BATHURST 1000 winner Jonathon Webb will reunite with the team he once owned in a shock twist to the Supercars endurance season.
Webb has largely been absent from the Supercars scene since selling Team Sydney/Tekno Autosports to Peter Xiberras, who rebranded the operation PremiAir Racing.
There has been a general desire to disassociate PremiAir from Tekno, which was a force in the mid-2010s before fading into backmarker status.
However, a favour extended by Xiberras to allow Webb a taste of a Gen3 Supercar last month at Queensland Raceway has blossomed into more.
There, PremiAir ran Webb, Kurt Kostecki and Matt Chahda in addition to regulars Tim Slade and James Golding, and it’s understood that Webb seriously impressed with the pace he displayed.
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So, when the team lost patience with the continued lack of certainty over Joey Mawson’s eligibility to make his Supercars debut, it turned to Webb to partner Slade at the Sandown 500 and Bathurst 1000. Golding will be joined by Dylan O’Keeffe.
“I was thankful for the opportunity to drive a PremiAir Supercar with the Nulon Racing team at their Queensland Raceway test day in June,” said Webb, whose resume includes four main game race wins, a Bathurst 12 Hour victory, and the 2009 Super2 title.
“When the opportunity presented to join Tim for the enduros, I jumped at the chance.
“It’s an honour, and I look forward to contributing my best efforts to assist Tim and the team with their championship.
“I have full confidence in Tim and the team’s ability for success at both Sandown and Bathurst.
“I’m sincerely grateful that Peter Xiberras and Tim Slade have granted me this opportunity.”
Slade, who has long raced against Webb, welcomed the 39-year-old’s signing.
“I’m looking forward to pairing up with Jono for this year’s enduros. Jono obviously has a wealth of experience in Supercars and has won races both as a solo driver and co-driver.” Slade said.
“He did his first laps in a Gen3 car at our last test day and felt pretty comfortable straight up which was good, plus he’ll get the opportunity to get further acquainted with the car at our Sydney ride day and pre-enduro test day.
“I think it’s great we have gone back to the traditional endurance race format with the return of the Sandown 500, it makes for a great precursor to Bathurst and I’m sure eases the nerves a little for co drivers before The Great Race!”
Xiberras added: “Jono showed a lot of speed in his time at the wheel during our QR test day and he has proven, race-winning experience as both a co-driver and a solo driver.
“We are confident he will be the perfect co-driver for Tim at Sandown and Bathurst this year and we are looking forward to seeing what they can achieve together at these prestigious events.”
The only full-time car without a confirmed 2023 co-driver is the Blanchard Racing Team’s #3 CoolDrive Mustang of Todd Hazelwood.
