JUKE-R MAKES UK DEBUT AS OFFICIAL SAFETY CAR

The Juke-R in action at Rockingham last Sunday.

Following the Juke-R’s global debut in Dubai earlier this year, the world's fastest ‘crossover’ made its first appearance at the BRSCC’s Rockingham meeting last Sunday, as the official safety car for the 2012 Avon Tyres British GT Championship and the Cooper Tires British F3 International Series.

Created in the UK, Juke-R has been developed by Nissan and built by leading motorsports outfit RML, with advice from Nissan Technical Centre Europe (NTC-E). The innovative Juke-R crossover will also be the safety car for theBrands Hatch (23 & 24 June), Silverstone (8 & 9 September) and Donington (29 & 30 September) rounds of the British GT/F3 package.

Nissan Motor (GB) Marketing Director Steve McLennan said: “The Juke-R has enjoyed a lot of attention since its conception. Having made its debut as the official pace car for the 2012 Dubai 24 Hours, the introduction of the Juke-R as the safety car for the British GT and F3 Championships delivers an exciting new chapter for the world’s fastest crossover. We are sure it will become a talking point for the thousands of fans that attend each round."

The BRSCC, who arrange the operations of the safety car in the British GT & F3 championships, has appointed John Quartermaine to drive the Juke-R. John has many years of racing experience under his belt and has competed in several different championships over the years, including the Porsche Carrera Cup GB and the Volkswagen Racing Cup.

Bernard Cottrell, BRSCC Chairman, who is also the Race Director for both Championships, said: "We were delighted to confirm this exciting safety car partnership with Nissan. It certainly added to the occasion that such a unique model took on the role of the safety car. The Juke-R’s high performance capabilities make this an ideal car to take on this responsibility."

The supercar crossover concept combines the power and handling of the legendary GT-R with the bold design of the Juke. Juke-R's 485bhp 3.8-litre V6 twin turbo engine propels the car from a standing start to 60mph in just 3.7 seconds, before continuing on to a top speed of 160 mph. Nissan has recently announced that the Juke-R will be made available to buy in a very limited run on a build-to-order basis.

2011 British GT Academy winner Jann Mardenborough and the GT Academy Team RJN were also in action at Rockingham, competing in the British GT Championship. Having qualified in ninth position, Alex Buncombe drove the Nissan GT-R Nismo GT3 brilliantly up to first position. Ironically, a race incident led to the deployment of the Juke-R safety car and they lost their advantage of a 14-second lead. The team eventually finished the race in a creditable fifth position.