TRIPLE EIGHT RETURNS TO SUPER2

Kurt Kostecki and Brenton Grove join Triple Eight’s Super2 program – Photo: Supplied

Triple Eight Race Engineering will return to the Dunlop Super2 Series in 2019 with two entries piloted by young guns Kurt Kostecki and Brenton Grove.

The pair will drive Triple Eight-built Holden Commodore VFs, which will be managed and prepared in-house at the squad’s Brisbane workshop across the seven-event 2019 Super2 calendar.

Kostecki, who finished eighth in this year’s Super2 Championship, is no stranger to Triple Eight, having previously worked as a mechanic and the team’s test driver for over two years.

“I couldn’t be more excited for next year,” said Kostecki.

“It’s a big opportunity for me and I’m looking forward to trying to make the most of it and try to learn off the best team in the business.”

“I’ve already done an evaluation day with Triple Eight and I was very comfortable in that environment because I have known everyone for a few years now after working with the team, so hopefully that translates as soon as we get to Adelaide next year.”

“I’m going to take next year as it comes, but we’re aiming as high as we can. I think there will be no excuses next year for me. I’ve got the best team to do it behind me, so we’re aiming for the top and we’ll see what we can do.”

Having completed his debut Super2 season this year, Grove, 21, is looking forward to learning as much as he can from the opportunity.

“Triple Eight is obviously the benchmark in Australian motorsport, so to join them and utilise their resources will be awesome. They do things properly, so I’m really excited for next year and seeing what we can achieve.” said Grove.

“I haven’t got any major goals, I think it’s always good to try and improve when you’re out there, so to get towards the top 10 would be nice and that’s obviously the objective, but from there, anything can happen, so I’m just going to try to be consistent and keep learning.”

Triple Eight has previously run a car in the feeder category to the Virgin Australia Supercars Championship from 2011 to 2013, winning the series on debut with Andrew Thompson. Having confirmed that the squad would return to running two Holden Commodore ZBs for the foreseeable future in the main game, Triple Eight is excited to be able to offer the team’s considerable experience to help the development of young drivers.

“We as a group really enjoyed running a car in the Development Series a few years ago,” said Mark Dutton, Triple Eight Team Manager.

“Getting good results in Super2 back then meant just as much to the guys and girls in the team as with the TeamVodafone or Red Bull Racing Australia cars.”

“Roland (Dane, Team Owner) has talked a lot about succession plans for Triple Eight over the last few years and finding the right drivers to continue the team’s success is something that’s really important, especially since Jamie (Whincup) is now thinking about his own future and when he might hang up the helmet to take on a greater role in running the team.”

“It’s not only about the drivers as well. We have an opportunity to nurture the young engineers and mechanics and help them make the transition to taking on more responsibility in the main game without completely throwing them in at the deep end.”

“On top of all of that, running two cars in Super2 allows us to maintain staff levels, which otherwise would have had to be reduced if only running in the main game with two cars, not three. We’ve got a fantastic group of people here at Triple Eight and we wanted to do everything we could to keep everyone together.”

The 2019 Super2 Championship kicks off at the Adelaide 500, 28 February to 3 March.

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