AN intra-team transition is firming for Bryce Fullwood in what is a surprisingly rare occurrence in the Supercars industry.
For all the times it’s touted as a neat pathway for a driver to finish their full-time career at a team where they’ll then shuffle into enduro-only mode, it rarely works out that way.
Will Davison, Mark Winterbottom and Garth Tander are all (semi-)recent examples of such plans going haywire.
Of the six 2025 full-timers to have dropped off the grid, Davison, James Courtney, Nick Percat, Jaxon Evans and Richie Stanaway have all changed teams.
Fullwood is the last of the half-dozen to announce his future, but V8 Sleuth understands it’s most likely he’ll end up staying at Brad Jones Racing – potentially as André Heimgartner’s new co-driver.
Excluding those that double as team/licence owners (e.g. Jamie Whincup), there are just three instances in the past decade of a driver directly transitioning from full-time to co-driver at the same team.
David Wall did so at Garry Rogers Motorsport, becoming Scott McLaughlin’s 2016 co-driver after losing his primary seat.
Craig Lowndes was a high-profile example, retiring from full-time duties at the end of 2018 but sticking around at Triple Eight to pair up with Whincup for the enduros.
Davison is the other case in point, albeit a slightly more complicated one. The two-time Great Race winner had been part of the Tickford stable via 23Red Racing; that operation closed during the COVID-19 shutdown, leading to him becoming Cam Waters’ 2020 co-driver.
Back to Fullwood, who will race an Aston Martin in next week’s Bathurst 12 Hour.
The Territorian has spent the past six seasons, since winning the 2019 Super2 title, as a regular on the main game grid.
Having lost his ride in the #14 entry to Cameron Hill, Fullwood’s market in the Supercars enduro stakes has been oddly quiet, but he would make for a dynamic combination with Heimgartner.
Heimgartner and Fullwood also paired up in the 2019 enduros at Kelly Racing. Pic: Supplied/Pace Images
Brad Vaughan is the favourite to join forces with Hill, while BJR’s long-standing Macauley Jones/Jordan Boys partnership will remain unchanged.
Wildcards aside, the bulk of the 2026 co-drives across the board are now sorted.
Among those still unannounced, Jack Perkins is tipped for the Triple Eight/SCT vacancy, Zak Best is expected to continue at the Blanchard Racing Team, and Reuben Goodall is the frontrunner for the Castrol #55.
Matt Stone Racing is anticipated to focus any wildcard efforts on single-driver events that don’t clash with Super2, leaving only two spots up for grabs at Yatala – and it’s thought to be advanced on finalising its roster too.