The advent of the Finals Series means that the top 10 drivers at the end of the Sprint Cup will be part of a playoffs system.

The new formula has divided opinion. Waters said the new system will encourage drivers to go all-out, rather than conserve.

“This year you’re still gonna have to be fast every round and then make sure you get to the next point of the playoffs or the finals – so it’s pretty much the same, it’s just all on the line of the last couple of races,” Waters told Speedcafe.

“You need to be getting wins, you need to be fast, you need to be qualifying up the front. If you can’t do all that stuff by the end of the year, you’re probably not going to be in it and you’re probably not going to win it.

“You still have to be winning races and whatnot. There might be a point where [driving conservatively for  points] might come into it, but I think for the majority of it everyone’s just going to be flat out.”

Waters is among the favourites to make the final four. He finished fourth in the 2024 and has twice been a championship runner-up.

Will Brown won last year’s title ahead of Triple Eight Race Engineering teammate Broc Feeney and Walkinshaw Andretti United’s Chaz Mostert.

Last year, Waters ended the season strong with a win at the Gold Coast and a third place finish at Adelaide – both results from pole position.

“We ended up pretty good,” said Waters.

“From the middle of the year onwards, we were only 40 points behind Will or something, which was good.

“There were tracks that we were very strong and there were some tracks where we weren’t bad but we just needed that a little bit more which, once we’ve unlocked that, it’d be really good.

“We’re not sitting still, we’re trying to hunt that next little bit and make sure we can have a strong year.”

When is the Sydney 500

The 2025 Repco Supercars Championship gets underway at Sydney Motorsport Park on February 21-23 with three days of racing at the Sydney 500.

Supercars Sydney 500 sessions (AEDT)

Friday, February 21

Practice – 1:40pm
Qualifying for Race 1 – 4:20pm
Race 1 – 7:50pm

Saturday, February 22

Qualifying for Race 2 – 2:35pm
Top 10 Shootout – 4:35pm
Race 2 – 7:30pm

Sunday, February 23

Qualifying for Race 3 – 11:10am
Top 10 Shootout – 1:05pm
Race 3 – 4:05pm

How to watch Supercars Sydney 500 on TV

Live coverage of the Supercars season-opening Sydney 500 will be live on Foxtel and Kayo across all three days.

Seven will have live free-to-air coverage on Saturday and Sunday. Friday’s first race will not be aired live on the Seven due to a contract clause.

How to live stream Supercars Sydney 500

The Sydney 500 will be broadcast live on subscription streaming services Foxtel Go and Kayo from Friday through to Sunday.

Free streaming platform 7Plus will carry coverage on Saturday and Sunday.

Viewers outside of Australia and New Zealand can watch via Supercars’ own SuperView service.

Viewers in New Zealand can watch via Sky Sports.

Sydney 500 broadcast start times (AEDT)

Friday, February 21

Foxtel/Kayo – 1:30pm

Saturday, February 22

Foxtel/Kayo – 12:00pm
7mate and 7plus – 4:30pm
Seven – 7:00pm

Sunday, February 23
Foxtel/Kayo – 9am
Seven and 7plus – 1pm

Will there be live updates from the Sydney 500?

Speedcafe will provide real-time, live updates from every session of the Adelaide 500 thanks to Mobil 1.

Sydney 500 signing session details

There will be an all-in Supercars signing session at the Sydney 500 on Friday (5:45pm).

Sydney 500 ticket details

Tickets for the Supercars season-opening Sydney 500 are available via Ticketek or the Supercars website.

Sydney 500 weather forecast

There’s a chance of a shower on Friday but the weekend looks otherwise fine with the Bureau of Meteorology (BOM) forecasting party cloudy skies on Saturday and a sunny Sunday with temperatures in the high 20s.

What are the support categories at the Sydney 500?

The Repco Supercars Championship will be supported by the Dunlop Super2 Series, Porsche Paynter Dixon Carrera Cup Australia, Duggan Family Homes Touring Car Masters, and Tyrepower V8 SuperUtes.