He lives in Perth with his wife Anne, kids Nico and Billie and chihuahua Coco.