Brown: ‘I’ve got a target on my back’

Will Brown is expecting to have a target on his back in his last Dunlop Super2 Series season before graduating to the main game next year. 

A year in advance, Brown has already snagged a multi-season deal with Penrite Racing, but will first complete a full 2020 campaign with Image Racing in the second-tier. 

Make no mistake though, this year will be of vital importance for Brown, with $400,000 on the line for the series champion, which would go a long way for his 2021 campaign.

It’s only logical that everyone in the development class wants to prove their worth and pip their competition, and who better to best than the guy that's already one step ahead?

"It's probably one of those things where I've got a target on my back because I'm already signed for a main game drive," the former Eggleston Motorsport driver told Supercars.com.

"To be honest I'm not someone that stresses out about stuff like that, I know the job I've got to do and I'm quite calm and relaxed.

"I enjoyed the season last year and surrounding myself with a team like Erebus with Dave [Reynolds] and Anton [De Pasquale] to get advice off, I think it's going to be a great year.

"Obviously there will be a little bit more pressure, but I'm looking forward to it.

"I've got a job to do and I'm not going to let myself get too caught up in the moment, but we want to go for race wins and try to win the championship.

"I think with having Erebus there and the driving I've been doing, we've got as good of a shot as anyone to win it.

"I'm not sure what my competitors think, but when I first started up in the Super2 championship, the guy that was winning in front of me, I always wanted to have a crack.

"It probably puts a bit of a target on my back, but we're all race car drivers, we're out there racing as hard as we can, all the time.

"It might change it a little bit, but it's nothing to get too caught up on, we've obviously sorted out what we're doing and now it's about trying to do the best job that we can."

Terry Wyhoon's Image Racing found their feet late in the 2019 season, particularly with Brown's new teammate Jordan Boys, who claimed race wins at Sandown and Newcastle.

Hoping to carry that momentum into 2020, Wyhoon recruited Brown, who is a good fit for Image given the strong links to Erebus.

"I think this year is going to be nearly the biggest of them all," Brown said.

"I've always wanted to win the Super2 championship, I've won a lot of the other categories I've entered since go-karts.

"I think I'm in a good car this year with Image Racing, with Erebus backing, I think it's going to be my best chance I'll ever get to do that.

"It's something that Betty [Klimenko], Barry [Ryan], myself and the whole team at Erebus want me to achieve before I step into main game Supercars.

“I can really see that we have the potential to win it and I've been doing everything I can."

Although he'll turn laps in the main series this season as a co-driver, a handful of wildcard entries would go a long way in helping Brown prepare for his full-time drive next year.

"We'll definitely have some exciting stuff to announce throughout the year and it's something we've all looked at and want to do," Brown said of the possibility of running as a wildcard.

"It's just about fitting it in and making it work, but it's something that we're definitely looking at doing and hopefully we can get something out there soon and get a bit of exciting news out there.

"It's a massive advantage to do it and to be honest I think Erebus and everyone there, we'd do as many as we can, it just comes down to funding.

"We'll definitely be looking at doing them throughout this year, it just depends on how many we do with funding."