Supercars 2023: A look at every Supercars endurance pairing for the Sandown 500 and Bathurst 1000
The Supercars endurance season is back, kicking off with the Sandown 500 this weekend before next month’s Bathurst 1000. We take a look at every endurance pairing on the Supercars grid.
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The Supercars endurance season is back.
Co-drivers will return for the revived Sandown 500, which will again serve as a prelude for the Bathurst 1000.
The Sandown 500 endurance event was last held in 2019 and will serve as a crucial lead-in for the co-drivers, who will have had limited exposure to this year’s new Gen3 cars ahead of the Great Race at Mount Panorama in October.
So, how do the co-driver pairings stack-up this year?
There have been some big moves on the co-driver front, in particular five-time Bathurst 1000 champion Garth Tander’s switch from Triple Eight to Grove Racing.
Elsewhere, a pair of Bathurst 1000 champions has been reunited at Walkinshaw Andretti United and a Bathurst king and an international star will headline rival wildcard entries.
We run a rule over this year’s endurance pairings for the Sandown 500 and Bathurst 1000.
SUPERCARS ENDURANCE PAIRINGS
BROC FEENEY AND JAMIE WHINCUP (TRIPLE EIGHT)
The master and his apprentice. For the second year running, Feeney will join forces with his boss, seven-time Supercars champion Whincup. The pair finished fifth at Bathurst last year, but Feeney has taken his game to a new level in his sophomore Supercars season and sits third in the championship standings. Whincup has kept sharp behind the wheel making semi-regular appearances in the GT World Challenge Australia this year alongside his team principal duties for Triple Eight. Will be a strong challenger in both races.
SHANE VAN GISBERGEN AND RICHIE STANAWAY (TRIPLE EIGHT)
After winning his second Bathurst 1000 crown alongside Garth Tander last year to give Holden a fitting farewell at Mount Panorama, defending Supercars champion Shane van Gisbergen will have a new co-driver alongside him for this year’s endurance season. Fellow Kiwi Richie Stanaway will team with van Gisbergen for Sandown and Bathurst after Tander’s move to Grove Racing as a co-driver. After three years away from Supercars, Stanaway impressed when he returned in a Bathurst wildcard alongside Greg Murphy last year, finishing 11th after qualifying fourth. In his last Bathurst as a full-time driver before making the switch to NASCAR next year, van Gisbergen will be a major threat in his bid to become a three-time champion at Mount Panorama.
ANTON DE PASQUALE AND TONY D’ALBERTO (DICK JOHNSON RACING)
Consistency has been a theme for Dick Johnson Racing for its co-driver pairings again this year. De Pasquale will pair with D’Alberto for the third consecutive year in 2023. After a DNF at Bathurst in 2021, the duo bounced back with a seventh-placed finish at the mountain last year. It has been a challenging season for DJR this year, but De Pasquale and D’Alberto should be one of the leading Ford contenders.
WILL DAVISON AND ALEX DAVISON (DICK JOHNSON RACING)
Two-time Bathurst champion Will Davison will team with his brother Alex for the third straight year – and seventh year overall – at Mount Panorama in 2023. The pair will be hoping for a stronger finish than their last two years for DJR when they finished 10th and a DNF. The brothers’ best result together was fourth in 2014 when Will was at Erebus Motorsport. Including his two victories, Will has been on the podium four times in the Bathurst 1000 and is an experienced campaigner on the mountain.
JAMES COURTNEY AND ZAK BEST (TICKFORD RACING)
After his Bathurst campaign was wiped out at Mount Panorama in 2022, James Courtney will have a new co-driver for his assault on the Great Race this year. Courtney will team with Super2 young gun Zak Best, who will juggle his commitments between the feeder series and the main game at the mountain. Best holds a 66-point lead in the Super2 driver standings. Courtney’s race was over last year before he had even jumped behind the wheel after his co-driver Zane Goddard was involved in early-race carnage. The 2010 Supercars champion has four Bathurst podiums, but is yet to taste victory at Mount Panorama.
CAM WATERS AND JAMES MOFFAT (TICKFORD RACING)
Can this be the year Cam Waters finally breaks through for a Bathurst 1000 victory? Waters has finished on the podium in his past three starts at Mount Panorama – for two seconds and a third – having started on pole twice in those three years. The Tickford star will team with James Moffat for the third straight year and they will again be one of the leading Ford chances. Waters is a previous winner of the Sandown 500 in 2017.
THOMAS RANDLE AND GARRY JACOBSON (TICKFORD RACING)
After a breakthrough round at Tailem Bend, Randle’s confidence will be high heading into the Supercars endurance season. Randle broke through for his first solo podium at The Bend, then backed up with his second and third. Randle will have a new co-driver for this year’s endurance campaign, Jacobson, who lost his PremiAir seat mid-way through last season. Randle had a DNF at Bathurst last year after his co-driver for the race, Zak Best, became collateral damage in lap-one carnage on Mountain Straight.
DECLAN FRASER AND TYLER EVERINGHAM (TICKFORD RACING)
In his rookie Supercars season, Declan Fraser will team with former Super2 driver Tyler Everingham. Fraser made his Bathurst 1000 debut in a Triple Eight wildcard alongside Craig Lowndes last year, finishing eighth. Everingham has a pair of Bathurst starts already in 2020 and 2022.
NICK PERCAT AND FABIAN COULTHARD (WALKINSHAW ANDRETTI UNITED)
It hasn’t been a year to remember for Nick Percat, who sits 21st in the Supercars standings, and will depart WAU at the end of the season. But the endurance season could be a chance for Percat to find some light in a tough 2023 campaign. Percat, who famously won a Bathurst 1000 crown as a rookie in 2011 alongside Garth Tander, will be part of a strong pairing with Kiwi Fabian Coulthard this year. Coulthard joined forces with Percat’s WAU teammate Chaz Mostert at Bathurst last year, finishing runner-up.
CHAZ MOSTERT AND LEE HOLDSWORTH (WALKINSHAW ANDRETTI UNITED)
The 2021 Bathurst 1000 winning pair will be reunited this year. The duo blew away the field with their blistering pace to win WAU’s first Bathurst crown in 10 years. After his impressive co-driver form, Holdsworth returned to the grid full-time for Grove Racing last year – which was to be his final full-time season in Supercars – and finished sixth at Bathurst alongside rookie Matt Payne. Two-time Bathurst champion Mostert, meanwhile, claimed his third straight Bathurst podium when he finished second with Coulthard. Mostert, the leading Ford driver in the standings this year, and Holdsworth will be ones to watch this enduro season.
WILL BROWN AND JACK PERKINS (EREBUS MOTORSPORT)
Brown has made headlines off track this year after signing with Triple Eight as van Gisbergen’s replacement from 2024. But he remains focused on a strong finish for Erebus Motorsport. Brown has teamed with Perkins the past two years at Bathurst, finishing 20th and 10th, but the team’s form in 2023 should make them a much bigger threat this year.
BRODIE KOSTECKI AND DAVID RUSSELL (EREBUS MOTORSPORT)
The Supercars series leader has put himself in a strong position heading into the endurance rounds, holding a 137-point lead in the standings. Kostecki has had strong form at Bathurst the past two years, finishing third in 2021 and fourth last year. Kostecki will team with David Russell for a third straight year and will be one of the pairings to beat given his strong 2023 form.
MARK WINTERBOTTOM AND MICHAEL CARUSO (TEAM 18)
It’s the 10-year anniversary of Winterbottom’s first and only Bathurst win this year. The driver affectionately known as ‘Frosty’ has finished on the podium once since then – second in 2015. The Supercars veteran will team with Michael Caruso for the third straight year in 2023. The duo has finished 16th and 15th the past two years. Winterbottom is a two-time former winner of the Sandown 500.
SCOTT PYE AND WARREN LUFF (TEAM 18)
Set to depart Team 18 at the end of the season, Pye will reunite with his former WAU co-driver Warren Luff for the endurance campaign this year. Pye and Luff teamed from 2017-2019 for the Walkinshaw squad, finishing runner-up at Bathurst the first two years of their partnership. Luff has been a quiet achiever as a Supercars co-driver, collecting six podium finishes and will make this an experienced partnership.
TODD HAZELWOOD AND TIM BLANCHARD (BLANCHARD RACING TEAM)
Hazelwood will team with the boss for this year’s endurance campaign. His best Bathurst result was eighth in 2021 when he was at Brad Jones Racing. Blanchard’s best Bathurst result was ninth in 2021 when he partnered Tim Slade for BRT.
DAVID REYNOLDS AND GARTH TANDER (GROVE RACING)
This is one of the most experienced pairings on the grid, boasting six Bathurst 1000 crowns between them. After winning his fifth Bathurst title – and his second alongside Shane van Gisbergen last year – Tander made the shock decision to leave Triple Eight to join Grove Racing as a co-driver for 2023. Tander will team with 2017 Bathurst winner Reynolds, who will be hoping to improve on a tough 2023 in the enduros before he departs Grove Racing at the end of the season for Team 18. With one of the best co-drivers in the field, this will be a competitive pairing.
MATT PAYNE AND KEVIN ESTRE (GROVE RACING)
New Zealand rookie Payne will team with international Porsche star Kevin Estre. The young Kiwi finished sixth in his first Bathurst 1000 start last year alongside Holdsworth. Estre brings plenty of experience as an endurance driver, having conquered the Spa 24 Hour, Le Mans 24 Hour and the Nurburgring 24 Hour. While he is new to Sandown, he is no stranger to Mount Panorama, having competed in multiple Bathurst 12 Hour races with Porsche.
ANDRE HEIMGARTNER AND DALE WOOD (BRAD JONES RACING)
Heimgartner will team with Wood for the second straight year, hoping for better luck than their 2022 Bathurst campaign. Wood started the race for the pair, but was taken out in early-race carnage after just four laps, leading to emotional scenes in the garage. Heimgartner’s best result in the Bathurst 1000 was ninth in 2017, but he is enjoying a career-best season with BJR this year, sitting seventh in the championship.
BRYCE FULLWOOD AND DEAN FIORE (BRAD JONES RACING)
Fullwood will join forces with Fiore for the second consecutive year for the 2023 enduro season. The pair finished 9th in last year’s Bathurst 1000. But Fullwood’s best result at Mount Panorama was fifth the year before with Luff when he was at WAU.
MACAULEY JONES AND JORDAN BOYS (BRAD JONES RACING)
Jones and Boys will team up for a second straight year for their Bathurst 1000 and enduro campaign. The pair finished 13th at Mount Panorama last year. Jones has finished inside the top-10 in the great race, finishing seventh alongside Percat for BJR in 2018.
JACK SMITH AND JAXON EVANS (BRAD JONES RACING)
Smith will have Evans as his co-driver for a second consecutive year for this year’s enduros. The pair failed to finish last year’s race after suffering damage when they were caught up in the early-race carnage at Mount Panorama.
TIM SLADE AND JONATHON WEBB (PREMIAIR RACING)
Jonathan Webb makes a return as a co-driver for the first time since 2021 to team with Slade, who was 19th in last year’s Bathurst 1000 alongside Tim Blanchard at BRT. Slade’s best result at Mount Panorama was fifth in 2020 when he co-drove for triple Supercars champion Scott McLaughlin at DJR Team Penske.
JAMES GOLDING AND DYLAN O’KEEFE (PREMIAIR RACING)
Golding will have O’Keefe alongside him as a co-driver for a second consecutive year at PremiAir Racing. The pair finished 12th in the Bathurst 1000 last year. Golding’s best result at Mount Panorama is a pair of eighth-place finishes in 2018 and 2020.
JACK LE BROCQ AND JAYDEN OJEDA (MATT STONE RACING)
Enjoying a career-best year at Matt Stone Racing, Le Brocq will join forces with Jayden Ojeda for the first time this year. Le Brocq, who will join Erebus Motorsport as Brown’s replacement next year, finished 14th alongside Aaron Seton for MSR at Bathurst last year. His best result was fourth when he teamed with Waters in 2016. Ojeda teamed with Hazelwood last year, finishing 20th.
CAMERON HILL AND JAYLYN ROBOTHAM (MATT STONE RACING)
In his rookie Supercars season, Hill will team with Jaylyn Robotham, who is currently campaigning in the Super2 series, for the enduros. The Canberra driver finished 21st in his Bathurst 1000 debut last year alongside Chris Pither at PremiAir Racing.
CRAIG LOWNDES AND ZANE GODDARD (TRIPLE EIGHT) WILDCARD*
The Supercars great is back for another wildcard campaign for Triple Eight ahead of what will be his 30th appearance in the Bathurst 1000 this year. Lowndes will team with Goddard, who will be out for redemption after his part in early race carnage last year at Mount Panorama. Lowndes and Goddard will start at both the Sandown 500 and at Bathurst. Lowndes is a seven-time winner at Mount Panorama and is also a six-time winner of the Sandown 500.
JAKE KOSTECKI AND AARON LOVE (BLANCHARD RACING TEAM) WILDCARD*
Jake Kostecki returns to the Supercars grid in a wildcard for the Blanchard Racing Team, teaming with Super2 racer Aaron Love. Kostecki, cousin of Brodie, finished 17th in the Bathurst 1000 last year, alongside his brother Kurt, when he was at Tickford Racing. He has a best finish of 13th at Mount Panorama in 2021. Kostecki and Love will race their wildcard in both the Sandown 500 and Bathurst 1000.
SIMONA DE SILVESTRO AND KAI ALLEN (DICK JOHNSON RACING) WILDCARD**
The Swiss star returns to the Supercars grid to compete in a Bathurst-only wildcard for Dick Johnson Racing alongside Super2 young gun Allen. De Silvestro will headline the team’s first wildcard entry at Mount Panorama. It has been four years since the former IndyCar racer made her last appearance in Supercars. De Silvestro’s arrival to begin preparations for the wildcard was delayed after she required emergency surgery for appendicitis.
Sandown and Bathurst wildcard *
Bathurst only wildcard **
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Originally published as Supercars 2023: A look at every Supercars endurance pairing for the Sandown 500 and Bathurst 1000
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