Moffat: Fabs the key to silly season

Out-of-contract Nissan driver James Moffat has declared third-placed Championship contender Fabian Coulthard the key to silly season movement, as a number of name drivers look to lock in a home for 2016.

Speaking on Inside Supercars yesterday, the 31-year old described the situation as musical chairs, everyone scrambling to find the right seat before the music stopped.

Other drivers who aren't signed beyond 2015 include The Bottle-O's David Reynolds, Supercheap Auto Racing's Tim Slade, DJR Team Penske's Scott Pye and Dunlop Series leader and Prodrive-backed Cam Waters, the latter looking to break into the series.

Moffat says Coulthard is the one who will partly determine all of their futures, as the Kiwi's negotiations with Brad Jones Racing continue to stretch on into the mid-part of the season.

"I think probably at this point in time Fabian seems to be the kingpin at the moment, where he lobs will dictatewhere a few other guys go," Moffat said on Inside Supercars.

"It would be really great to stay at Nissan Motorsport, but we've got to find the sponsorship to be able to make that happen ... hopefully we can get something done.

"I don't want to leave the team as they're potentially on the brink of some good results."

Moffat sits 15th in the Championship and is the lowest placed of the four Nissans, though he has been consistently quick. On Sunday in Townsville a loose wheel nut meant he didn't set a qualifying lap and while trying to push forward he bent suspension components in the Altima, hampering his most recent race.

He does see promise in the team and heads to the track where he earned his first ever V8 Supercars ARMOR ALL Pole Position last year, Queensland Raceway. Moffat remains the only driver to take the Nissan Altima V8 Supercar to a win.

While he was flattered by the team's comments made to v8supercars.com.au,Moffat mused that until there was a deal on the table, he couldn't commit.

"Obviously the team has come out and made their comments on the situation, which is nice to hear, but at the end of the day there's nothing in place to sign at the moment," he said.

"So obviously moving forward I'm committed and focused with Nissan Motorsport until the end of the year and beyond that nothing is locked away."

When asked whether being off-contract distracted or affected his mindset, Moffat replied: "Not really.

"Obviously I went into the year knowing I was going to be out of contract but I think we can take the approach of letting it be a distraction or just getting on with your business. Ultimately results are what's going to make it easier for a contract to happen, and we haven't had the best results for a number of reasons this year.

"But certainly in the back half of the year if we can run strong hopefully something will [eventuate]."

Stablemates Rick Kelly and Michael Caruso have both earned podium finishes and front row starts this season and with upgrades coming for the Altimas for the enduros, there is hope of further improvement as the season continues.