PremiAir Racing has confirmed the departure of Chris Pither from its Repco Supercars Championship team at the end of this year.
The Gold Coast outfit signed the Coca-Cola-backed driver at the beginning of this season on a one-year deal.
While mid-season recruit James Golding has impressed the team in his short tenure, Pither has struggled for results.
However, the New Zealander, who sits 22nd in the drivers’ championship, has also been disrupted by a number of race engineer changes over the course of the 2022 campaign.
While Golding is making a strong case to be retained for 2023, it is widely reported that Tim Slade will make the switch from the Blanchard Racing Team to PremiAir Racing.
In a statement, the Peter Xiberras-owned squad confirmed it will part ways with Pither at the end of the current season.
“PremiAir Racing wishes to confirm that Chris Pither will not be returning as the main driver of Car #22 in 2023. Pither will continue to steer Car #22 for the remainder of the season being Gold Coast and Adelaide and as always will have the full support of the team,” the statement read.
Golding came into the team at Townsville after the axing of Garry Jacobson following the Hidden Valley Raceway event.
In other silly season news, Matt Stone Racing is yet to confirm who will fill the vacancy left by BRT-bound Todd Hazelwood for 2023.