Finals series added to Supercars in format shake-up announcement ahead of Bathurst 1000

Jacob Shteyman

AAP

3 Min Read

09 Oct 2024

Red Bull Ampol Racing ‘s Will Brown and Scott Pye celebrate their Sandown 500 win last month. Credit: Daniel Kalisz/Getty Images

Supercars drivers will vie for the championship title in an elimination finals series in one of the biggest shake-ups to the category’s format in years.

The change, announced on Wednesday ahead of the Bathurst 1000, is part of a significant expansion to the calendar in 2025, with 10 more races boosting the roster to 34 races across 13 rounds.

The season will be split into three phases, beginning with eight rounds of sprints, before endurance races at The Bend in South Australia and the centrepiece Bathurst 1000, and ending with the elimination series to decide the title.

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Finals will be held across the last three rounds of the season at the Gold Coast, Melbourne’s Sandown and Adelaide.

Seven-time champion and Triple Eight team boss Jamie Whincup says the change was crucial to keep the sport relevant.

“From a team owner’s point of view, we’ve been pushing Supercars to make a change, to get out there and have a crack and make change,” Whincup said on Wednesday.

“They’ve certainly done that. We expected a small swing, but they’ve made a massive swing.

“All the team owners were united that this is a great thing for the sport. We need change and this is the best way to do it.

“I’m proud of the change, proud to be part of a sport that’s evolving because a sport that doesn’t keep changing and evolving eventually becomes uncompetitive.”

Ten finalists will qualify for the Gold Coast, including the winners of the Sprint Cup and Enduro Cup awarded earlier in the season, with seven drivers progressing to Sandown and four to the decider in the South Australian capital.

Points will reset between each round of finals, ensuring there are no dead rubbers.

Non-finalists will continue to race during the finals series.

Walkinshaw Andretti United star Chaz Mostert, second in this year’s championship standings, says the change in format means there will be a small margin for error.

“It’s really going to create an absolute pressure cooker for the whole year, for all 24 drivers and the championship,” Mostert said.

“There’s not one race that you can let your guard down.

“In the championship at the moment, you can have a couple of bad races here and probably still become champion.

“In this format, there’s no hiding in the championship.”

Wednesday’s announcement at Mount Panorama comes after automotive giant Toyota - Australia’s most popular car brand - revealed it will join Supercars in 2026.

With Supercars’ existing TV rights deal with Fox Sports and the Seven Network expiring at the end of 2025, it is hoped the recent overhaul will help boost the attractiveness of the category to broadcasters.