Stadium Super Trucks (SST) series winner Paul Morris has predicted that the category will return to the Supercars program at this year’s Gold Coast 600.
While not currently competing in SST, in an absence which coincides with the category’s ongoing ban from events sanctioned by the Confederation of Australian Motor Sport, Morris is known to be close to its owner, Robby Gordon.
His comments come after May’s revelation that CAMS had been in discussions with SST about lifting its licence suspension, as reported by Speedcafe.com.
“I think Robby and CAMS have mended their ways, they’re on the same page, and I think we’re close to seeing that thing back on the Supercars,” said Morris on tonight’s episode of Enforcer & The Dude.
When asked if that meant that SST could race with Supercars as soon as this year, he nominated October’s Vodafone Gold Coast 600 as its comeback event, but stressed that the appearance had not yet been confirmed.
“If I was buying tickets to the Gold Coast race, you’re probably going to see Super Trucks there,” declared Morris.
“Not confirmed; it’s crystal balling. (I) hope so.”
SST has not featured at a CAMS-sanctioned meeting since the Perth Supercars event in May 2018, when a wheel flew off a truck and hit the pedestrian bridge which crosses the main straight at Barbagallo Wanneroo Raceway.
The suspension of its licence to race at CAMS events, for which safety concerns were cited as the reason, was confirmed in the following September, and upheld by a Victorian Supreme Court judgement just over a week before SST was due to appear at the 2018 Gold Coast 600.
SST did feature at the Australian Motor Racing Series at Sydney Motorsport Park a week later, running under Australian Auto-Sport Alliance sanctioning, but has not raced in Australia since then.
CAMS CEO Eugene Arocca intimated in May this year that the local governing body and SST was set to come to an agreement regarding safety measures for the category.
“We’ve been very clear about why those reasons were (for the suspension) and I think it’s fair to say that we haven’t changed our position but we’ve just had the opportunity to sit down (with SST) and talk in more detail,” he said.
At that time, however, it was believed that SST’s Australian return would be at next year’s Superloop Adelaide 500 rather than this year’s Gold Coast 600, which takes place from October 25-27.
American-Australian Matt Brabham leads the current SST season, which is due to continue on the NASCAR Xfinity Series support bill at Road America on August 22-24.