Hillyer, 20, steps into the #25 entry that won the Super2 Series this season with Zach Bates, who has defected to Eggleston Motorsport as part of newfound ties to Triple Eight.

WAU’s Super2 line-up is now complete with Campbell Logan set to continue aboard the team’s #2 Commodore for a second season.

Hillyer won the 2023 Australian Formula Ford Series and joined WAU’s Foundation Academy program via the GR Cup this year.

He won six races and scored five poles before a heavy crash at Bathurst ruled him out of the Gold Coast finale, ending his hopes of the title.

WAU recently ran Hillyer in its #2 Commodore as part of four-driver evaluation test at Winton, impressing team principal Carl Faux.

“We are delighted to see Matt take the next step in his career, and it’s fantastic we can give him the opportunity to step up in the Dunlop Super2 Series,” said Faux.

“There’s no denying his ability behind the wheel, he has showed that clearly in every category he has raced in and did an amazing job this year in the GR Cup.

“It’s not often you see drivers in controlled categories dominate like he did through the middle of the year.

“He more than impressed with his speed at our recent evaluation day, but handled the day extremely maturely as well, which was important.

“He is another fantastic success story of the Walkinshaw Andretti United Foundation Academy, following the pathway through the ranks, and we can’t wait to see him alongside Campbell for the upcoming season.”

Hillyer added: “It’s awesome to have the opportunity to step up into Super2 with WAU, it’s been something we’ve all been working towards, so it’s a bit surreal to be honest that we will be on the grid in Sydney – but there’s a lot of hard work to do before then.

“There will be a lot to learn no doubt, it will be by far the highest horse powered car I’ve raced, but hopefully I can take a lot of learnings from this year, and soak in as much as I possibly can from the team to get up to speed as quickly as possible.

“There’s a lot of knowledge and experience within these walls, so it’s the perfect place to be.

“The team has put a lot of faith in me and have been awesome with everything I’ve done so far, so I can’t wait to reward them hopefully, and see what we can do together.

“A huge thank you to all my partners, the WAU Foundation Academy, and my family as well, who have made this possible, and have been along for the ride – I can’t thank them enough.”