AS THE midway point of 2022 approaches, the driver market for next year’s Repco Supercars Championship grid is starting to ramp up.
The affectionately dubbed ‘silly season’ is the focus of this week’s Castrol Motorsport News Podcast, which lays out the current state of play and sets the scene for the months ahead.
It’s going to be a busy back half of the year too as teams build and test their new Gen3 Ford Mustangs and Chevrolet Camaros.
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Undoubtedly the biggest talking point of the driver market at the moment is who will drive the most famous car on the grid, Dick Johnson Racing’s #17 Shell Ford.
Out-of-contract Will Davison has performed strongly this year, currently fourth in the championship after snapping a long win drought, making a strong case to retain the seat.
However, DJR is believed to have also shown interest in Will Brown, who is in his second season as a main game driver with Erebus Motorsport.
Elsewhere, the future of Davison’s fellow veterans Mark Winterbottom (Team 18), James Courtney (Tickford Racing) and Lee Holdsworth (Grove Racing) are also in the spotlight.
Winterbottom and Holdsworth are both out-of-contract, while Courtney was announced on a two-year deal but could still come under pressure to retain his drive.
Young guns pushing for promotion into the main game include Kiwi Matt Payne, who will almost certainly step up with Grove Racing, Tickford junior Zak Best and the sidelined Zane Goddard.
The dark horse of the silly season may well be PremiAir Racing, which is currently in its first season but has ambitious plans for the future and recently tested a group of young drivers.
Listen below to the Castrol Motorsport News Podcast for more discussion on the Supercars silly season, plus the latest racing news headlines from Australia and around the world.
The podcast can also be found on Apple, Spotify, Google, Amazon Music and iHeartRadio.
