Erebus impressed by teen's Gen3 debut
Jobe Stewart turned Gen3 Camaro laps at Winton on Tuesday
Super3 champion lapped Gen3 Supercar for the first time
Stewart seventh in Super2 standings heading to Round 2
Todd Hazelwood says rising star Jobe Stewart turned heads at Erebus Motorsport at an evaluation day, with the teen lapping a Gen3 car for the first time.
The 2023 Super3 champion got behind the wheel of the #99 TFH Hire Erebus Chevrolet Camaro at Winton Motor Raceway on Tuesday.
It was the first time the 19-year-old had driven a Gen3 Supercar, with the teen joined by Hazelwood and Jack Le Brocq trackside, along with race engineers George Commins and Tom Moore.
Stewart drove Hazelwood’s chassis, EM07, which was built ahead of the 2024 Repco Supercars Championship.
Under Supercars’ evaluation day rules, Hazelwood was allowed up to 10 laps behind the wheel, with the 2017 Super2 champion setting a valuable baseline for Hazelwood. Le Brocq, meanwhile, was in a supporting role.
“It was a super cool opportunity for him. Any time you can get behind the wheel of a current Supercar at that tender age is exciting,” Hazelwood told Supercars.com.
“No disrespect to Jobe, he has very limited experience in Supercars — just one round in Super2 and a year in Super3, but he’s super impressive.
“So, to be provided with an opportunity like that is really cool. He took the opportunity with both hands and showed exactly what he's capable of.
"I think he surprised and impressed a lot of people in the team. Personally, I was really, really, really impressed with how quickly he adapted to the car and to the driving style.
“The lap times never lie. He did a great job.”
Stewart has long been aligned with Erebus, and won last year’s Super3 title for affiliate team, Image Racing.
The Mount Gambier driver’s opportunity came after he raced to second behind 2023 Super2 champion Kai Allen at the Thrifty Bathurst 500.
Stewart’s insights and feedback on the car particularly impressed Hazelwood, who will again stand in for Brodie Kostecki at the upcoming Supercars round in Melbourne.
“He offered some really good insights about the car. His feedback was rock solid,” Hazelwood said.
“It was just really cool to see him every time he was asked to improve on something, he was able to adapt very quickly and get the job done.
"I was really happy for him to have a really successful day behind the wheel. Considering the limited amount of experience he's got in Supercars, he did a really good job.”
Hazelwood will compete in Trans Am at Symmons Plains this weekend, ahead of next weekend’s MSS Security Melbourne SuperSprint.
