THE combination between Richie Stanaway and Grove Racing has officially begun, with the Repco Bathurst 1000 winner turning his first laps in a Gen3 Penrite Mustang today.
Stanaway will contest the full 2024 Repco Supercars Championship with the Ford squad, replacing Team 18-bound David Reynolds, who on Sunday delivered a long-awaited victory.
With his Triple Eight co-driving duties complete, Stanaway has scored the opportunity to familiarise himself with his future team at a Queensland Raceway ride day.
Stanaway, Reynolds, Matt Payne and Garth Tander are sharing the laps between the #19 and #26 Mustangs.
“Richie is here today, helping us out for our ride day,” team principal David Cauchi told V8 Sleuth.
“It’s a really hot day here so it’s good to have Garth and Richie here so we can sub through the drivers and keep them fresh for the day.
“It’s a great opportunity, great to have him as part of our team.”
While the cars are not running in performance trim, the outing still is something of an eye-in for Stanaway, who’s set to have Alistair McVean as his 2024 race engineer.
“The car is in ride day trim so it’s a fair way away from what it will be at a race weekend, but some extra laps is always nice,” said Cauchi.
The Grove squad, which is expected to retain Penrite backing despite Reynolds’ departure, is on a high after its Gold Coast 500 breakthrough.
“The team feel like race winners,” said Cauchi.
“That’s something that is not easy to achieve, so the feeling in the team is amazing.
“All of the boys and girls have worked incredibly hard for a long time now, so to get that first race win, it feels incredible and I’m so proud of everything we have been able to achieve so far.
“Now we have to keep up that momentum onto Adelaide and into 2024.”
Four other Victorian teams have taken the opportunity to service Queensland-based fans and partners with QR rides today, namely Tickford Racing, Walkinshaw Andretti United, Erebus Motorsport and Team 18.
