NICK Percat’s reunion with Walkinshaw Andretti United officially has just four Supercars rounds remaining.
Once a Walkinshaw protege, Percat was welcomed back to Clayton in 2022 after seven seasons away, having established himself as a frontrunner at Brad Jones Racing.
WAU trumpeted his signature as giving itself another A-grader alongside Chaz Mostert, but for various reasons – including but not limited to qualifying struggles, reliability issues and staff turnover – the partnership has fallen well short of expectations.
The Bathurst 1000 winner finished top 10 in the championship every season from 2018-21, but could only manage 15th last year with WAU and is currently 21st.
Percat did however complete a special one-two in WAU’s last event as a Holden team (the 2022 Adelaide 500), and is coming off a fourth-place finish yesterday at The Bend.
MORE: Percat shines in well-timed Bend surge
Kiwi young gun Ryan Wood is expected to replace him next year in the #2 Mustang.
“We want to thank Nick for being a big part of our team for the past two seasons, but also his entire time with us over the journey,” said Ryan Walkinshaw.
“Of course, we both hoped to achieve more together, but with four rounds remaining this year, including the Bathurst 1000, Sandown 500 and Adelaide 500, we are all pushing to finish on a high. Everyone here wishes him all the best for the future.”
Fellow directors Michael Andretti and Zak Brown echoed those sentiments.
“It’s been great to have Nick a part of the WAU family for the last two seasons,” said Brown.
“The Adelaide 500 one-two finish was an incredible moment in the team’s history and something we won’t forget. We’ve got some big races to finish the year, and we look forward to doing everything we can to get the best results possible.”
Added Andretti: “We’d all like to wish Nick the best for his future. He’s been an important part of our team and family for the past two seasons.
“We’ve got a job to do for the remainder of the year together, and we all want to send the season off the right way.”
Percat will team up with Fabian Coulthard for the upcoming two-part endurance season.
“My time with the WAU family has come to an end and I wish we could have had the results we both wanted and expected,” said the 34-year-old.
“I have loved my time working alongside Chaz and it’s cool to say we will be lifelong friends.
“To the team, thank you for the tireless effort and hours spent trying to unlock the speed from Car #2, Adelaide 500 is something I’ll never forget.
“To the WAU fans, you have been truly amazing, the open arms you had for me rejoining was special and the endless support has been the best. Looking forward to finishing the year with a bang.”
MORE: Percat launches his own racing team
Whether Percat will be on the 2024 grid full-time or take up a top co-drive remains to be seen.
WAU is the second team today to confirm an incumbent driver’s impending exit, following Grove Racing’s David Reynolds announcement this morning.
