WHINCUP BULLISH: SUPERCARS LEGEND HINTS AT BUY IN FOR TRIPLE EIGHT TEAM
Gold Coast Supercars great open to buying-in to Triple Eight juggernaut
HOLDEN Supercars spearhead Jamie Whincup has given the greatest indication yet about his life after racing.
No driver in history has racked up more Supercars wins than Whincup – who currently shares the record tally of 105 with teammate Craig Lowndes – and he is again vying for a seventh series title this season.
But the 34-year-old Gold Coaster has openly spoke of his desire to retire before becoming a less competitive veteran of the field blocking the pathway of a rising star.
Whincup is under contract at the Red Bull Holden Racing Team, meaning he will drive until at least the end of 2018.
Earlier this year he disclosed he is considering a future transition to team ownership.
Now Whincup has revealed to the Bulletin that possible next phase of his life would preferably happen through a buy-in to the Triple Eight juggernaut he has been employed by since 2006, rather than launching his
own start-up outfit like brothers Rick and Todd Kelly.
“Never say never but all I’ll say is I have got a great family at Red Bull Holden Racing Team and it would be hard to depart from them,” Whincup
hinted. “I won’t be driving a car forever.
“I love motorsport more than anything.
“I’ve been heavily involved with it since I was seven years old so I can see myself being involved until I am 70 years old and certainly team ownership would be the next stepping stone after I hang the helmet up.”
Whincup’s potential transition comes with some words of wisdom from the Kelly brothers, with Todd warning the ownership game could be a wake-up call – though adding passion is a key ingredient, which Whincup clearly has in spades.
“It’s absolute opposite extremes of motorsport,” Todd said.
“Like you don’t really get it much easier being a driver, you don’t have to worry about anything other than your job and all the dramas that go on behind the scenes within a team, really the drivers are sheltered from that in order for them to perform at their best.
“The best people to be involved in team ownership are ones who have been involved in it their whole careers.”
Rick noted he had “learnt more out of the ownership stuff than anything else in the last 10 years”. Kelly Racing, now under the banner of Nissan Motorsport, started in 2009.