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Supercars driver Nick Percat has been enlisted to judge a new motorsport talent contest in Western Australia.
The Brad Jones Racing driver will oversee the new Arise Racing Driver Search which will offer up a fully-funded drive in next year’s WA Formula 1000 Championship to the winner and subsidised drives to the second and third placed participants.
The Arise Racing Driver Search will begin on July 22 and contested over three rounds, the first of which will see contestants spend 20 laps in one of the team’s Radical SR3 RS racing cars alongside a judge.
The best 15 drivers, selected through a judging criteria that includes driver awareness, approach, ability to take on feedback, technique, car control, demeanour, speed and consistency, smoothness, and media savviness, will then advance to Round 2 in September.
A final five will compete in the final round held in November.
“If there’s not drivers following in the footsteps of the Jamie Whincups and Scott McLaughlins, then this sport that we all love doesn’t have a future. We need to try and help groom the next generation and share our knowledge,” said Percat.
“I was very fortunate when I joined Walkinshaw Racing as a young driver that I had the likes of Garth Tander, Will Davison, David Reynolds and Fabian Coulthard and James Courtney helping me out. I realised then how important that guidance is.
“So for me to be able to give back to the young drivers coming through is very cool. It’s something I dreamed of when I was a kid in karting. I enjoy helping out as much as I can.
“If I’d had the opportunity out of karting to enter a competition to win a funded season in any sort of racing car, I would have jumped at it. It’s impressive what Arise is doing.”
“The fundamentals of how they go about the business, with using data and having such good driver coaches, the whole package is so well rounded. I’m really happy to be involved in it.”
