 | |
| Manufacturer | Supercars ChampionshipFord Super2 Series Holden |
|---|---|
| Team Principal | Ryan Walkinshaw(Owner) Richard Dean(Owner) Michael Andretti(Owner) Zak Brown(Owner) Mark Walter(Owner) Bruce Stewart(CEO) Carl Faux(Team Principal) |
| Race Drivers | Supercars Championship No. 2  Ryan WoodNo. 25  Chaz MostertSuper2 Series No. 2 Campbell LoganNo. 25 Matt Hillyer |
| Race Engineers | Supercars Championship No. 2 Richard Harris No. 25 Sam Potter Super2 Series No. 2 TBA No. 25 TBA |
| Chassis | Supercars ChampionshipMustang GT S650 Super2 Series ZB Commodore |
| Debut | 1990 |
| Drivers' Championships | 6 (1996,1998,1999,2000,2001,2002) |
| Teams' Championships | 5 (1999,2000,2001,2002,2009) |
| Round wins | 73 |
| Race wins | 191 |
| Pole positions | 96 |
| 2023 position | 6th (3487pts) |
Walkinshaw Andretti United is an Australian motor racing team based in theMelbourne suburb ofClayton. The team, initially branded as the Holden Racing Team, used to fieldHolden Commodores in theSupercars Championship before making the switch toFord Mustangs for the 2023 season. The two cars are currently driven byRyan Wood andChaz Mostert.
Formed in 1990 as theHolden Racing Team, it is one of the most successfulSupercars Championship teams in the history of the category, having won the drivers' championship six times, the teams' championship five times and the series' signature race, theBathurst 1000, eight times. In 2017, the Holden Racing Team name was transferred by Holden toTriple Eight Race Engineering and the team was renamed Mobil 1 HSV Racing. For the 2018 season, the team was rebrandedWalkinshaw Andretti United, asAndretti Autosport andUnited Autosports become shareholders.
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As part of thejoint venture established in 1987 betweenTom Walkinshaw andHolden to formHolden Special Vehicles,Tom Walkinshaw Racing (TWR) was to run Holden's motor sport programme. TWR were responsible for designing theHolden VL Commodore SS Group A SV, which was homologated for racing in August 1988 after Holden Special Vehicles completed the required 500.
For 1988 it was decided to contract out the racing programme toPerkins Engineering although a car built by TWR in England was raced by Tom Walkinshaw at theRAC Tourist Trophy andBathurst 1000.
For 1989 it was planned for TWR to run the full season with two cars.Win Percy andNeil Crompton were announced as the team's drivers and a second VL Commodore built in England was tested in Holden Racing Team livery atCalder but with the likelihood of being uncompetitive against theFord Sierra RS500s, theAustralian Touring Car Championship programme was cancelled. For theSandown 500,Bathurst 1000 andGrand Prix support races, the programme was once again contracted to Perkins Engineering.
In 1990 the operation was brought in house with longtime TWR driverWin Percy moving toMelbourne to fill the role of both driver and team manager. Percy drove at allAustralian Touring Car Championship rounds except forMallala whereNeil Crompton drove after Percy returned to England for a family bereavement.[1] Percy's highest qualifying position was sixth atWinton and highest race result a third place atLakeside, and he finished eighth overall in the championship.
At theSandown 500, Percy and Crompton qualified the car fourth, however did not finish the race. For theBathurst 1000 the team entered two cars with Percy, against the wishes of Holden and Tom Walkinshaw, recruitingAllan Grice to co-drive the lead car. Crompton was joined byBrad Jones. With Percy suffering a shoulder injury, his decision to hire Grice was vindicated with the latter handling the bulk of the driving on the way to an unexpected victory, the second car finished fifth.
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For 1991 theVN Commodore was homologated with Win Percy driving in all ATCC rounds exceptLakeside where Allan Grice substituted while Percy competed in an event in Europe. Percy again finished eighth in the championship. At theBathurst 1000, Percy and Grice teamed together to finish second, with the second car of Neil Crompton and Brad Jones not finishing after running out of fuel.
With Win Percy having decided to return to England,Tomas Mezera was hired. Due to a budget shortfall and the need to develop theVP Commodore for the newV8 formula, HRT only competed at theSandown,Lakeside andEastern Creek rounds. Two 1993 spec VP Commodores were raced at theSandown 500 with Mezera and Brad Jones finishing third while Percy and Grice finished fifth at theBathurst 1000. Mezera and Jones drove two cars at theGrand Prix support races.
With budget problems compounded byCastrol deciding to transfer its funding toPerkins Engineering, at the beginning of 1993 there was some doubt as to whether the team would compete in the1993 Australian Touring Car Championship. Former1987 World 500cc championWayne Gardner with only one touring car start was signed as the team's driver with Tomas Mezera's participation being dependent on additional sponsorship being secured, however he would ultimately compete in all nine rounds.
At theSandown 500 Mezera was joined by Michael Preston, with Brad Jones and Allan Grice in the second car. For theBathurst 1000 Mezera was joined by Win Percy with Gardner and Jones driving the second car to a third-place finish. Gardner won a race at theAustralian Grand Prix.
The team's season was dominated by off-track politics. Before the end of the championship chief engineer Wally Storey and team manager Neal Lowe had left the team with Mezera appointed as acting team manager. Before the Sandown 500, Gardner was suspended for two weeks from the team. HRT alleged Gardner was trying to poach the team's sponsors for his own operation, Gardner claimed that he was acting on a request by the team to help secure extra funding. Gardner secured funding fromCoca-Cola for 1994, but his proposal for taking part ownership was rejected by Tom Walkinshaw and he elected to formWayne Gardner Racing. At Bathurst,Jeff Grech commenced what would ultimately be a very successful stint as team manager.
In 1994Peter Brock was signed to drive for the team. In spite of some resistance by some withinHolden after the manufacturer's split with Brock'sHolden Dealer Team in 1987, the substantialMobil andNGK sponsorship he brought to the team made the deal irresistible. Both of these sponsors remain with the team as of 2020. The team was competitive throughout theATCC, with Brock taking the round win atEastern Creek and second places atSandown,Symmons Plains,Philip Island andOran Park on the way to a third-place finish, Mezera finished ninth.
Brock's win at Eastern Creek was the HRT's first ever ATCC round win.
For the endurance events, Brad Jones andRickard Rydell (who was driving aVolvo 850 for TWR in theBritish Touring Car Championship) were earmarked to drive the second car. However, with Rydell's wife due to give birth, he was replaced byCraig Lowndes for theSandown 500. After finishing fifth and setting the fastest lap of the four drivers, HRT elected to retain Lowndes for theBathurst 1000. Despite Lowndes crashing in the warm up and spinning mid race, a stellar double stint from Jones saw the car finish second. The lead car crashed late in the race.
For 1995 theVR Commodore was introduced. Brock remained a championship contender at the final round at Oran Park, finishing third with Mezera fifth. Lowndes andGreg Murphy ran the second car at theSandown 500 andBathurst 1000 however neither finished either race. After theGrand Prix support race it was announced that Lowndes would drive for the team full-time in 1996, he would take Mezera's seat for the season ending Brock Challenge atCalder.
With the demise of tobacco sponsorship, HRT had been able to lure many key personnel fromGibson Motorsport. This helped the team dominate the 1996 season with Craig Lowndes winning theATCC,Sandown 500 andBathurst 1000, the latter two in partnership with Greg Murphy. Brock finished the series in fourth being joined again by Tomas Mezera for the endurance races. With Lowndes headed to Europe in 1997 to compete inF3000, Murphy was hired as his replacement and debuted at two races in New Zealand at the end of the year.
The year saw a number of mechanical failures with theVS Commodores that prevented HRT from following on from the success of 1996. One highlight of the year were one-two finishes at bothSymmons Plains andWanneroo. Just before theEastern Creek round of the series, Brock announced his retirement from full-time racing. Overall, Murphy and Brock finished the year fourth and sixth respectively. Lowndes returned to drive in the endurance events with Murphy, whileMark Skaife co-drove with Brock. Lowndes and Murphy won theSandown 500 while despite Skaife winning pole at both events, he and Brock failed to finish.
At selected events a third car was entered under theHolden Young Lions banner withJason Bargwanna,Todd Kelly,Mark Noske and Stephen White driving. Bargwanna and Noske drove a car in the endurance races.
For 1998 Lowndes returned to HRT and Skaife succeeded Brock. With the Holden Young Lions program sub-contracted toGibson Motorsport, HRT returned to a two-car team except for theCalder round where Greg Murphy debuted theVT Commodore. Lowndes won theATCC with Skaife finishing third. Lowndes and Skaife finished second at theSandown 500. At theBathurst 1000 despite winning pole position and leading much of the race, Lowndes and Skaife suffered a number of tyre failures finishing sixth. The second car of Greg Murphy andMark Noske suffered a crash in late qualifying causing them to miss the shootout and cause endless problems throughout the race including the same tyre woes that Lowndes and Skaife suffered and retired on lap 86.
Lowndes again won theATCC with Skaife third despite Lowndes having to miss theSymmons Plains round after a car destroying rollover atCalder. Endurance driverCameron McConville deputised in Lowndes's 1996 winningVS Commodore.For theQueensland 500 andBathurst 1000, Lowndes was joined by McConville finishing third and second respectively. Skaife was joined byPaul Morris finishing third at Bathurst.
A third car was entered in the endurance races under theHolden Young Lions withTodd Kelly andMark Noske driving.
In 2000 Skaife won the championship with Lowndes finishing in third. At theQueensland 500 Lowndes and Skaife teamed together to win. The second car was driven byTodd Kelly andNathan Pretty, however failed to finish. At theBathurst 1000, Lowndes and Skaife finished in sixth position withJason Plato andYvan Muller. Kelly raced the Holden Young Lions entry at some rounds being joined by Pretty at Bathurst.
Off-track Craig Lowndes wanted out of his ten-year management contract with Tom Walkinshaw and left the team at season's end forGibson Motorsport.
In 2001, TWR Australia expanded to become a four-car operation with the formation of the two-carK-Mart Racing Team. Because a team could only race three cars under a Racing Entitlement Contract (REC),Romano Racing's REC was leased for the two K-Mart cars with the Romano car entered as a third Holden Racing Team car under the Holden Young Lions banner.Jason Bright joined the team. At theQueensland 500 Skaife and Bright shared a car withTony Longhurst andTomas Mezera driving the second. For theBathurst 1000 the lead drivers were split, Skaife and Longhurst winning. Skaife won theseries, Bright finished third.
In 2002 Skaife again won the championship with Bright finishing fourth. HRT won the first eight rounds of the season.Jim Richards and Mezera drove the second car at theQueensland 500. At theBathurst 1000 Skaife and Richards won with Bright and Mezera third. A third car was raced throughout the season under the Holden Young Lions banner byRick Kelly, finishing fourth at Bathurst with Nathan Pretty.
In early2003Tom Walkinshaw Racing collapsed and the team was put up for sale by the administrator.Holden purchased the team, but because manufacturers were prohibited from owning teams, it was quickly sold to Mark Skaife. The K-Mart team was purchased by John and Margaret Kelly, continuing to be a customer of HRT until the end of 2008.Paul Weel Racing also became a HRT customer with Jason Bright moving to the team with Todd Kelly commencing a five-year stint as the driver of the second car. For the endurance racesJim Richards andTony Longhurst rejoined the team. Skaife and Kelly won theSandown 500 with Longhurst and Richards finishing in tenth. At theBathurst 1000 Skaife and Kelly finished the race in eighth after being black flagged late in the race to repair accident damage with Richards and Longhurst fifth.
In 2004 Kelly finished the championship in seventh place and Skaife in twelfth after one of his worst seasons on record where it included a number of driver errors and reliability issues. For the endurance eventsJason Plato joinedPeter Brock in the second car. Skaife and Kelly finished theBathurst 1000 in fourteenth position, two laps down after a belt from the engine broke early in the race.
In 2005 both Skaife and Kelly won rounds of the championship with Kelly winning the historicV8 Supercars China Round atShanghai International Circuit. This victory gave HRT its 50th round win, the first team to do so. Skaife and Kelly won theBathurst 1000. Jim Richards andJames Courtney drove the second car, however failed to finish.
In 2006 Kelly finished the season in sixth place and Skaife finished in a miserable sixteenth. Both drivers did have success with Skaife winning atPukekohe andWanneroo and Kelly winning atSurfers Paradise andPhillip Island. With HRT out of the title race by the time of the endurance races and the sisterHSV Dealer Team having both its drivers in contention, it was controversially decided to split its drivers withGarth Tander driving with Skaife and Kelly with his brotherRick at the HSV Dealer Team. However the plan was not successful with the Skaife/Tander car finishing 26th at theSandown 500 and crashing on lap 1 atBathurst after a driveline failure. The second HRT car was driven byJim Richards andRyan Briscoe and finished in 21st at Sandown and did not finish at Bathurst.
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The2007 V8 Supercar season saw the debut of the newVE Commodore.Skaife finished sixth and Kelly seventh with post scoring race wins.Glenn Seton andNathan Pretty were signed to drive the second car.[2] However, with Skaife requiring appendix surgery the week before theSandown 500, a reshuffle saw Kelly and Pretty paired in one car and Seton andTony Longhurst in the second.
In 2008 defending championGarth Tander engineer Matthew Nielson and sponsorToll transferred from sister teamHSV Dealer Team.[3] For the endurance racesGlenn Seton was joined byCraig Baird. On 29 October Skaife also announced that 2008 would be his last season in a full-time drive in V8 Supercars. At the end of the year, Skaife sold his 50% share in the team toTom Walkinshaw.
With John and Margaret Kelly having elected to formtheir own team and usePerkins Engineering hardware, the team expanded to four cars in 2009, two entered under the HRT banner and two under the Walkinshaw Racing banner. One REC was purchased fromWPS Racing and another was acquired fromV8 Supercars Australia that had last been used byRomano Racing withPaul Dumbrell moving across with financial support from his family's Autobarn business[4] whileDavid Reynolds joined as the second driver with sponsorship fromBundaberg Red Rum.[5][6] Dumbrell finished 15th in the championship at seasons end with several top-six finishes while Reynolds finished 22nd, showing pace and promise but no real results.
At HRT,Will Davison took Skaife's seat.[7] Tander and Davison won theBathurst 1000 with Davison finishing second in the series. HRT did win the team's championship.
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In 2010,Fabian Coulthard andAndrew Thompson were signed to replace Dumbrell and Reynolds with Bundaberg Red sponsoring both cars.[8][9]
In 2010 Tander finished fifth and Davison 22nd. As a whole, the team struggled to string together a series and ended a disappointing seventh in the team's championship. For the endurance races Tander was paired withCameron McConville and Davison with David Reynolds. For theBathurst 1000 the team ran a retro livery in recognition of the team's1990 Bathurst victory.[10]
With Will Davison departing forFord Performance Racing, defending championJames Courtney joined the team. The season started with Courtney winning inAbu Dhabi. For the endurance races, Tander was joined byNick Percat and Courtney by McConville. Tander and Percat won theBathurst 1000. Tander finished the season fifth, Courtney tenth.
On the Walkinshaw Racing side, the team downsized to a single car for Coulthard with continued support from Bundaberg Rum, the race number was changed to No. 61.
In 2012 the team scored no wins with Tander finishing the season in seventh, Courtney tenth. Coulthard was replaced byRussell Ingall who broughtSupercheap Auto sponsorship, the race number was also changed once again No. 66.[11]
TheVF Commodore made its debut in 2013. At theTownsville 400 Tander led a team one-two, breaking a 20-month drought for the team. Tander was again joined by Nick Percat for the endurance events, with Courtney joined byGreg Murphy. Tander also won a race atPhillip Island, James Courtney also won a race at Winton.[12] Ingall and Supercheap Auto remained with the team in 2013.
Tander and Courtney again drove VF Commodores in2014 withWarren Luff and Greg Murphy driving in the endurance races.[13] Ingall was replaced byTim Slade and the car entered as No. 47.[14] The team expanded to a four car operation with a customer car fielded forJames Rosenberg Racing with Nick Percat driving.[15]Adrian Burgess joined as team manager.
The full-time driver lineup was maintained for2015.Jack Perkins replaced the retiring Greg Murphy for the endurance races and also substituted for Courtney at a few rounds after the latter was injured. Russell Ingall joined Perkins at theSandown 500 andBathurst 1000. With James Rosenberg Racing returning its REC to V8 Supercars at the end of 2014, a customer car was fielded forTeam 18 withLee Holdsworth driving.[16]
WithSupercheap Auto taking its sponsorship toProdrive Racing Australia, the team downsized to two cars, the two Holden Racing Team entries. The third REC was sold to Super Black Racing while Team 18 became a stand-alone team.[17] Tander and Luff won theSandown 500.
In 2017 the team lost its Holden factory backing to Triple Eight Race Engineering, but continued to field two VF Commodores under the Mobil 1 HSV Racing banner.[18]Scott Pye replaced Tander.[19]
The team was rebranded as Walkinshaw Andretti United in January 2018, withAndretti Autosport andUnited Autosports becoming 37.5% and 25% shareholders respectively in the team. Walkinshaw and Andretti now hold equal ownership with United Autosports as minority partner.[20][21] All Holden teams, including Walkinshaw Andretti United, upgraded their entries to the newHolden ZB Commodore for the 2018 season. The team raced under the Mobil 1 Boost Mobile Racing banner, with Courtney's number changed to No. 25, in recognition of the 25th anniversary of the team and Mobil 1's partnership.[22]
Highlights for the team during 2018 were the team scoring one win, courtesy ofScott Pye in challenging conditions at theMelbourne 400. The win was also Pye's first in the category. A second placing at Bathurst for the second year in a row and moving up to 5th in the teams championship.
WAU continued to field two ZB Commodores for Scott Pye and James Courtney, with Courtney reverting to running the teams traditional racing number of 22. Mega Fuels came in as the new main sponsor to the team, replacing Boost Mobile, which went toGarry Rogers Motorsport.[23] They endured a difficult season, with the team only having a single Top 5 result, coming from James Courtney at the first race at Winton Motor Raceway, and finished 6th in the Teams Championship. On 27 August, James Courtney announced that he would leave the team, after nine years with the team.[24] On 3 September, their main sponsor, Mega Fuels, went into receivership, making Mobil 1 their primary sponsor at Pukekohe and Winning Appliances and Appliances Online for #2 and #22 respectively from Bathurst onwards.[25][26]
2019 Super2 Series championBryce Fullwood and2014 Bathurst 1000 winnerChaz Mostert signed with the team for the 2020 season. Mostert started the year well with a podium in his second race at theAdelaide 500.
2020 was a challenging year for the team as they, along with the other teams battled the effects of theCOVID-19 pandemic. Many team members had to leave their families in Melbourne to help keep the Supercars season going.
Fullwood claimed his first podium atThe Bend Motorsport Park in September. Mostert finished the year strong, combining with the experiencedWarren Luff to claim a fine 3rd place at the season endingBathurst 1000.
Fullwood and Mostert both continued on with the team for 2021. Mostert achieved his first pole position for the team atSandown and followed it up with a win at the next event atSymmons Plains. Mostert was able to claim another win atHidden Valley before the series took an extended break due to the various lockdowns caused by the COVID-19 pandemic.
On 26 October, it was announce that Nick Percat would be re-joining the team he made his debut with, replacing Bryce Fullwood who had signed withBrad Jones Racing.[27]
In May 2022, Walkinshaw Andretti United confirmed that the team will switch toFord machinery from 2023 season onwards and thus received a same treatment asDick Johnson Racing,Tickford Racing,Grove Racing andBlanchard Racing Team by receiving a full-factory support fromFord.
At the start of the 2007 season, a battle erupted over the ownership of HRT. Skaife had been hounded by governing body, the Touring Car Entrants Group of Australia (TEGA), for more than four months for paperwork proving compliance with the Teams' Licence Agreement, but had failed to show the required information. He was given until 12 March to provide the evidence, or the team could be removed from the V8 Touring Car Competition.[28]
Skaife managed to produce sufficient evidence and TEGA allowed HRT to continue racing. A commercial settlement was struck between Skaife and TEGA that ensured that Skaife, and not Holden Motor Sport ownerTom Walkinshaw, had ownership and control over the team.[29] It has been revealed that Tom Walkinshaw owned a 50% stake in Skaife Sports.[30] Subsequently, in December 2008 Skaife sold his remaining interest in HRT to Walkinshaw.[31]
Since2016, Walkinshaw Andretti United has entered theAustralian GT Championship with a factory backedPorsche 911 GT3 R driven byJohn Martin[32][33] and later Liam Talbot. Talbot moved toPorsche Carrera Cup Australia in 2019 and the GT team was shut down.
| Year | Car | Pos | Points |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2005 | Holden Commodore VZ | 2nd | 3379 |
| 2006 | Holden Commodore VZ | 7th | 4423 |
| 2007 | Holden Commodore VE | 3rd | 800 |
| 2008 | Holden Commodore VE | 4th | 4432 |
| 2009 | Holden Commodore VE | 1st | 5650 |
| 2010 | Holden Commodore VE | 7th | 3618 |
| 2011 | Holden Commodore VE | 4th | 4518 |
| 2012 | Holden Commodore VE | 4th | 4690 |
| 2013 | Holden Commodore VF | 5th | 4330 |
| 2014 | Holden Commodore VF | 3rd | 4828 |
| 2015 | Holden Commodore VF | 3rd | 5191 |
| 2016 | Holden Commodore VF | 2nd | 4434 |
| 2017 | Holden Commodore VF | 7th | 3270 |
| 2018 | Holden Commodore ZB | 5th | 4681 |
| 2019 | Holden Commodore ZB | 6th | 4449 |
| 2020 | Holden Commodore ZB | 7th | 3050 |
| 2021 | Holden Commodore ZB | 4th | 3985 |
| 2022 | Holden Commodore ZB | 4th | 4448 |
| 2023 | Mustang GT | 6th | 3487 |
| 2024 | Mustang GT | 3rd | 4069 |
| 2024 | Mustang GT | 4th* | 3327* |
The following is a list of drivers who have driven for the team in Supercars, in order of their first appearance. Drivers who only drove for the team on a part-time basis are listed in italics.
Win Percy (1990–93)Neil Crompton (1990–91)Allan Grice (1990–93)Brad Jones (1990–94)Tomas Mezera (1992–96, 2001–02)Wayne Gardner (1993)Mike Preston (1993)Peter Brock (1994–97, 2004)Craig Lowndes (1994–2000)Greg Murphy (1995–98, 2013–14)Mark Skaife (1997–2008)Jason Bargwanna (1997)Todd Kelly (1997, 1999, 2000, 2003–07)Mark Noske (1997–99)Stephen White (1997)Cameron McConville (1999, 2010–12)Paul Morris (1999)Nathan Pretty (2000, 2002, 2007)Jason Plato (2000, 2004)
Yvan Muller (2000)Jason Bright (2001–02)Rick Kelly (2001–02)Tony Longhurst (2001, 2003, 2007)Jim Richards (2002–03, 2005–06)James Courtney (2005, 2011–19)Garth Tander (2006, 2008–16)Ryan Briscoe (2006, 2010–13)Glenn Seton (2007–08)Craig Baird (2008–11)Will Davison (2009–10)Paul Dumbrell (2009)David Reynolds (2009–10)Steve Owen (2009)Shane Price (2009)Fabian Coulthard (2010–11, 2022–present)Andrew Thompson (2010)Nick Percat (2010–13, 2022–2023)
Mika Salo (2010)Darren Turner (2011–12)
Patrick Long (2011)Russell Ingall (2012–13, 2015)
Christian Klien (2012)Peter Dumbreck (2012)Tim Slade (2014–15)Warren Luff (2014–22)Tony D'Alberto (2014–15)Jack Perkins (2015–19)Scott Pye (2017–19)Alexander Rossi (2019)
James Hinchcliffe (2019)Chaz Mostert (2020–present)Bryce Fullwood (2020–21)Kurt Kostecki (2020)Lee Holdsworth (2021, 2023–2024)Jayden Ojeda (2022, 2025)Ryan Wood (2024–present)Jaxon Evans (2026)The following is a list of drivers who have driven for the team in Super2 Series, in order of their first appearance. Drivers who only drove for the team on a part-time basis are listed in italics.
Nick Percat (2011–2012)Zach Bates (2023–2024)Ryan Wood (2023) Campbell Logan (2024–2025) Matt Hillyer (2025)