As Supercars enjoys a new wave of up-and-coming talent, in this week’s Pirtek Poll we ask which under-25-year-old driver is most likely to be a future champion.
In recent years, several drivers have stepped up from the feeder Dunlop Super2 Series to the upper echelons of the Repco Supercars Championship.
Erebus Motorsport rookies Will Brown and Brodie Kostecki have been standouts this year for the Dandenong South-based squad.
Brown has looked most likely to bring the team its first win in 2021, though he’s twice been dogged by pit stop problems in the past two events.
Then there’s team-mate Kostecki, who earlier this year claimed a podium in only his fifth race as a Supercars full-timer at Sandown.
Just days before celebrating his 24th birthday, Kostecki notched up his second championship race podium in Sydney.
Such is his talent, Kostecki was touted to be in the mix to replace retiring Triple Eight Race Engineering driver Jamie Whincup.
If you’re Broc Feeney or Thomas Randle, then you’d have to be excited about your prospects heading into 2022 having watched what the Erebus Motorsport boys have been able to achieve.
Feeney and Randle will go full-time next year with Triple Eight Race Engineering and Tickford Racing respectively.
Feeney surely has the most to be excited about as he steps into the shoes of Whincup alongside Shane van Gisbergen in arguably one of the grid’s best cars.
The 19-year-old currently leads the Dunlop Super2 Series, although success there isn’t necessarily indicative of success in the Supercars Championship.
Only one series winner in the last 10 years has gone on to win the championship in Supercars, that being Scott McLaughlin who claimed the Super2 Series title in 2012.
Randle, who won the 2020 Super2 Series with MW Motorsport, finally gets his big break in 2022.
He was supposed to race full-time in Supercars this year, though Tickford Racing was unable to acquire the necessary fourth Racing Entitlements Contract needed to do so.
Cameron Waters has been the team’s leading light, finishing runner-up in 2020. Despite the 2021 season being his most successful as far as wins go, inconsistency has meant he only sits fifth in the standings.
There’s no doubt Tickford Racing has the equipment to be contenders.
Bryce Fullwood’s signing to Walkinshaw Andretti United off the back of his 2019 Super2 Series win raised eyebrows.
Joining Chaz Mostert, there was an air of expectation surrounding Fullwood.
However, after two seasons at the top five team, he’s off to Brad Jones Racing in 2022 where he’ll join fellow under-25 driver Jack Smith.
A podium in his rookie season in 2020 at Tailem Bend brought promise, although he’s not seen the podium since.
Brodie Kostecki’s cousin Jake Kostecki is another name worth keeping an eye on. He’ll join Tickford Racing in 2022 alongside Randle, Waters, and James Courtney.
The options listed below are confirmed to contest the 2022 Repco Supercars Championship, hence a few omissions.
Matthew Payne is in the mix at Kelly Grove Racing to replace Andre Heimgartner in 2022, albeit not confirmed.
Under-25s Zane Goddard and Kurt Kostecki have impressed in 2021, although neither has a place on the Supercars Championship grid next year.
Which under-25 is most likely to be a future champion? Cast your vote in the Pirtek Poll below.
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