Ryan's high praise for Super3 champion Stewart
Erebus boss Barry Ryan labels Jobe Stewart “future Erebus champion"
Image Racing teenager Stewart won the Super3 title in Adelaide
Stewart and Cameron McLeod dominated 2023 Super3 season
Erebus Motorsport CEO Barry Ryan has praised Super3 champion Jobe Stewart, saying he has the hallmarks of a “future Erebus champion”.
Mount Gambier teenager Stewart has been part of the Erebus Academy since 2017, and debuted in Supercars machinery this year.
In his first year in the Dunlop Series, Stewart won the Super3 title, holding off the likes of Cameron McLeod and Jett Johnson.
Stewart and McLeod were the class of the field, Stewart winning four races and taking three poles.
Third-generation racer McLeod claimed nine poles and eight wins, but a double DNF at Sandown unravelled the Mike Kable Young Gun Award winner’s campaign.
All Stewart needed to do to seal the crown was finish the Saturday race, which he did — and Ryan was one of the first to congratulate the youngster.
For Ryan, whose team won both championships in the main game, Stewart’s ability to adapt to Supercar machinery and take out the title has the teen in line to reach the very top.
“We’ve had Jobe on our books since he was about 13 years old in go karts,” Ryan told the Schick Cool Down Lap podcast.
“It’s amazing to see what he’s done this year in a Supercar — straight out of an 86 into a Supercar and he was fast.
“I can’t wait to see what his future holds, he’ll probably be a future Erebus champion in Supercars.”
Long-time Image Racing boss Terry Wyhoon recently labelled Stewart a “brilliant” talent, with the rising star first coming under Erebus' watch as a 12-year-old in karts.
Stewart shifted to Toyota 86 in 2020 and finished third overall in 2022, before being thrown into a Supercar in 2023.
Now bound for Super2, Stewart also helped Mount Gambier to a Dunlop Series double, with Kai Allen winning the Super2 title for Eggleston Motorsport.
“It’s pretty cool, with Image, we’re pretty heavily involved with Erebus,” Stewart said.
“To get the championship in Supercars and myself… for Baz and everyone at Erebus, it was pretty special, he came up to me straightaway and was pretty rapt.”
On racing — and beating — McLeod, Stewart added: “Racing with Cam all year was hard — fierce racing.
“Glad to come out on top, those two DNFs at Sandown for him really set it up for me."
The 2024 Dunlop Series season will commence at the Thrifty Bathurst 500 on February 23-25.
