As the Supercars Championship begins this week with the 20th running of the Adelaide 500, now is time to reflect on what was one of the closer championships of all time in 2017 and predict the standings of what is destined to be another tight title race.

James Golding – #34

Team: Gary Rogers Motorsport
2017 result: N/A
2018 prediction: 26th

James Golding gets his shot in a full-time seat at Gary Rogers Motorsport in 2018 after showing promise in the former Dunlop Series development category, finishing 10th in his first year in 2016 before improving to fourth in 2017.

The 22-year-old Victorian’s name is unfortunately synonymous with some of the sport’s biggest incidents in recent times, including a massive Supercars crash at Sandown in 2016 while partnering James Moffatt and Dunlop Series smash exiting the Senna chicane in Adelaide in 2015. But he has shown the confidence to rebound from these shunts and the bravery and skill in the development category drives to earn this seat.

But when the pressure is heightened and he lines up with the likes of Craig Lowndes, Jamie Whincup and Mark Winterbottom on the grid, Golding will have to show the poise that demonstrates he belongs. Lucky for him there is no better situation for the young gun to be in.

Under the tutelage of experienced team manager Gary Rogers and championship-winning teammate Garth Tander, the future is bright for this young star.

‘Bieber’, as he is nicknamed by Rogers, will be allowed to make the expected teething mistakes in his first season with GRM, but with a wealth of experience at his disposal to learn from, it is up to Golding to maximise the opportunity.

Best-case scenario
Golding utilises the Gary Rogers Motorsport machinery to see solid qualifying results to avoid the carnage at the rear of the grid. Some mature drives to finish in the top ten and turning a few heads in the process will be the goal of his first year.

Worst-case scenario
Teething issues will overcome the young gun and rattle his confidence. Trying to make moves for gaps that aren’t there will result in too many silly and necessary DNFs. Let’s hope not for the sake of this young driver.

Simona de Silvestro – #78

Team: Nissan Motorsport
2017 result: 24th – 0 wins, 0 poles
2018 prediction: 25th

The 2017 season was a baptism of fire for Simona de Silvestro to the world of Supercars. Embarking on her first full-time drive in the category, the former IndyCar and Formula E driver put in a number of impressive drives given the fact she was seeing many of the courses for the first time.

Learning how to rein in these two-tonne beasts on the fly is not an easy job for even the most experienced drivers in the world.

De Silvestro understandably struggled at the championship’s opening round in Adelaide, languishing near the rear of the field, but she kept herself free from incident on the narrow street circuit before piloting her Nissan Altima to impressive results at both Symmons Plains Raceway and Phillip Island in the next two rounds.

In hindsight these were the highlights of a tough and challenging initial season in Australia’s premier racing category, but at the final race of the season in Newcastle we again saw flashes of Simona’s brilliance and bravery on show.

Prepared to make passing moves in spots on the new circuit no-one else in the field was willing to try saw De Silvestro catch many of her highly experienced competitors asleep at the wheel.

But disaster struck as she was powering up the grid. A hard-charging Scott McLaughlin tangled with her, derailing her best drive of the season and unravelling his championship quest in the process. But the flashes were there.

A new race engineer in Chris Stuckey and a year of experience under her belt the Iron Maiden should be a tougher pass in the expanded and competitive field in 2018, but I’m forecasting another tough year.

Best-case scenario
A year of experience and a better understanding of the car should translate into a more competitive 2018 with more consistent finishes in the top half of the field and a top-20 finish for the season.

Worst-case scenario
Failure to find the correct car set-up early in race weekends will result in difficult race days, and the expanded field of competitors eager to show themselves will result in too many poor finishes to reflect her skill.

Tim Blanchard – #21

Team: Tim Blanchard Racing
2017 result: 22nd – 0 wins, 0 poles
2018 prediction: 24th

The 2018 season is Tim Blanchard Racing’s second year and the Melbourne driver’s fifth year in the top-flight category, but it poses another tough campaign for the former Formula Ford champion.

Sydney Motorsport Park proved to be the launching pad for a solid second half of last season’s championship, where Blanchard finished a classy drive to 10th position on Saturday before backing that up with a solid 13th in the second race on Sunday.

But the highlight of the season was a strong showing at Bathurst, where he paired with young bolter Todd Hazelwood to power from 24th on the grid to finish a respectable 12th.

Running a new ZB Commodore fit out by Brad Jones Racing in 2018 should give the 30-year-old enough power to mix it up with the midfield runners. Getting there is the next challenge after qualifying proved to be an Achilles heel last year.

Blanchard’s experience should see him move up the standings by picking off many of the new faces in the field if he is unable to curb the poor qualifying results, but that means keeping incident free will be the challenge in scoring solid results all season long.

Best-case scenario
Bering a solid veteran and a savvy driver means incident-free racing all season long, resulting in numerous top-half finishes, pushing Blanchard into the top 20 of the championship.

Worst-case scenario
Poor qualifying results mean starting from the rear of the grid, where debutants in their eagerness result in too many DNFs for Blanchard to gain any traction in his quest to move up the leaderboard.

Lee Holdsworth – #18

Team: Charlie Schwerkolt Racing
2017 result: 16th – 0 wins, 0 poles
2018 prediction: 23rd

Lee Holdsworth enters his 12th full-time season in Australia’s premier racing category in 2018, which is an incredible achievement for the veteran.

Holdsworth continues driving for Charlie Schwerkolt Racing for a fourth straight year, and in 2018 his Triple Eight-built Holden has been upgraded to the new ZB Commodore specifications.

The #18 Commodore found speed in the final stretch of last season, ending the year with an impressive run of five top-ten finishes in the final eight weekends. But the other three races during the same stretch resulted in DNFs, which derailed Holdsworth’s shot at finishing in the top ten in the standings.

Finding consistent car speed has been the challenge for Holdsworth over the past few seasons, which could boil down to difficulties in setting up the car correctly in practice and qualifying. Come race day Holdsworth has all the tricks of an experienced racer, but he has failed to put the results on the board.

With a talent influx the likes of which this category hasn’t seen in a long time, 2018 will be a tough campaign for Holdsworth and the one-car operation.

Best-case scenario
Holdsworth’s class and know-how will avoid the certain rear-of-the-grid chaos that plagues the category. This will see him consistently post top-ten results, which he has the skill to do.

Worst-case scenario
Those nasty technical gremlins reappear and wreak havoc on the upgraded ZB Commodore, derailing Holdsworth’s chances. Poor qualifying results will mean the veteran gets caught up in too many unnecessary battles over minor places.
 

Andre Heimgartner – #7

Team: Nissan Motorsport
2017 result: N/A
2018 prediction: 22nd

Andre Heimgartner returns to a full-time Supercars drive this season by replacing the newly retired Todd Kelly at Nissan Motorsport.

In 2017 Heimgartner put in two impressive drives in the Enduro Cup as co-driver for Tim Slade, with whom he scored a ninth-place finish at Bathurst before reaching the podium in the opening race at the Gold Coast 600, showing his class.

Heimgartner will be driving the #7 Nissan Altima for the first time in his career, and while Nissan has started preseason testing well, it struggled with the Dunlop control tyre throughout 2017.

But the 22-year-old Kiwi gets another shot in Supercars and in the most established team of his career, having previously driven for the New Zealand-funded Super Black Racing in 2015 and Lucas Dumbrell Motorsport in 2016.

It will be interesting to see how Heimgartner takes advantage of the potential in the Nissan powerplant and whether he can continue the form he showed in last year’s endurance races.

Early season struggles are expected, but look out for Heimgartner to string together a number of strong finishes in the back half of the championship to record his best-ever season finish.

Best-case scenario
The Nissan Altima embraces the new softer 2018 Dunlop control tyre and Heimgartner puts in a number of solid incident-free results in Adelaide and the Australian Grand Prix in Melbourne before reaching Symmons Plains, where he puts in the best individual performance of his career.

Worst-case scenario
Heimgartner’s best individual result is an eighth place, and he has struggled to adapt to the ultra-competitiveness of the motorsport category. If he doesn’t get off to a flyer in the opening rounds, the pressure of driving in a team which might be fighting for its survival could prove too much.

Todd Hazelwood – #35

Team: Matt Stone Racing
2017 result: N/A
2018 prediction: 21st

Todd Hazelwood, the reigning Super2 champion, gets his chance to test his racecraft against the biggest names in the business as he joins the Supercars field in 2018.

Hazelwood’s first foray in the main category saw him record respectable outings in his wildcard entry at Queensland Raceway, but his next start partnering Tim Blanchard at Sandown wasn’t so benign. He suffering a massive crash as co-driver, resulting in the team failing to line-up on Sunday. But he and lead driver Tim Blanchard bounced back at Bathurst to record an impressive 12th place finish.

Hazelwood is backed by a familiar family name to Supercars fans, with Matt Stone, the son Stone Brothers Racing co-owner Jim Stone, bringing his championship-winning program up to the big dance from the Super2 development series, leasing the racing entitlement contract (REC) owned by the recently retired Jason Bright for the next two seasons.

Matt Stone Racing has formed a technical partnership with DJR Team Penske to give Hazelwood the best possible machine to be competitive not only with the other 2018 rookies but also with the category veterans.

When the lights go green the small, punchy Matt Stone Racing outfit will count on the hardworking 22-year-old Adelaidean to continue to provide results to keep the operation afloat.

Yes, there will be tough days and difficult rounds, but there will also be gritty and impressive drives as Hazelwood continues his trajectory as a driver on the rise.

Best-case scenario
Hazelwood continues to exemplify the talent needed to be a champion, elevating him through the field. He keeps his car straight and avoids silly mistakes to put together an impressive first year in the Supercars Championship.

Worst-case scenario
The championship hangover is real and the gap between Super2 and the main category proves to be too much to overcome in one year. Tough rounds start to pile up and the pressure mounts, but the lessons learnt will be beneficial in the future.

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Anton de Pasquale – #99

Team: Erebus Motorsport
2017 result: N/A
2018 prediction: 20th

Anton de Pasquale continues his rapid rise to the top of motorsport in Australia by replacing Dale Wood at Erebus Motorsport in the team’s new #99 ZB Commodore for 2018.

De Pasquale embarked on a pathway to Formula One by pursuing open-wheel racing in Europe after winning the Australian Formula Ford championship in 2013. In his quest to reach the pinnacle of global motorsport De Pasquale entered Formula Renault 2.0 and became a member of the FIA’s young driver academy, but unfortunately that’s where his pathway ended.

Fortunately for Supercars fans De Pasquale returned home in 2016 and joined Paul Morris’s Super2 program, where he quickly impressed. The 22-year-old put together an incredible campaign in 2017, taking two race wins, five podiums and a pole position on his way to fourth place in the championship and earning his shot in the main game in the process.

Interestingly De Pasquale joins the top-flight category having never been an endurance co-driver, so he’s a true rookie to the main game. What does this mean for his chances?

This could spell trouble for the young gun, who will have to cope with the pressure of arguably the most competitive racing series in the world. He might struggle to cope with the actions of his competitors in close combat on the track. But on the other hand he has no bad habits from years in the category that would make him hesitant to go for gaps.

I’m looking forward to an entertaining first year.

Best-case scenario
Teething issues are expected, but all Anton needs to do is to keep the fenders straight and all four wheels on the chassis and the points will come. Don’t be surprised if he turns some heads, but he’s still a few seasons away from his biggest performances.

Worst-case scenario
Struggles with the instant increase in competition could see De Pasquale trickle down the grid. Erebus Motorsport has shown the ability to provide a winning race car, but can De Pasquale unlock its potential like his more experienced teammate, David Reynolds?

Will Davison – #230

Team: 23Red Racing
2017 result: 15th – 0 wins, 0 poles
2018 prediction: 19th

Will Davison enters 2018 with a newfound cavalier attitude after securing a deal to drive for Lucas Dumbrell’s 23Red Racing after he thought his full-time career was over.

Davison leaves Tekno Autosports, another single-car operation, where 2017 proved to be one of the more difficult campaigns of his illustrious career. He failed to secure a podium finish for the first time since 2010.

23Red Racing will be fielding an XF Falcon for the 2018 season for the two-time Bathurst 1000 winner under the Milwaukee Racing title.

The new team has some of the category’s biggest names behind the scenes, including Phil Mundy as owner and with Rob Crawford calling the shots, which could be the formula to reinvigorate Davison’s career.

But with a new team comes new team challenges. Finding the right people, getting new relationships to mesh, understanding the new car – these things take a bit of time to overcome.

The team does have a seasoned pro behind the wheel, but if Davison wants to keep that faith, he must deliver.

Best-case scenario
Davison rediscovers the hunger he has shown in the past as a driver with a small team punching above their weight. Mid-season rounds like Barbagello and Winton have consistently been his bread and butter events, and he’s always a dark horse for the enduros, which should secure him good results. It is vital to start the season well to keep confidence up within the team and himself.

Worst-case scenario
Davison and 23Red Racing struggle from the outset and those problems persist through the opening few rounds of the season. Once you’re at the bottom of the leaderboard it’s a hard mountain to climb back up. The only hope if this happens is to build a solid foundation to improve from in 2019.