Best joins decorated list of Tickford graduates

Zak Best’s wildcard adds to a long line of Tickford Racing graduates.

The young Victorian will make his solo Supercars debut in Darwin later this year.

Best’s debut ensures nearly every Super2 driver Tickford has ever campaigned has made solo main game starts.

Two of them, Cam Waters and Thomas Randle, are currently on Tickford’s full-time roster.

Best’s wildcard opportunity is further proof of Tickford’s Super2 nursery paying dividends.

Six former Tickford Super2 drivers are on the 2022 Supercars grid; Waters, Chaz Mostert and Jack Le Brocq have all won main game races for Tickford.

"Zak has impressed us at pretty much every turn since he joined the team, both in our Super2 program and as a co-driver last year," Tickford boss Tim Edwards said.

"The natural next step for him is to make his solo debut, so we’re very pleased to have put together a couple of wildcard outings for him this season.

"It’s easy to forget Zak’s only been driving for us a little over a year, he’s had a lot thrown at him in that time and has taken it all in stride.

"It’s a whole new challenge and a considerable step up for him, but we’re very comfortable with giving it to him and are confident he’ll take it on and make the most of the opportunity."

Tickford's line began with James Moffat, who finished third for the team in the 2010 development series.

Moffat, son of Hall of Famer Allan, won as a co-driver on the Surfers streets in 2018.

Waters won Tickford's first title

Chaz Mostert made his Super2 debut with Tickford in 2011, and completed a full season in 2012.

Mostert was part of the ‘class of 2012’, which included future stars Scott McLaughlin, Scott Pye and Nick Percat.

Mostert raced with Tickford full-time between 2014 and 2019, winning 12 races, including the 2014 Bathurst 1000.

Cam Waters made his Tickford Super2 debut in 2014, and dominated in 2015 en route to Tickford’s first development series title.

Waters made the leap to the main game in 2016, and will bring up 200 race starts at the upcoming round in Perth.

Garry Jacobson and Jack Le Brocq raced for the team in 2016, and completed a thrilling title fight.

Jacobson won the 2016 title

Jacobson emerged victorious, and has been a main game full-time fixture since 2019.

Le Brocq finished fourth in Bathurst with Waters in 2016, and has been a full-time driver since 2018.

Richie Stanaway made a one-off Super2 round appearance for Tickford in Sydney in 2017; he won a race to go with finishes of third, fourth and third.

It set the Kiwi up for a stunning Sandown 500 win with Waters, before the pair led the balance of the 2017 Great Race.

Stanaway completed a full main game season with Tickford in 2018 before shifting to Garry Rogers Motorsport.

Before he won the 2020 Super2 title for MW Motorsport, Thomas Randle raced for Tickford in 2018 and 2019.

Randle secured his first pole, podium and win for the team, and earned wildcard starts at The Bend in 2019.

Sandown success for Randle

He also raced to a stunning third alongside Lee Holdsworth at Sandown in 2019. Wildcard starts in 2021 followed before he scored a full-time drive.

It’s easy to forget that Broc Feeney raced for Tickford, with the teenager now making waves with Triple Eight.

Feeney joined Tickford for the 2020 Super2 season after he won the 2019 Super3 crown.

The teenager made his Great Race debut with the team on his 18th birthday in 2020, and shifted to Triple Eight for 2021.

He duly won the Super2 title, made another Bathurst start and earned his place as Jamie Whincup’s replacement.

Best will make his solo Supercars debut at the Merlin Darwin Triple Crown on June 17-19.

He will return to his Tickford Mustang at The Bend SuperSprint on July 30-31.

Best will resume his 2022 Super2 campaign in Perth next weekend.