Nick Percat has signed a multi-year contract to drive for MSR in the Supercars Championship.
Percat will move from Walkinshaw Andretti United at season’s end to share the Matt Stone Racing garage with the recently re-signed Cameron Hill in 2024 and 2025.
The 2011 Bathurst 1000 winner takes over the #34 Chevrolet Camaro seat being vacated by Jack Le Brocq, who is off to Erebus Motorsport to replace Will Brown.
Le Brocq delivered MSR its first Championship race win earlier this year and team owner Matt Stone was targeting someone who could pick up where the Victorian will leave off.
He cited Percat’s Great Race triumph as well as his results with Brad Jones Racing as reasons to sign the 34-year-old South Australian.
“We are thrilled to have Nick joining the team on a multi-year deal,” said Stone.
“When we were looking for a driver to fill our available seat for 2024, we were looking for someone with proven race-winning experience.
“It’s exciting to sign a driver that has not only achieved race wins multiple times, but also won Bathurst and had such strong consistent championship results in his time at BJR.
“The Bathurst 1000 is a clear goal on the top of MSR’s list. After our maiden race win earlier this year in Darwin, having someone like Nick in the team next year is another big step up for the team.
“I look forward to the results that we can unlock with Nick, and together with team-mate Cameron Hill will be a strong combination over the next two seasons.”
Aside from landing a race-winning seat, Percat, the son of a third-generation Holden worker, is also back in the General Motors fold after driving a Ford Mustang at WAU this season.
“I’m really excited to be joining MSR for the 2024 and 2025 Supercars seasons,” he said.
“It’s definitely something that I’m really looking forward to; I really like the way Matt runs his team and the family feel and culture he’s got going on there.
“It only took a few minutes to realise I was keen to join the team when I met with him at the workshop and saw the team for myself.
“It’s really positive and I can’t wait, but also for me personally, it’s cool to be back aligned with the GM family. Obviously, it’s a big part of my family’s history and my love of road cars started thanks to Holden, so it’s very cool to be driving back under that banner.
“The results that MSR has achieved with the new Gen3 car have been super impressive. I can definitely see why and how they are so strong now that I’ve got to know Matt and a few guys a bit better.
“I’m looking forward to continuing that, and the team itself is in a really good position to kick some goals over the next few years.
“Hopefully I’m a big part of that and can help with a bit of experience and we can keep pushing towards the front.
“Matt’s assembled a great group of guys and girls there that can get the job done. I can’t wait to be a part of a new team and drive a new car for the upcoming seasons.”
Percat is currently 21st in the championship and finished 15th last season, his first back at Clayton.
However, as Stone referred to, he ended the year in 10th, ninth, seventh, and seventh in his latter four campaigns at BJR, on top of the Bathurst 1000 victory with the Walkinshaw Holden Racing Team in 2011.
Percat had publicly put himself on the market during the most recent event of the season, last month at The Bend, when James Courtney was the favourite to take over the Le Brocq seat.
The Blanchard Racing Team then emerged as Courtney’s most likely destination, and that remains the case, while Team 18 incumbent Scott Pye looked to be the front-runner to land at MSR.
Last week, though, Percat moved from probable enduro co-driver in 2024 to possibly remaining on the grid in a full-time capacity, and now it is known how he fits into the silly season jigsaw puzzle.
This weekend at the Sandown 500, he will share the #2 WAU Mustang with Fabian Coulthard, while MSR’s enduro squad is comprised of Le Brocq/Jayden Ojeda in the #34 Camaro and Hill/Jaylyn Robotham in Car #35.
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