Jamie Whincup not ruling out Bathurst 1000 comeback
For the first time since 2001, the Whincup name won’t be on the grid
Nick Percat replaces Whincup alongside Broc Feeney
Jamie Whincup has left the door ajar to a Bathurst 1000 comeback, despite maintaining he "100%" made the right call to step back from driving in 2026.
The Supercars Hall of Famer won’t contest the 2026 Ryco Enduro Cup, marking the first time since 2001 that the Whincup name won’t be on the grid.
Whincup has headed Triple Eight since the start of 2022, and oversaw the team’s transition into the Gen3 era in 2023, and its shift from General Motors to Ford in 2026.
The seven-time champ's fourth campaign alongside Broc Feeney last year delivered little results, despite Feeney starting from pole at The Bend. After a refuelling blunder, Whincup ran off the road trying to make up ground.
After challenging at the Mountain, rain caught the Feeney/Whincup car out at the hands of the former, ensuring the fancied pairing failed to capture a fairytale Great Race win together.
Whincup stepped aside and signed Nick Percat to partner Feeney. At the time of the news, Feeney admitted Whincup's decision came as a "shock".
However, the 125-time race winner maintains he has no plans to make a comeback.
“I certainly won’t rule it out, absolutely not,” Whincup said in an extended MotorRacing 360 interview.
“I'm really enjoying my CEO role at the moment at Triple Eight, but I won’t rule it out. I'm still young enough, I'm 43 now. There's still opportunity to do a few more things, maybe do an [Fernando] ‘Alonso', make a bit of a comeback.
“Don’t read into that, don’t think that there’s some plan going on, there’s definitely not."
Former teammate Craig Lowndes, meanwhile, will make his 33rd consecutive Bathurst start next month, at the age of 52.
When probed further if he may return to Bathurst, Whincup — in line with comments made last year — said: “It’s possible, but as I said, there’s absolutely no plan, there’s no agenda, it’s just a matter of never say never.”
Whincup admitted that balancing racing commitments with his management roles at Triple Eight took its toll last year, which encouraged the decision to step back and sign up Percat.
When asked if he will regret the decision once the 2026 enduros get underway, Whincup said: “I’m sure I will once the cars are out there and rolling around.
“Last year, I literally felt like I had two full-time jobs, just neglecting my family, neglected everything else in life.
“I’ve made the right decision, 100%, and I’ll just make sure I’m playing my link in the chain to make sure we have two competitive cars.”
Whincup will oversee Triple Eight’s Bend campaign this weekend, just days after launching his operation’s first road-going Ford project, the limited edition Mustang Dark Horse T8-Spec.
