Lowndes announces Triple Eight departure

Craig Lowndes will not renew his contract with Triple Eight Race Engineering, with the Supercars legend ending his 20-year partnership with the team at the end of 2025.

Lowndes first joined Triple Eight in 2005 after an ill-fated stint with Ford Performance Racing, and won the Bathurst 1000 six times with the champion between 2006 and 2018.

The 50-year-old took Triple Eight’s first ever race win in Supercars in 2005, and finished runner-up six times with the team between 2005 and 2015.

After retiring from full-time racing in 2018, Lowndes transitioned to co-driving, first alongside Jamie Whincup in 2019, 2020 and 2021, before skippering Triple Eight’s enduro wildcard.

Lowndes has mentored young drivers Declan Fraser, Zane Goddard and Cooper Murray in the Supercars enduros.

This year’s Repco Bathurst 1000 will be Lowndes’ final Bathurst start as a Triple Eight driver, partnering Super2 champion Zach Bates.

The news comes just weeks after Triple Eight confirmed its switch to Ford from 2026, with the news raising questions over the racing future of Lowndes, who also confirmed his commitment to General Motors as ambassador for the likes of GMSV and AC Delco.

“I have nothing but good feelings and great memories from my time at Triple Eight,” Lowndes said in a statement.

“I have nothing but respect for them as a race team, engineering organisation and importantly the people with in – at all levels.

“It is rare that anyone works with the same people for ten years, let alone twenty, so to be able to look back on two decades with the same racing team and all the memories we have shared along the way is very special.

“To be part of the team from their formative years and through to them becoming the powerhouse they are today has been the most fulfilling part of my career.

"And during that we have shared amazing success together and huge milestones in my career — I can only say ‘thank you’ to everyone who has been part of the journey, inside the team and beyond as well.”

The statement adds that Lowndes will "continue to compete at a professional level in his career", with plans for 2026 and beyond "to be announced in due course.”

It leaves the door open for Lowndes to drive for another team in Supercars, with a 2026 Bathurst start to be his 33rd consecutive Great Race appearance.

“We have a plan for the future and that plan includes continuing to drive competitively,” Lowndes said.

“However, right now 100% of my focus is on the Supercars enduros with Zach Bates in the Supercheap Auto wildcard and doing the best job we can to get a result in both races.”

Lowndes, also part of Supercars' broadcast team, will contest this year's The Bend 500 before the Repco Bathurst 1000.

This year's Bathurst 1000 will be Lowndes' 32nd on the trot since his 1994 debut.

The 2025 Repco Supercars Championship resumes this weekend in Melbourne.