The Tech Play Book

Adrian Burgess and Campbell Little have won multiple championships for various teams.And now they apply the technical rulebook for Supercars. We touch base with the duo to discuss how they are trying to achieve a level-playing field with all their knowledge from working on the other side of the fence.

- Andrew Clarke

Supercars technical department has found a mojo it never knew it had with the appointments of Adrian Burgess and Campbell Little. Between the two they have enough experience to run a team and win championships, but now they have switched sides and are using that experience to deal with the technical issues that are an everyday part of motorsport. There is a respect for the department we haven’t seen previously.

Burgess is the head of motorsport and Campbell the motorsport technical manager. And only a few months into these roles they are relishing the opportunities in front of them. They have a clear mandate to get it right, and to do that they cast aside the sins of the past and act on the evidence they see and collect.

The first to join was Burgess, crossing sides after championship-winning spells at Dick Johnson Racing and Triple Eight Race Engineering, and most lately with Tekno Autosports after time at the Holden Racing Team. His background in Europe traces its way through Formula 1 with McLaren and Jordan. His appointment was rated as controversial at the time, but the logic was sound. The role, he says, is not as different from running a team.

“It is, but it sort of isn’t different; I’m just basically on the other side of the fence,” he says.

“I’ve operated in team-land for over 30 years, and now my role has changed a little bit. Not a lot in my opinion.

“Instead of running the team and looking to exploit the rulebook, or looking to do the best possible job with my car and my driver every weekend, I’m now managing the group of people responsible for technical department and operations department.