Young guns vying for final enduro seats

A number of young drivers will take to Queensland Raceway today in a bid to secure remaining enduro co-drives.

Red Bull Ampol Racing, Shell V-Power Racing Team, Truck Assist Racing and Nulon Racing are all testing on Thursday.

Triple Eight is also testing its new wildcard Camaro for Zane Goddard and Craig Lowndes, with the former to race in Darwin.

Matt Stone Racing and Nulon Racing have yet to finalise their full line-ups for the 2023 enduros.

MSR recently confirmed Jayden Ojeda will return with the team, albeit alongside Jack Le Brocq for Sandown and Bathurst.

The team has yet to confirm a co-driver for Cameron Hill, and has handed the keys to Jaylyn Robotham on Thursday.

Robotham, who raced at the Super2 season opener in Newcastle, made his Bathurst debut alongside Matt Chahda in a wildcard Commodore last year.

The Victorian, who is racing in Trans Am, got behind the wheel of Hill’s #35 Truck Assist Camaro on Thursday morning.

As of June 1, there are four seats remaining — the Hill co-drive, both Nulon Racing seats, and the partner for Todd Hazelwood’s #3 CoolDrive Mustang.

However, the picture could become clearer after Thursday’s test, with Nulon Racing also set to hand seat time to Chahda and Kurt Kostecki.

Chahda and Kostecki will complete evaluation runs as they make a bid to return to the main game fold.

Kostecki raced with younger brother Jake at Tickford Racing (2022) and MSR (2021), and with Bryce Fullwood and Walkinshaw Andretti United in 2020.

Hill on track on Thursday

Dylan O’Keeffe is set to return alongside James Golding in the #31 Camaro, with the team looking to find a co-driver for Tim Slade.

S5000 champion Joey Mawson ran laps in a Nulon Camaro at the pre-season Sydney test, but may need dispensation to race.

The Hazelwood co-drive, meanwhile, is likely to come down to co-team owner Tim Blanchard and the Ford squad’s young Super2 driver, Aaron Love.

Love recently scored his first Super2 podium at the Bosch Power Tools Perth SuperSprint.

The Penrite Oil Sandown 500 will open the enduro season on September 15-17, followed by the Repco Bathurst 1000 on October 5-8.

The 2023 season will resume at the betr Darwin Triple Crown on June 16-18.

2023 enduro combinations (as of June 1, 2023)