Supercars will bring down the curtain on the Super3 Series after the event, reclassifying the older generation machines for Super2 duties in 2025.
The move has been made after a year of low entry numbers for the class that already shares the track with Super2.
An Image Racing Falcon is the only Adelaide entry as the Nissans of Cody Burcher and Thomas Maxwell, which have been the only cars to contest every round to date, are parked up.
MWM owner Matthew White says crashes for both drivers at Bathurst contributed to the decision not to attend Adelaide.
“Cody has already wrapped the championship up, so from the point of view of him and his sponsors, there’s not a massive amount of benefit in running,” White told Speedcafe.
“Both him and Tom obviously copped reasonable damage at Bathurst as well, which hasn’t helped the situation for either of them as well because it obviously adds expense.”
Whether the Nissans race on next year in Super2 remains to be seen.
MWM bought a fleet of the ex-Kelly Racing Altimas when they became eligible for the second-tier in 2019, winning the next two titles with Bryce Fullwood and Thomas Randle.
The Nissans were demoted to the Super3 class along with the VF Commodore and FG X Falcon when the ZB Commodore and Ford Mustang moved into Super2 last year.
White hopes to field the Nissans in Super2 next year, pending ongoing conversations around what specification they will be allowed to compete in.
“Super3 this year hasn’t worked as intended. Supercars has recognised that and acted,” White said.
“They’ve come up with an option that should still provide good grid numbers. A bit of common sense has prevailed there.
“For us, the first box is ticked in that the cars will be eligible for Super2 and not a separate category. That’s quite an important milestone.
“But the second one is a bit of a parity equaliser needs to happen.”
Unlike the VF Commodore and FG X Falcon, the Nissan Altima raced against the ZB and Mustang in the Supercars Championship in 2019.
The Nissans received aero and centre-of-gravity changes to compete with the newer cars that year which are not currently permitted on MWM’s Altimas.
MWM retains two of the Kelly-built Altimas having sold its other two cars to collectors in 2022.
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