Alex Rullo is looking at racing in the inaugural season of TCR Australia alongside possible starts in Super2.
Rullo elected to not seriously pursue a season-long ride in this year’s Dunlop Super2 Series but is investigating the odd start in the second tier of Supercars, particularly at his home round at the Pirtek Perth SuperNight.
The West Australian does, however, have designs on completing a full campaign in the fledgling TCR Australia series, having sampled the sort of machinery he would race when he tested a British Touring Car in November 2017.
He is also looking to seal another drive in the Pirtek Enduro Cup, having competed a co-driver to Simona De Silvestro at Kelly Racing last year.
“Obviously we’re looking to sort of lock in now an enduro deal pretty soon so that’s exciting, and then looking at a few TCR options as well,” Rullo told Speedcafe.com.
“I think that category sparks my interest, and obviously when I tested the British Touring Car I really, really liked the car, really liked how they work, didn’t mind the front-wheel-drive as well, so I’m really keen to explore options in that.
“There are definitely a few teams that we’ve been talking to that I’d be keen to work with so hopefully we can make that one work as well.”
Rullo cited the variety of models which race in TCR as well as the commercial appeal of the category among his reasons for looking at the production-based series.
“It’s sort of a combination of things,” he said of the lure of TCR.
“Obviously it’s a pretty successful category overseas, I think the differences between the cars and the amount of cars they have in the series already definitely sparks my interest.
“As a driver looking for sponsorship, I think when I could go to a manufacturer and try and tee up a partnership with them, and there are just so many cars to choose from so that makes it pretty attractive in that sense with the current relationships we have with a few of our partners.
“I think it’s a lot more cost-effective as well for what it is in comparison to something like Super2 where you have a similar amount of rounds.”
The 18-year-old also maintains that TCR complements his Supercars ambitions rather than inhibiting them.
“It’s definitely an alternate direction to Supercars but at the same time that series doesn’t currently clash with enduro season so I’m keeping my toe in both waters,” he explained.
“I still love Supercars and they’re awesome touring cars and definitely well-recognised around the world, so for me just to be able to drive a Supercar at the main level is a great opportunity so the longer I can keep doing that, I’m more than happy.”
Rullo’s next start in a Supercar could come in the weekend of May 2-4, in Round 2 of Super2.
The opening race winner of last year’s Barbagallo round was in talks over a one-off start in this year’s Adelaide season-opener and has also been seeking to race at home.
“There are a few options available but I haven’t got close to locking anything in,” he confirmed.
“It’s really just a matter of me getting the sponsors in line to be able to do it but definitely something that I want to organise and see if we can make that viable and be competitive.”
Eggleston Motorsport, who Rullo was talking to prior to Adelaide, would have at least one seat available given that Justin Ruggier had only signed on for the single round and the team has another VF Commodore in its fleet.
Both Image Racing and Matt Stone Racing also ran round-to-round propositions in the South Australian capital, namely Jordan Boys and Abbie Eaton respectively.
Rullo’s previous Super2 team, MW Motorsport, is full with three season-long drivers including series leader Bryce Fullwood.
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