10 things we learned in 2021

All of a sudden, the 2022 Repco Supercars Championship is 61 days away.

The 2021 season offered some big questions heading into the new season.

Shane van Gisbergen and Red Bull Ampol Racing were the class of the field in 2021, van Gisbergen winning 14 of 30 races.

However, other teams showed on several occasions that they can take it to van Gisbergen and Triple Eight.

In 2022, the grid will be shaken up, and the championship will return to its normal guise at over a dozen different venues.

In the wake of one of the more bizarre years in championship history, here are 10 things Supercars.com learned in 2021.

1) Van Gisbergen will be hard to beat

With 14 race wins, van Gisbergen was on another level in 2021 - and so was his team.

Considering he had metalwork in his body after his biking accident, it's arguable that van Gisbergen wasn't at his absolute physical best in 2021.

If he gets there, he'll be even harder to stop in 2022. How he and his team roll out in Newcastle in March will be crucial.

2) De Pasquale is genuinely fast

Only van Gisbergen won more races than Anton De Pasquale's six in 2021, although five of them came at Sydney Motorsport Park.

Filling the shoes of the great Scott McLaughlin was a big ask, but De Pasquale came into his own and only missed out on the runners-up points position due to a spate of DNFs.

His Sydney dominance, especially over one lap, was extraordinary. If the Shell V-Power Racing Team unlock that pace at most events in 2022, we could have a new champion - and it should come as no surprise if it happens.

3) Davison on the cusp of something special

Will Davison proved his worth in his first season in a Shell Ford, even though he failed to win a race.

Davison scored 10 podiums and two poles aboard the #17 Shell Mustang, and was oh so close to returning to victory lane on a number of occasions.

The two-time Bathurst winner will turn 40 in 2022, and will be smarting from being outpaced by the younger De Pasquale.

Watch out for an even hungrier Davison this year.

4) Mostert is ready for a title challenge

Going off his Bathurst performance alone, Chaz Mostert is a hot chance to end his championship wait in 2022.

However, he was fast at a number of events in 2021, but went missing at others.

Walkinshaw Andretti United will welcome Nick Percat in 2022, who can only push Mostert to another level.

5) Waters is still Tickford's best hope

As it was in 2020, Cameron Waters proved head and shoulders above his Tickford Racing teammates.

Waters won three races in 2021, and ended the season with a Bathurst podium.

The Mildura product is clearly fast, but it's the same story as WAU; Tickford must keep him at the front at every round.

6) No more time to waste in Grove reset

The 2021 season was bruising for Kelly Grove Racing, which will enter 2022 as Grove Racing and with Bathurst winner Lee Holdsworth in its ranks.

Andre Heimgartner's Tailem Bend win was a clear highlight, but he slumped to 17th overall. David Reynolds was one place behind in 18th.

The Groves are serious about their involvement in Supercars, and recruiting Holdsworth ensures the team will enter 2022 with the most experienced line-up on the grid.

7) We missed several venues in 2021, but it only makes 2022 better

The COVID-19 pandemic, as it did in 2020, wreaked havoc on the 2021 calendar.

What should have been 12 events at 11 different venues turned into 12 events at seven different venues.

In 2022, four of the first five rounds will be at venues that missed out in 2021. Form guide? Forget about it.

8) BJR will miss WAU-bound Percat

Brad Jones Racing was led by Percat between 2017 and 2021, but he's off to WAU in 2022.

For Percat, it's a chance to compete at a bigger team and try and force himself into a championship fight.

As such, BJR loses a marquee driver and its most recent race winner. How the Albury squad responds in 2022 will be telling.

9) Randle will be one to watch in 2021

Thomas Randle has won basically everything he's raced in. In 2022, he'll have a full-time crack at it with Tickford.

He was strong in his wildcard appearances in 2021, and recovered from an early off in Bathurst to scored another Great Race top 10.

Armed with his own engineering group and own car, Randle will be a serious competitor in 2022.

10) Erebus absolutely nailed it with its new line-up

Many doubted Erebus Motorsport's 2021 driver line-up of two rookies.

However, Will Brown and Brodie Kostecki helped the team achieve something it had never done previously; have both cars in the top 10 overall.

That means something - and Kostecki's Bathurst podium, along with Brown's Sydney win, were no flukes.

The 13-event 2022 Repco Supercars Championship will commence in Newcastle in March. Tickets for the event are on sale now.

The 13-round draft calendar was released during the Repco Bathurst 1000 weekend.