Chris Pither has confirmed he will not drive full-time in the 2017 Virgin Australia Supercars Championship after completing his first full year in the category last season.
Pither scored one ARMOR ALL Pole Position at Queensland Raceway, with a best race finish of eighth in both Perth and Ipswich. He finished 21st in the championship.
The news was revealed on the 30-year old’s Facebook page last night, as he prepares to line-up at the Liqui-Moly Bathurst 12 Hour alongside a number of his Supercars rivals and international superstar drivers.
“It is with mixed emotions that I write this evening. I have been working hard since prior to Homebush last year but unfortunately have not secured a full-time Supercars drive for the 2017 season,” Pither’s post read.
“After a positive rookie season and pushing for so long to get into the series I’m disappointed I couldn’t continue for 2-3 years to really establish myself, but my childhood dream was to race in the series and looking back will always bring a smile, especially the pole position!
“On a more exciting positive note, I really enjoyed pulling the helmet on for the first time last Tuesday to test the Hobson Motorsport Nissan GT-R NISMO GT3. I’m very excited to be joining the team for the Bathurst 12 Hour next weekend.
“It’s going to be a massive event and I hope to see lots of you there.”
Kiwi driver Pither was recruited to the Super Black Racing squad last year, but after team owner Tony Lentino’s passing in July the future of the team was in doubt.
The licence underpinning his entry was subsequently sold to Tim Blanchard and placed at Brad Jones Racing, while Jason Bright brings his REC to line-up at PRA this season.
Pither’s 2016 engineer Dilan Talabani has also left PRA with an announcement on his new role expected shortly.
Mark Winterbottom revealed earlier this week the team was still working through driver-engineer pairings.
The only team yet to publicly confirm its full-time driver line-up is Lucas Dumbrell Motorsport.
