WHINCUP LAUDS NEW-LOOK TRIPLE EIGHT PAIRING
Triple Eight boss Jamie Whincup says his new driver pairing is the most exciting on the grid.
However, he acknowledges the “risk” in attacking the team’s first championship without Shane van Gisbergen in nine years with the youngest line-up in the field.
Following triple series champion van Gisbergen’s move to the US to race in NASCAR, Triple Eight will field the most-anticipated new driver combination in Will Brown, 21, and Broc Feeney, 25.
Both are proven race winners and Supercars great Whincup is excited about Triple Eight’s new look and confident both can challenge for the championship.
“We have the most exciting driver line-up we’ve had for a long time and it feels like a fresh beginning,” he said.
“I am confident that both guys have got enough experience to be able to do the job. I wouldn’t have signed Will if I didn’t think that was the case.
“But I recognise that it is a risk. You have to take some risks along the way in any way, shape or form in business and in sport to get ahead. “Time will tell if it is a good decision or a poor one.” Feeney is entering his third full-time Supercars season, while Brown is embarking on his fourth. Triple Eight’s new look comes as its chief 2023 rival Erebus Motorsport prepares for the opening round without defending champion Brodie Kostecki. Todd Hazelwood will sub for Kostecki at the Bathurst 500, but the champion’s future with the team remains in doubt as he talks with Erebus following a breakdown in relations.
Kostecki’s absence leaves just Mark Winterbottom (2015) and James Courtney (2010) as previous champions.
Whincup refused to look at Kostecki’s absence as an “advantage” for Triple Eight.
“It is unfortunate that Brodie is not out there, we want him out there, so hopefully we can see him back out there as quickly as possible,” Whincup said. “But we’re not looking at it as an advantage to Triple Eight. “It’s an unfortunate situation. We don’t wish bad upon any of our opposition.”
Last year Brown would be leaving Erebus to join rival Triple Eight as van Gisbergen’s replacement, with the Toowoomba driver securing an early release from the final year of his Erebus deal.
“As soon as I heard from SVG that he wanted to go overseas, I created a list and Will was on the top of that list,” Whincup said. “So I went and hunted down my No.1 before I spoke to anybody else.”
Feeney confirmed he was the sport’s rising star when he finished third in the championship with Triple Eight last year in his second full-time season.
“Broc is well and truly on target, if not in front of the target,” Whincup said.