Caruso to race Nissan NISMO colours in 2015
Michael Caruso's #10 Nissan Altima will this year race in the global motorsport colours of Nissan and NISMO in the 2015 V8 Supercars Championship.
The spectacular paint scheme mirrors the colours raced by Nissan in GT3 sportscar racing globally. It also heralds an increased commitment to V8 Supercars from Nissan.
"The 2015 season is a significant one for Nissan both on and off the race track," said Richard Emery, Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer of Nissan Motor Co. Australia.
"We have discussed internally for some time now what options we can explore with our Nissan branding moving forward, be that across all four Altimas or a holistic presence on one Altima, to increase the Nissan identity of our V8 Supercars program.
"This option gives us great on-track presence and illustrates this program's links to Nissan's global motorsport activities.
"We are excited to have Michael racing in Nissan colours this year, but it is important to note that all four cars remain equal in terms of specification and status."
Emery said that it was fitting for one of the Nissan Altima V8 Supercars to campaign in global factory Nissan NISMO colours in 2015, highlighting the global motorsport activities of Nissan by giving one of the Altimas the 'global NISMO look'.
"This year is a massive year for Nissan and NISMO both globally and in Australia. Entering the third year of our V8 Supercars program, everyone at Nissan is excited to see what rewards the progress and stability of our off-season will deliver.
"This season will also see us use our V8 Supercars platform to communicate with Nissan customers and stakeholders as well as new car buyers in general, particularly in relation to the launch of the all-new Nissan NP300 Navara."
Caruso said that he was thrilled to carry the company's global colour scheme in 2015, his third season driving for Nissan Motorsport.
"It is an honour to race under the official factory colours of Nissan and NISMO," said Caruso.
"For any motor racing driver, you always want to be aligned with a factory team, and that was the main reason why I joined Nissan Motorsport back in 2013.
"Now, to fly the flag for Nissan alongside my three team-mates is a dream come true ... we had a strong season last year, but we still have a lot to prove. I'm confident that with the changes we have put in place and the great commitment made by the team over the off-season, Nissan Motorsport will be in a strong position this season."
Today's unveiling was also the first look at the 2015-specification Nissan Altima V8 Supercar, which features improvements to its aerodynamic package this season following collaborative simulation work between the Nissan Motorsport V8 Supercars team in Australia and NISMO in Japan. The most visible change is a switch from a centre-post mounted rear wing to an end plate mounted version.
Caruso's Altima V8 Supercar will be the only Nissan Motorsport entry that will feature its final 2015 livery at this weekend's official V8 SuperTest.
The #15 Jack Daniel's Nissan Altima of Rick Kelly will be seen in its traditional black and white colours, but will run an interim livery ahead of the 2015 Jack Daniel's season launch on 18 February 2015.
The naming-rights partners for James Moffat's #99 Nissan Altima and Todd Kelly's #7 Nissan Altima will be announced after the test. As a result, both these cars will run interim liveries in testing this weekend. Moffat will run an identical Nissan NISMO livery to Caruso, while Todd Kelly will run a special Nissan PlayStation GT Academy paint scheme.
