THE rumbling rivalry between Supercars Championship contenders Triple Eight Race Engineering and Walkinshaw TWG Racing continues to fester months on from last season’s dramatic decider.
Jamie Whincup and Ryan Walkinshaw are arguably Supercars’ two most outspoken team bosses, never afraid to take a backward step.
That’s boiled over in a very public manner of late, to the point where parallels could be drawn with Formula 1/Drive To Survive-esque showdowns between the likes of Mercedes’ Toto Wolff or McLaren’s Zak Brown and ex-Red Bull figurehead Christian Horner.
Walkinshaw recently fired a couple of shots across the bow via an appearance on the Lucky Dogs podcast co-hosted by Triple Eight’s own Will Brown, including making a pointed remark about the Brisbane squad not joining in on the ‘no social hate’ messaging post-Adelaide.
Whincup, via the Apex Hunters United podcast co-hosted by Brown’s co-driver Scott Pye, in return shot down claims that Triple Eight had been outsmarted while also making controversial allegations regarding Walkinshaw TWG’s chassis and engines – sparking a series of replies from Walkinshaw on social media.
MORE: Walkinshaw hits back at Whincup chassis claims
AHU has claimed Walkinshaw personnel refuse to appear on their show, while there’s been widespread murmurs of Triple Eight angst surrounding Brown’s podcasting following the Lucky Dogs episode in question.
All this has occurred while the two teams’ drivers have been at war.
Broc Feeney made it abundantly obvious through the pre-season how he feels there’s bad blood with Ryan Wood and revealed the pair have not spoken since November.
Upon chalking up the Toyota Supra’s first podium at Albert Park, Wood made immediate reference to shutting people up amid “all of the stuff that’s been going on in the background.”
Chaz Mostert, who is among the most restrained drivers when it comes to criticising peers, then on Sunday had some cutting words for Broc Feeney’s controversial flick-spin manoeuvre.
“Once you get turned around, just to keep the boot into it and swinging the rear around all unpredictable is a little bit silly, so I’m not surprised that it took a lot more people than what it should have,” he told V8 Sleuth.
Back to the allegations made by Whincup ahead of Albert Park…
On the chassis front, Whincup and his team are adamant that at least one of the Walkinshaw Supra chassis is non-compliant by the letter of the law, but for an exception made by Supercars.
All parties are in agreeance that a clarification was issued last December, eliminating grey areas relating to parts of the chassis that must be MIG, not TIG, welded. This communication, and the allowance of MIG welding to be done over the top of TIG – a ploy suspected to make for a stiffer chassis – is thought to be the battleground for the dispute.
On the motor front, it’s been claimed that Toyota engines were not sealed prior to Albert Park and that compliance would thus need to be verified post-event.
V8 Sleuth has learnt that Triple Eight is not the only team with similar types of chassis and engine concerns.
Supercars chief motorsport officer Tim Edwards however has categorically stated that the Walkinshaw chassis are approved and has denied any suggestion that cars ventured on-track with unsealed engines.
Either way, anyone wanting genuine, fierce, bitter rivalry in Supercars – you have very much got your wish…