Brown committed to Supercars amid NASCAR announcement

Will Brown has affirmed that his future remains in the Repco Supercars Championship after announcing a one-off return to the NASCAR Cup Series earlier this week.

Announced on Wednesday, Brown will be making his second career Cup Series start on the streets of Chicago in July, driving a Chevrolet Camaro for Kaulig Racing.

Brown will compete against 2023 Chicago Street Race winner and Red Bull Ampol Racing predecessor Shane van Gisbergen, who used his shock win to launch himself into a full-time NASCAR transition.

However, Brown doesn't have any intentions on following the three-time champion to NASCAR full-time, with the reigning Supercars champion telling American media on Wednesday that he is happy with his current home at Triple Eight.

“I think it’s too soon to say, I’m pretty comfortable here in Australia, I actually took Shane’s seat when he left, so I’m very glad that he went Stateside, I was happy to see him go," Brown quipped.

“I’ve got a great team here around me at Red Bull Ampol, so you never know until the offer got put in front of you if there ever was the opportunity. 

“But right now for me, it’s kind of scratching an itch, it’s going over there, competing against some of the best in the world, seeing how I fare against them, and trying to do the Aussies proud.” 

After van Gisbergen's sensational boilover in 2023, Brown, Cam Waters, and Brodie Kostecki all contested one-off Cup Series road course starts last year, Brown and Waters at Sonoma, and Kostecki at Indianapolis.

Brown revealed that a Chicago cameo has been high on the list of several Supercars' drivers since the event's debut in 2023, with the Toowoomba local thrilled to lock in his start after last year's event clashed with the NTI Townsville 500.

“To be honest, it was very big after Shane won Chicago, a lot of people wanted to get over there and do it, and you saw my old teammate Brodie Kostecki went over, and Cam Waters. 

“I would say this year, it’s probably more myself and Cam that have been pushing really hard to get over here. 

“Just to get support behind you, get sponsors behind you, and make the whole program work logistically and all of that with our events here in Australia, it’s not easy to put it together. 

“I think a lot of guys would want to do it, but putting it together is another thing.” 

The 26-year-old also has his eye on more NASCAR starts later this season depending on how his Chicago efforts play out, with the 2024 Sandown 500 winner eyeing off potential starts on ovals.

Brown would also be willing to step down into the lower tiers of NASCAR for an oval start, much like Waters did last year for two starts in Truck Series at Martinsville and Kansas.

“I think the biggest thing for us realistically, it comes down to sponsors and support. 

“If I can have a good run at Chicago, potentially my sponsors and hopefully someone else will back me into maybe doing an Xfinity or Truck oval. 

“It’s very hard to get the support and sponsors to go and run an oval straight away, because we probably are going to struggle the first one. 

“Just to get that sponsorship on is the difficult part.” 

The 2025 Repco Supercars Championship continues at the Bosch Power Tools Perth Super 440 from June 6-8. Tickets for the event are on sale now.