Lowndes to sign with Audi

Craig Lowndes is set to be the new face of Audi Down Under. Though the German prestige brand last week vehemently denied any plans to join the V8 Supercar ranks, it has confirmed it will soon sign one of the series' top stars.

Though Lowndes and Audi are still to finalise contracts, the Team Vodaphone Holden driver will soon sign on as one of the brand's local ambassadors. He joins a number of sporting and television celebrities including leading chef Matt Moran and newsreader, Sandra Sully.

Audi Australia boss, Uwe Hagen, told motoring.com.au last night at the local launch of the new A6 in Queenstown (NZ), that Lowndes was an ideal choice for the role

"As a brand, you need faces, you need heroes… At Bathurst [12hr] we were very impressed with Craig. We will be pleased to make the official announcement soon."

Lowndes and fellow V8 stalwart Warren Luff drove an Audi Sport R8 LMS at the low-key Bathurst enduro in February year. It was part of a two-car effort by the brand that largely went unheralded in general media.

More recently Lowndes and Luff journeyed to Germany to drive one of the lead-up events to the Nurburgring 24 hour. In both cases the cars were run by Joest Motorsport, the same team that campaigns Audi's LMP1 sportscars at Le Mans

Thus it's little surprise it's the French 24-hour race where the local Audi boss would like to see the Aussie driver gain a start.

"If we can achieve an Australian driver [in an Audi] at Le Mans that would be fantastic," Hagen enthused. "Unfortunately that is not my decision, that decision is an Audi Sport decision… "

According to Hagen and Audi insiders it would "very, very unlikely" that Lowndes would score a start in the LMP1 class any time soon. A drive in the burgeoning GT classes in an R8 would be more likely, they suggest.

"The team was very impressed with Craig and Warren when they came to Australia. We sent them to Germany to get to know the team and the cars better" Hagen explained.

Hagen says that Bathurst is again on the cards for the brand. He says the 12-hour race worked for his customers and dealers.

"Definitely if we can place the race as part of [the factory's] race calendar we will go back to Bathurst again – it's good for the brand. We need to get the cars [but]… With the knowledge [gained this year] we can involve our network better and make it work for our customers."

It's was Lowndes interaction with R8 owners during this year's Bathurst event that 'sold' the Audi boss on his suitability.

"We need to please our customers. He [Lowdnes] was coming in after every driving session and reporting to our customers. The way he was talking with them [they reacted very well]; really easy to understand; very approachable," Hagen explained.

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