GROVE Racing has extended its tradition of looking abroad for its Supercars co-driver seats, signing Porsche factory driver Kévin Estre for the 2023 Sandown 500 and Repco Bathurst 1000.
Albeit fresh to Supercars, the 34-year-old has extensive global experience behind him, including winning the French and German Porsche Carrera Cup crowns as well as the GTE class title in the 2018/19 World Endurance Championship.
Estre is also familiar with Mount Panorama, having made four starts in the Bathurst 12 Hour for a best result of outright fifth with Craft-Bamboo Racing in 2018.
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The Frenchman is this year racing a Hypercar for Porsche Penske Motorsport in the top tier of WEC.
“When the IMSA calendar came out and it was evident there would be a clash with Matt Campbell, it was vital that we signed the best possible endurance driver we could find,” said team owner Stephen Grove.
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“Kévin is an incredible talent and someone who’s had great success at the highest level for a long period of time.
“His raw speed was our first attraction to him, however his experience in long-distance races meant that he was the perfect fit.
“He’s used to working with some of the most accomplished racing teams in the world and we can’t wait to see what he brings to Penrite Racing.
“Having driven at Bathurst before and being a big fan of Supercars, we were confident that there would be a relatively short learning curve for someone of his stature and professionalism.”
Estre described the deal as a dream opportunity.
“Really glad to join the Penrite Racing team for this year for the enduros as a co-driver,” he said.
“It is a championship I always loved, and I remember watching races with my grandpa on the sofa being a really young kid in France.
“I can’t wait to be in Sandown and Bathurst and drive this awesome car.”
Estre completes the Grove enduro roster, five-time Bathurst 1000 winner Garth Tander having already been signed in December on a two-year deal.
The team is yet to declare driver pairings, with David Reynolds and Matt Payne its primaries.
The top six teams in pitlane have now effectively all filled their 2023 enduro seats (at least for non-wildcard entries).
Richie Stanaway and Jamie Whincup will do the honours in the main two Triple Eight Camaros.
Dick Johnson Racing has retained Tony D’Alberto and Alex Davison, while Erebus Motorsport is tipped to stick with David Russell in addition to the already confirmed Jack Perkins.
Walkinshaw Andretti United has locked in Lee Holdsworth and Fabian Coulthard, as has Tickford Racing with James Moffat, Zak Best, Tyler Everingham and Garry Jacobson.
