#99 David Thexton (G.O.A.T.) 2003 - [Story in Desc]

About this paint

So, this livery deserves some context. Because it’s not just about the livery. It’s the story behind the livery. And the man who donned it back in 2003. David Thexton made his millions selling carbonated drinks to folk around Australasia. Coca-Cola were impressed at Mr. Thexton’s ability to sell flavoured acid and duly bought his company. Thus making him millions, upon the millions he already had. At the age of 45, he had enough to retire, put his feet up and ne’er worry about the trials and tribulations of life ever again. But of course, Mr. Thexton wasn’t interested in such a path. He wanted to achieve his lifelong dream of being a V8 Supercar driver. He reasoned “I can do that”, without ever questioning whether he “should do that”. Heading into 2003, Sir Speedy Thexton bought a bunch of assets from Paragon Motorsport, which included transporters, a bunch of spares, nine mechanics and an AU Ford Falcon – which despite being a visual eyesore even to the blind, was still relatively handy in the hands of previous driver, Cameron McLean. He also moved from his native New Zealand to the sunny shores of the Gold Coast – the Beverly Hills of every New Zealander not rich, successful or smart enough to move to the real Beverly Hills. To his credit, Thexton DID have some success in his homeland, driving in national rally championships and even winning a title or two. He was aware of what a steering wheel was AND what it did. But according to him, his first race on an actual race track would take place in V8 Supercars – a championship that has chewed up and spat out drivers who had won in everything there is to win; including Formula 1…and so, here comes a semi-retired businessman with a dream…what could possibly go wrong? Thexton quickly proved his ability on the race track by failing to qualify for the first two rounds of the 2003 season, at Adelaide and Phillip Island. Onlookers observed that perhaps he was out of his depth…or merely biding his time. On the plus side, it was easy to spot him. A plain white car with his name stickered everywhere, just to remind everyone of who was behind the wheel…or maybe he just liked Times New Roman? Anyway, that the third round at Eastern Creek would be where he would come alive. And he would. He stunned the paddock by qualifying for the event, being merely a second off…of the next slowest car. All-in-all, he was barely under 5 seconds slower than the front runners and would finish four laps down in the race. But that didn’t stop this man battling. Not qualifying again for the next round however WOULD stop him from racing. Given he was over 3 seconds a lap slower than the next slowest car, could you blame the powers-that-be from stopping this man from slaying the grid come Sunday? He took a break from the next round in Barbagallo, concentrating his efforts toward Darwin. He used the time wisely, turned up on Friday for qualifying, rolled up his sleeves…and failed to qualify again. It appeared that for all intents and purposes, Sir Speedy David Theckton was not cut out for this gig? Well, the next round in Queensland proved that he was. He qualified for the race…barely. Intensive testing at the circuit may have helped, but he was in for the race. That’s what mattered. Toward the end of the race, he was spun out. A disaster, considering he was four laps down, and was certain to rein in the leaders within those two laps remaining. He was THAT kind of driver. He was also a man of dignity. At the next round, he forfeited his entry for the safety of his competitors. Sources indicate that it was due to a dangerous lack of speed. But as we’ve seen thus far, he has never been found wanting for it. Heading into the endurance events, he was forced to take on a co-driver. Sure, he’d probably had been able to undertake the 6+ hour event solo, but in the interest of fairness to his competitors, he had to take on a bag carrier. For the prestigious Bathurst 1000, he qualified…once again, barely. Making the 107% cut by just 0.18 of a second. They finished the 161-lap race in 16th place…and eight laps down. He only qualified in one more race that season – his home race in New Zealand. He bought a new car for 2004 and still tried to make a run of a V8 Supercars career…but after three rounds, he pulled the pin. Never to race in the category again. How to sum up his career in V8 Supercars? Well…could he drive? Not very well. Could he pull off an audacious pass? No, not really. Was he a diamond in the rough? Absolutely not. But boy oh boy, what this man lacked in virtually everything it took to be a successful V8 Supercar driver, he more than made up for in guile and determination. He became a cult legend, and rightly so. Even today, they speak of his name with but a whisper. For it is believed that saying his name out loud may bring seven minutes of bad luck – or in other words, a call from his business consultancy firm. That’s the reason behind making this livery. With many of the other liveries on Trading Paints, you can pretend to be a factory driver. An historic figure. Or even your modern-day hero. But with this livery, you are donning a legend – the legend of Sir Speedy David Thexton.

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