2023_Supercars_Championship

2023 Supercars Championship

2023 Supercars Championship

2023 motor racing series

The 2023 Supercars Championship (known for commercial reasons as the 2023 Repco Supercars Championship) was a motor racing series for Supercars.

Brodie Kostecki won his first drivers' championship
Erebus Motorsport won their first Teams' Championship

It was the twenty-fifth running of the Supercars Championship and the twenty-seventh series in which Supercars have contested the Australian Touring Car Championship, the premier title in Australian motorsport. It was the sixty-fourth season of touring car racing in Australia.

The 2023 season saw the introduction of Gen3, a revision to the sport's technical regulations. These regulations were designed to cut costs for competitors by introducing more standardised components to the cars and redesigning the chassis to favour coupé body shapes.

Brodie Kostecki and Erebus Motorsport secured their first Drivers' and Teams' Champions respectively.[1][2]

Teams and drivers

The following teams and drivers competed in the 2023 championship.

More information Championship entries, Endurance entries ...

Manufacturer changes

Chevrolet returned to the series for the first time since 1984, replacing Holden and the ZB Commodore with the Camaro ZL1.[48]

All Ford teams upgraded to the Mustang GT S650.[49]

Team changes

Walkinshaw Andretti United switched from Holden to Ford.[26] In addition, Walkinshaw Andretti United is receiving the same treatment as Dick Johnson Racing, Tickford Racing, Blanchard Racing Team and Grove Racing by receiving factory support from Ford Performance.

Driver changes

Cameron Hill graduated from the Super2 Series to race full time at Matt Stone Racing. He replaced Todd Hazelwood, who joined Blanchard Racing Team, replacing Tim Slade, who joined PremiAir Racing replacing Chris Pither.[50][30][21]

Declan Fraser graduated from the Super2 Series to replace Jake Kostecki after Tickford Racing terminated his contract early. Kostecki was contracted to race with the team throughout 2023.[36][51]

Matthew Payne graduated from the Super2 Series to race full time at Grove Racing. He replaced Lee Holdsworth, who announced his retirement from full-time competition at the end of the 2022 season.[40][52]

Calendar

Twelve, down from thirteen in 2022, circuits are due to host a round of the 2023 championship.

More information Round, Event ...

Calendar changes

The Newcastle 500 returned as the season opener, after a three-year absence due to the COVID-19 pandemic.[53]

The Melbourne 400 and Perth SuperNight reverted to a SuperSprint format.

The Sandown 500 will return to the calendar for the first time 2019, and the first as the precursor to the Bathurst 1000 since 2018.[54]

Pukekohe Park Raceway closed, citing the focus on horse racing and club facilities:[55] a new venue in New Zealand was unable to be secured for 2023.[56]

The Winton SuperSprint was omitted from the calendar.[56]

Rule changes

Gen3

The Gen3 regulations saw the introduction of the Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 (top) and Ford Mustang S650 (bottom).

Gen3 made its debut, replacing the Car of the Future regulations that débuted in 2013, with regulations designed to lower costs of a standard Supercar.[57] It was due to debut midway through 2022, but due to ongoing challenges with international supply chains and domestic disruptions caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, it was delayed to 2023.[58]

The regulations introduced more controlled components into the cars to address the rising costs of maintaining a car. The pedal kit, brake kit and wheels became control components, with tenders needing the rims to be 'finger friendly' for pit crew during a pit stop. The roll cage lowered by 100mm to be suited to coupes, after the controversy surrounding the Ford Mustang GT, which required the roof to be stretched beyond the dimensions of its road-going counterpart to fit the Car of the Future chassis. Supercars manufactured the roll cage in kit form for teams that do not have the budget to build one themselves.[59][60][61][62]

The engines on Gen3 were overhauled, with pushrod engines replaced with fuel-injected, V8 engines, with the Camaro running a 5.7 Litre LTR V8, while the Mustang will run a 5.4 Litre Coyote V8. This is intended to modernise the engine and significantly reduce costs of building and maintaining them.[63][64][65]

Aerodynamic downforce was cut by 67% to encourage closer racing and easier overtaking after complaints from drivers about dirty air and aerowash from current Gen2 cars.[66]

Minimum weight was decreased from 1,400 kg to 1,335 kg, with a 95 kg minimum of driver and seat weight combination.[67] Later, it was increased to 1,340 kg from the Sandown 500.[68]

Triple Eight Race Engineering oversaw the development of the Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 as a replacement for the Holden ZB Commodore. The Camaro ZL1 was chosen after parent company General Motors decided to discontinue the Holden brand and shut down production of the Commodore.[48] Dick Johnson Racing oversaw the development of the S650 Mustang.[69][70]

Other changes

A new E75 fuel blend was introduced, down from E85 that was used from 2009, while utilising more renewable bio fuels to lower carbon emissions.[71]

Ahead of the Perth SuperSprint an LED display was added to the windscreen to show information such as a driver's position in the race, practice, or qualifying session to spectators.[72]

Ahead of the Gold Coast 500 a Full Course Yellow system was implemented, although the system saw no use during the event itself.[73]

Results

Season summary

More information Round, Race ...

Points

Points system

Points were awarded for each race at an event, to the driver or drivers of a car that completed at least 75% of the race distance and was running at the completion of the race. At least 50% of the planned race distance must be completed for the result to be valid and championship points awarded. No extra points were awarded if the fastest lap time is achieved by a driver who was classified outside the top fifteen.

More information Points format, Position ...
  • Endurance: Used for the Sandown 500 and Bathurst 1000.
  • Two-race: Used for the Newcastle 500, Townsville 500, Sydney SuperNight (with 5 points awarded for the fastest lap), Gold Coast 500 and Adelaide 500.
  • SuperSprint: Used for all SuperSprint races (exc. Melbourne) and the Darwin Triple Crown.
  • Melbourne: Used for the Melbourne SuperSprint.

Drivers' Championship

More information Pos., Driver ...

Teams' Championship

More information Pos., Driver ...

Notes

  1. Cameron Waters unofficially finished 3rd, but he was credited the win after the cars of Shane van Gisbergen and Broc Feeney were disqualified after a protest lodged by Tickford Racing and Walkinshaw Andretti United related to the use of dry ice in a specific banned location.[74][75]

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