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Holden Racing Team boss Adrian Burgess is set to join the Supercars Commission following a key team owners’ meeting in Townsville.
Burgess will take over the role of observer on the panel, which is charged with looking after the category’s rules, regulations and formats.
The position has been vacant since Tekno Autosports’ team manager Steve Hallam left the category in April.
Burgess beat Garry Rogers Motorsport’s Barry Rogers and Tekno Autosports’ Geoff Slater in a vote between the team owners.
The seat is only currently guaranteed until October, where Hallam’s two-year tenure was due to expire.
Although the observer can only cast a vote when one of the three permanent team representatives – Brad Jones, Tim Edwards and Todd Kelly – are absent, Burgess says he’s looking forward to taking part in Commission discussions.
An eight-year veteran of the McLaren Formula 1 team, the Englishman has been working in the Supercars Championship since joining Dick Johnson Racing in 2006.
He then made high-profile moves to Triple Eight and the HRT in 2011 and 2014 respectively.
“I’ve earned my stripes, I’ve been in the category long enough,” Burgess told Speedcafe.com of his Commission appointment.
“I’ve worked in teams with the biggest budget and teams with no budget.
“I think I’m reasonably well placed to have an understanding of both ends of the spectrum.
“It’ll be good to be a part of the business behind the scenes. I’m looking forward to it.
“We all need to make sure we’re going in the right direction for the future.”
The Townsville team owners’ summit saw Supercars management share ideas for the future of the category through to 2025.
With the automotive landscape shifting dramatically away from family sedans in recent years, the category is facing a major task to stay relevant to manufacturers and consumers.
Supercars’ Gen2 concept, which has promised to allow two-door bodies and alternative engine configurations in from 2017, has so far failed to draw any manufacturer commitment.
Burgess, whose team remains in talks with Holden over its future, says that long-term planning is critical for the sport.
“We’ve all got to start thinking about the future and the further you can plan ahead the better,” said Burgess.
“We need to be looking at all the cues outside of our direct championship and see what else is going on with the world.
“As long as we’re paying attention to that, then when we’ve got to make choices hopefully we will make the right ones.
“But we’ve got to be looking forward. We need to make sure we’re ready for what’s coming at us.”
