Whincup opens up on co-driving future
Jamie Whincup opens up on co-driving future
Whincup finished runner-up with Broc Feeney at last year's Great Race
Four-time Bathurst winner "pencilled" in to return in 2025
Jamie Whincup has “pencilled” himself in for an enduro return in 2025, but cedes he’ll step aside once a different driver becomes a “better option.”
Whincup, who retired from full-time racing in 2021, has partnered Broc Feeney in Triple Eight’s #88 entry for the last three seasons.
In six races together, Feeney/Whincup won the 2023 Sandown 500, and finished runner-up in both 2024 endurance races at Sandown and Bathurst.
Remarkably, it marked Whincup’s first Bathurst podium in 11 years, and Feeney’s first in five attempts, one year on from mechanical heartbreak in 2023.
The Supercars Hall of Famer race winner still has plenty of speed left in him, Whincup second-quickest on average at Sandown, and fourth-quickest at Mount Panorama.
Speaking on the Rusty’s Garage podcast towards the end of 2024, Whincup suggested he could still perform at a full-time level, but simply can’t dedicate the time to driving.
“I do enjoy driving the car, I love getting back in and doing the lunchtime stint,” said Whincup, who has been Triple Eight Race Engineering’s Team Principal and Managing Director since 2022.
“That whole starting and finishing the race, qualifying, those big moments, do I have that in me? I probably could if I dedicated the time.
“But my life’s pretty busy now with running this amazing team, family, there’s all sorts of stuff going on in my world, so I just can’t dedicate the time.”
Whincup made his 23rd Bathurst start last October, claiming his eighth podium. Only 19 drivers have made more Bathurst starts, and only six have recorded more podium finishes at the 1000km classic.
Currently team boss and now a father, Whincup hinted he will make a call on whether he will go around again in 2025, insisting he will race if he is the right man for the job.
Scott Pye, meanwhile, is contracted to the team for 2025, and is expected to return alongside Will Brown.
“To have the opportunity as a racing driver, to be able to still be able to get in there and do that thing that I did for 20 years, and drive the car to the limit is fantastic, without having that massive pressure of qualifying or whatnot,” Whincup said.
“I did enjoy it. I’d love to do it again. I’ve pencilled myself in, so to speak. But the start of [2025] will be a telling tale if I’ve still got the capacity to be able to keep preparing, then I’ll still do it.
“But the day somebody else is a better option as well, is the day I’ll step aside. I’m here for Triple Eight, not for Jamie Whincup personally.
“While I’m the best person for the job, happy days, but the day that changes, I’ll move on.”
The 2025 Repco Supercars Championship will commence in Sydney on February 21-23, with the enduros to take place at The Bend and Bathurst in September and October.
