After the challenges of Gen3 and the perceived (if overblown) notion that the best talent is heading overseas, Supercars is banking some timely wins at the moment.
The series looks to be building towards a fresh, exciting future powered mostly by the impending entry of the biggest carmaker in the world.
That alone has given Supercars a much-needed boost and allayed fears over the long term viability of the series, given a brand as powerful as Toyota has decided to come and play (and done so of its own volition).
With General Motors also poised to re-sign, and Ford by far the most engaged of the manufacturers to this point, there is plenty to be optimistic about at both Supercars HQ and among the teams.
But it doesn’t stop at manufacturers.
Supercars yesterday unveiled its 2025 calendar which has technically delivered on its promise of expansion from the measly 12 rounds required by the existing TV deal.
Next year there will be 13 rounds, with the unpopular ‘second’ Bathurst event gone and The Bend Motorsport Park and Queensland Raceway joining the schedule.
A one-event expansion is not a huge PR win, given that the major motorsport codes like Formula 1 and NASCAR race so often.
However there still looks to be a bombshell relating to the calendar in the works.
As revealed by Speedcafe, there is a bold plan to split the 2025 Supercars schedule into three parts, the third of which will be a knockout-style Finals system.
That in itself is perhaps the biggest single shift in the make-up of the Australian Touring Car Championship/Supercars since it moved from a single event to a series in 1969.
This simplified version of a motor racing Finals series – details of which you can read here – is a neat fit with the still compact Supercars schedule, and a move away from the first-past-the-post fits with the Australian sports psyche.
At the same time, it is a significant departure in what is a mostly conservative sport, something that Supercars management should be congratulated on.
It won’t be universally popular and the comments to our breaking news regarding the Finals is well and truly proof of that.
But the Supercars powerbrokers should be admired for taking the risk. Because it presents an opportunity for two positive outcomes.
Firstly, there should be a competitive upside to it. Should the points system be executed right, we should head into Sunday in Adelaide next year with at the very least two drivers still in contention.
It’s not since 2018 that we’ve woken up on the Sunday morning of the season finale without a champion-elect. That could change this year, but Will Brown would need to get a serious case of the wobbles going.
You can argue that it is artificial, but it will be nice to bring back the excitement of the unknown as the season draws to a close.
And while many have pointed out that Scott McLaughlin and Shane van Gisbergen could have been robbed of titles in 2019 and 2022 respectively, remember that their approaches would likely have been different had they not been sitting on comfy points less.
Secondly, this is a critical time for the sport in this country… if for no other reason than the upcoming broadcast agreement renewal. That is what to a large extent funds this sport, and it is important that Supercars can get the right remuneration without completely sacrificing visibility and heading down the streaming challenger path.
Not long ago, there was a stalemate over the calendar expansion and, beyond the plans for the Perth street race, little in the way of fresh air around Supercars. It was a precarious place to be with these negotiations happening in the background.
But with some bold thinking, perception can change quickly in this sport. Now we have an engaged, excited Toyota on the way in and a – all going well – a brand new way to crown a champion that will be both a fantastic in-person and televised Grand Final experience.
It’s impeccable timing. And Supercars management deserves kudos for everything it is making happen.
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