Rookie radar: How Supercars debutants went amid Sydney chaos

Five new faces have entered the Repco Supercars Championship to mixed fortunes at the DUNLOP Sydney 500.

Some excelled, others had a more difficult time of things, and some just kept their nose out of trouble and quietly went about their learning weekends.

Supercars.com runs over how each driver went on debut.

Zach Bates

16th in points

Qualifying Results: 6th/8th/8th

Race Results: 14th/17th/13th

The standout among the rookies at the DUNLOP Sydney 500 was Zach Bates, who turned heads with impressive performances in Boost Mobile Qualifying. Indeed, Bates was one of the better qualifiers in the entire field, however when it came to races, the top dogs weren't afraid to push him around. Regardless, it was a really positive start to the year for the Bendix Camaro, and with Albert Park next, Matt Stone Racing have every right to be bullish.

Rylan Gray

18th in points

Qualifying Results: 18th/17th/15th

Race Results: 20th/20th/11th

It was largely a quiet weekend for the defending Super2 champion, however Sunday was a day of real promise for the 19-year-old. Gray was within two tenths of a second of his teammate Brodie Kostecki in qualifying, and after picking up an early 15 second penalty was able to drive back through the field to 11th at the finish.

Jackson Walls

21st in points

Qualifying Results: 14th/19th/14th

Race Results: 18th/19th/14th

Much has been made of Jackson Walls' entry into Supercars, however it was a more than serviceable debut for the Sydneysider. In what was a self-confessed 'wildcard' event, Walls finished where he qualified in the final two races, coming back from a lap down on Saturday night following a first corner racing incident. Sunday was a solid midpack performance where he didn't look out of place at all, a very solid base to build upon.

Jayden Ojeda

22nd in points

Qualifying Results: 13th/15th/19th

Race Results: 13th/21st/19th

After an encouraging pre-season test, the race weekend didn't quite match the promise shown on Wednesday and Thursday. The 26-year-old wasn't helped by factors outside of his control, namely a wheel falling off in pit lane on Saturday, and a wet tyre gamble that didn't pay off on Sunday.

Delayed by wheel on Saturday, wet tyre gamble didn't work Sunday. Test speed encouraging but was it genuine?

Jobe Stewart

23rd in points

Qualifying Results: 22nd/21st/21st

Race Results: 23rd/16th/22nd

It was an off weekend for Erebus, and Jobe Stewart copped the brunt of it. It was a tough initiation, with the #9 Chiko Camaro unable to crack the top 20 in qualifying across the weekend, though teammate Cooper Murray didn't fare much better. Moving forward to 16th in Race 2 is a sign of the talent Erebus have on their hands. A wheel gun failure on Sunday compounded the misery for team and driver.

Looking ahead

Up next comes another big challenge for the rookies, with the Melbourne SuperSprint arguably the most unique weekend schedule in Supercars. For Bates, Gray, and Stewart, next weekend marks the first time that they've competed on streets of Albert Park, whilst Ojeda hasn't raced there since a winning Formula 4 cameo in 2019. Walls meanwhile is twice a Carrera Cup race winner in Melbourne. All five of the rookie's teams have been on the money at Albert Park in recent years, while the flat chat nature of the sprints is something more akin to Super2. It will be fascinating to see who can get up to speed quickest in the limited practice time.