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Repco Supercars 2021 Season Preview

The 2021 Repco Supercars championship season kicks off this weekend with the Mt Panorama 500. This will be the first time since 2011 that a Supercars season hasn’t started in Adelaide, and the first time since 1998 without the famous circuit featuring on the calendar. 

Adelaide is one of the many major changes to the Supercars calendar for this season. The COVID-19 pandemic saw Pukekohe, Gold Coast, Barbagallo, Symmons Plains, Melbourne and Winton all be excluded from the 2020 season, and the new year sparking their return to the calendar. Supercars are also only holding one endurance round this season, rather then the usual 3, only keeping the world famous Bathurst 1000, which is to be held on the 10th of October.

3-time Supercars champion Scott McLaughlin announced he is leaving the sport at the end of 2020 to head overseas and race Indycar, leaving an open spot at Dick Johnson Racing, which the 2-time Bathurst 1000 winner Will Davison has since filled. Fabian Coulthard also left DJR at the end of the 2020 season, with that seat being filled by Anton De Pasquale.

Another change to a major team is in Tickford Racing, going from 4 cars to 3, and dropping Lee Holdsworth, who will come back for the Bathurst 1000 to co-drive with Chaz Mostert in the #25 Walkinshaw Andretti United entry. 

Tim Slade will be making a return to the sport, with a brand new outfit in Blanchard Racing Team. Erebus Motorsport, Team Sydney, Kelly Grove Racing and Matt Stone Racing also see new drivers in their lineup, leaving Triple Eight Race Engineering, Team 18, Brad Jones Racing and Walkinshaw Andretti United all unchanged for the new season. 

Two pre-season testing sessions took place at Queensland Raceway and and Winton Raceway, being topped by Zane Goddard and Will Brown respectively. 

The 2021 season should see some more brand new winners, with the dominant Scott McLaughlin’s exit from the sport. Fans will have their eye on Cameron Waters, who snuck into 2nd place in the championship at the end of last year, as well as Chaz Mostert, Will Davison, Anton De Pasquale, and of course the pair of Red Bull’s in Jamie Whincup and Shane van Gisbergen.

7x Supercars champion Jamie Whincup announced that 2021 will be his last full-time season. After making his debut in 2003, Whincup won’t be leaving the sport, taking over Roland Dane, who is the team principal and co-founder of Triple Eight Racing.

2021 is set to be an exciting and competitive season, with the first of 12 rounds kicking off this weekend.

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The Rise of Rishabh Pant

Over the 20/21 summer, test cricket saw the rise of Indian batsman/wicket keeper Rishabh Pant. Making his test debut in 2018 against England, Pant has been in and out of the Indian cricket squad for the past couple of years. Pant stepped in for the injured Wriddhiman Saha in the second test of the Vodafone test series, and after India’s embarrassing 36 all out collapse against Australia in game 1.

In the third test, India found themselves down and out by the fourth innings, needing to chase down a record breaking 406 to get the win. After just 35 overs, a battered and bruised India were down 3-102, with Australia looking like they were going to snatch their second win of the series. Pant, with an injury from the previous day came in earlier than expected, and made a heroic 97 runs to give India the draw. 

Pant then went into the fourth test, getting 89* in the second innings and giving India the win in the match, and drawing the series 2-2. During the fourth test held in Brisbane, Rishabh Pant became the fastest Indian wicket keeper to reach 1000 runs in their test career. 

“I went out to bat looking for the win. And there are no fielders behind the rope.” - Rishabh Pant

Pant continued his fearless approach in India’s test series against India later in the summer, smashing 91 runs off 88 balls to save India from another collapse as they were down 4-73 when Pant stepped in. 

He has recieved the praise from the likes of Adam Gilchrist, Shane Warne and many other greats, and we are all excited to see what he’ll do next. India takes on England in match 3 of the series, starting on February 24.

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The Daytona 500 That Ended In A Blaze of Glory

NASCAR’s 2021 season once again kicked off with the most anticipated race of the year; the Daytona 500. 40 drivers lined the grid at 2:30pm for the 63rd installment of the Great American Race. 10 and a half hours later, fans saw just 11 cars finish the race on the lead lap, with Michael McDowell getting the upset win, and coincidently his first ever NASCAR Cup Series victory on the biggest stage. 

Just 14 laps after the green flag dropped, running at almost 200mph, Christopher Bell gave a shove to Aric Almirola’s #10 Ford Mustang that sent him sideways in front of the field. 

The huge wreck collected 16 cars, and dashed their Daytona 500 hopes along with it. 

“Totally bummed to wreck out of the Daytona 500 so early in the race. My team gave me an amazing racecar. Unfortunately, today wasn’t our day” -  Aric Almirola via. Instagram.

Aric had one of the quickest cars all week, qualifying 3rd and winning his Daytona Duel. 

Shortly after the caution flag flew for the wreck, a 6 hour rain delay followed bringing the race under the lights. Denny Hamlin, a 3-time Daytona 500 champion swept both the stages and was setting himself up nicely to take a 4th Daytona 500. 

After a tame 180 laps, the race came down to the final lap, with Joey Logano and Brad Keselowski, Penske teammates finding themselves in the 1st and 2nd positions. Heading into turn 3 on the final lap, Keselowski made a do or die move, with help from Michael McDowell’s #34 Ford. Keselowski’s teammate Logano put on a ‘too little but too late’ block and was turned in front of the pack. 

Keselowski’s Ford spun up into the outside wall, with Logano’s Ford spinning to the bottom of the racetrack. An unsuspecting Kyle Busch slammed into Keselowski’s car, pitching him on top of the outside wall collecting Austin Cindric, a Daytona 500 rookie and Bubba Wallace’s #23 Toyota. 

Logano’s #22 would eventually join the cars at the top of the track in a huge fireball, ending their Daytona 500 hopes, just 1 corner away from the checkered flag. Michael McDowell went on to win the Daytona 500 after the caution flag flew quickly after the wreck unfolded. 

Keselowski, who was left “heartbroken”, and everyone else involved in the crash were checked and released from the infield care centre shortly after. 

Another noteworthy driver who finished the 2021 Daytona 500 was Jamie McMurray. McMurray, who retired at the end of the 2018 season, came back for another 500. The #77 car, which was involved in the lap 14 ‘big one’ ran 180 laps with a damaged front splitter, and still managed to finish in 8th position. 

NASCAR continue’s it’s 2021 season this Sunday on the Daytona Road Course.