Jamie Whincup is adjusting to life on the rev limiter as he takes on two new roles as a dad and Triple Eight Race Engineering managing director.
Having stepped away from full-time driving in Supercars after last December’s Bathurst 1000, the seven-time champion has taken over from Roland Dane as boss of Triple Eight.
Add to that the arrival of his first child last month as well as the recent expansion of his carwash business into Brisbane, and 2022 looks likely to be his biggest year yet.
Whincup, who made his first appearance trackside as team principal at Queensland Raceway for pre-season testing on February 16, said he’s getting to grips with the change.
“It’s very different,” Whincup told Speedcafe.com.
“Change is good. I’ve always been pro-change, because change keeps you fresh and gives you motivation. It’s only early days, but I’m really at ease and feeling really good about the change.
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“It’s a massive change. It’s huge. I still get involvement in motorsport. I’m still here. It’s not like I’ve retired from full-time footy and gone completely cold turkey. I’ve still got massive days, talking about and analysing Supercars.
“It’s good. Home life is good, baby is good. As any parent would know, it’s a big change in life. Throw that on top of the new job and it’s an exciting time for me to be alive.”
Whincup said he is in the Triple Eight office “pretty much every day” in Banyo “where there’s so much to do and so much to learn”.
“I’ve got no social life at the moment and no time for holidays, it’s just absolutely all hands on deck, using every minute I can while I’m awake to make sure I maximise the opportunity.”
Whincup admitted to an unusual feeling watching on as Shane van Gisbergen and Broc Feeney drove their Holden ZB Commodores at the pre-season test.
The four-time Bathurst 1000 winner did, however, take an opportunity to slip into the #88 ‘Risa’ in the pit bay, though that wasn’t enough to tempt him into a drive.
“I’m not sitting here starving to get into it,” he said.
“I’m really happy with the position I’ve got. I’ve been enjoying the last month being back on track, trying to maximise that managing director role.
“I’m not standing here right now saying ‘Shit, I wish I was in the car’. That might come, probably not at Sydney Motorsport Park, but maybe Round 2 or Round 3.
“No, I’m enjoying the change. It’s funny how you see things differently. I would normally be [at Queensland Raceway] and the only thing I would be thinking about is set-up and changes on the car.
“Now, I’m not thinking about any of that. I’m making sure that everyone is doing their role, getting through our checklist, making sure that we’ve got the resource here to be able to do the best job and maximise one of our test days.
“It’s just a completely different headspace. As I say, it’s a huge change, and one I’m really enjoying.”
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