Supercars could expand its grid to 26 full-time entries
This week, Supercars announced that it would launch its two shelves for Racing Entitlements (REC).
In the event of a sale, the Supercars starting field could be expanded to 26 cars. This is the first time since 2018 that the championship has had as many full-time participants.
After the open tendering process, who will be the first to acquire the two contracts for racing authorizations that are on the shelves?
A fourth car at Tickford Racing could open the door for Thomas Randle to drive full-time
Tickford Racing
Tickford Racing was in a sore spot late last year when Brad Jones bought the Racing Entitlements Contract formerly owned by Phil Munday.
With four cars driving and only three RECs in hand, the Campbellfield-based driver went to supercars to see if he could purchase one of the shelf licenses.
Not even a pitch to lease a REC with no dividends could convince Supercars to temporarily take one off the shelf. Ultimately, this forced the team to downsize to three cars.
It’s no secret that Thomas Randle is waiting in the wings to work full-time with the team, possibly as early as 2022. Although that will likely depend on Tickford Racing getting their hands on a license.
Team principal Tim Edwards would no doubt want to turn the team back into a four-car setup.
Tyler Everingham and Jayden Ojeda were Bathurst 1000 wildcards with Garry Rogers Motorsport in 2020
Garry Rogers Motorsport
With news that Supercars would launch its two contracts, rumors soon swirled that Garry Rogers, based in Dandenong, in the south, was interested in Motorsport.
On the file, the team stated that it currently has no interest in acquiring either or both licenses.
For a long time the team has had an attitude that you can never tell when it comes to competing in the championship again.
The team returned one of its RECs to supercars in late 2018, ending a period in the category that dates back to the mid-1990s.
While the team has said no at the moment, it cannot be ruled out that the team will tackle one or both RECs.
Matt Stone Racing wanted to field three cars in 2021
Matt Stone Racing
Matt Stone expressed a desire to expand Yatala operations to three cars for the 2021 season.
Then Jake Kostecki and Zane Goddard would have worked full-time alongside Garry Jacobson.
As with Tickford Racing, however, the team was unable to sign another Racing Entitlements contract.
With a Super2 program by its side and Aaron Seton in the wings, it’s not inconceivable that the team will want to get their hands on another REC in 2022.
Stone had expressed a desire to revive the SuperLite program, in which Kostecki and Goddard made an entry into the championship in 2020.
Erebus Motorsport will field two championship rookies in 2021
Erebus Motorsport
In the past, Erebus Motorsport team boss Barry Ryan had expressed the wish to expand Betty Klimenko’s team to three vehicles.
Much of that chatter concerned Will Brown’s signing, while David Reynolds, who was on a 10-year contract, and Anton De Pasquale were in their ranks.
With Reynolds and De Pasquale at Kelly Grove Racing and Dick Johnson Racing respectively, the need for expansion in 2021 was nullified.
Expansion in 2021 seems unlikely at the moment, as two rookies in Brown and Brodie Kostecki are already in the arsenal and a young group of Erebus Academy riders are not ready to take the step up.
Tim Blanchard signaled an early desire to drive two cars
Blanchard Racing Team
The name Blanchard is not technically an integral part of the championship until the first year of the Supercars competition.
Tim Blanchard ran his Racing Entitlements Contract from 2017 to 2020 at the Brad Jones Racing stable in Albury before becoming self-employed in 2021.
The newly named Blanchard Racing Team has left the CoolDrive Auto Parts headquarters in Box Hill alone.
Although the team is still in its infancy, it has expressed a desire to switch to a two-car setup.
At the moment the team is the only one-car operation on the starting grid of the Repco Supercars Championship.
Boost Mobile sponsors dual naming rights with Erebus Motorsport and Tickford Racing
Peter Adderton
Boost Mobile owner Peter Adderton didn’t worry about starting his own supercars team.
Adderton has a longstanding relationship with touring car racing in Australia that dates back to the 1990s.
The telecommunications mogul was one of the figureheads at the start of the Australia Super Touring Championship, which finally failed in the early 2000s.
Adderton has long sponsored Supercars teams and drivers, but never got so far as to build a team themselves.
With Gen3 on the horizon, Adderton remains an interested viewer. Its commitment apparently depends on further details emerging from the next generation of rules.
The Paul Morris Motorsport Holden VE Commodore owned by Russell Ingall and Paul Morris at the Bathurst 1000 2010
Paul Morris
Former team owner Paul Morris has previously expressed an interest in filling his Norwell Motorplex garages with some supercars.
Morris was the owner and driver in the late 1990s and 2000s and retired from the main championship in the early 2010s to focus on the Super2 and Super3 feeder series.
Much like Adderton, Morris is a keen observer of Gen3 regulations and believes that he would only revive the Paul Morris Motorsport name if costs were drastically reduced.
Thomas Randle and Jayden Ojeda in MW Motorsport Altimas at the Supercheap Auto Bathurst 1000 event in 2020
Super2 series teams
It’s not inconceivable that a Super2 series team or two could try to make the leap to the Supercars championship.
Of the top teams, Eggleston Motorsport is known to have shown interest in jumping.
Matt White’s team, MW Motorsport, has previously made wildcard appearances in the Supercars championship and has been a dominant force in recent years.
After all, the equipment of the Super2 series is largely identical to that of Supercars, albeit on a smaller scale. One step up is not off the table.
Interested parties must formally express their interest by close of business (5:00 p.m. CEST) on Friday, April 23rd.
