Nick Percat confirmed at Brad Jones Racing

BJR confirmed yesterday that Bright will be moving on at the end of the season, which further fuelled long-standing speculation that Percat will race for the team next season.

With LD Motorsport facing an uncertain future, Percat has been linked to the BJR seat for much of the silly season. He even offered a clear indication that he had a deal with BJR in place after finishing third at Mount Panorama earlier this month. 

That move has now been confirmed, with Percat set to leave the struggling LD Motorsport squad and join the Albury-based Holden team in the #8 Commodore.

“It will be great to work with the team at BJR,” said Percat.

“They are a respected Holden team and one I’ve wanted to work with for quite a while now.

“I’m super excited to start 2017 with the BJR team, especially at my home track of Adelaide where I took the Clipsal 500 win earlier this year. I couldn’t be happier with the announcement and I’m looking forward to hitting the ground running.”

Percat added that he is looking forward to working with current BJR drivers Tim Slade and Tim Blanchard – although Blanchard’s future with the squad might depend on what Bright does with the Racing Entitlements Contract that BJR currently uses to field its third entry.

“I was teammates with Slade in 2014 and Blanchard in 2015 and we worked really well together,” said Percat. “Plus we’ve been friends for many years, so it’s the perfect fit for me.”

Team boss Brad Jones, meanwhile, says he’s looking forward to trying to tap into Percat’s potential.

“I’m really eager to see how Nick goes next year,” he said. “I’ve been keeping an eye on him over the years and watched his success in Formula Ford and especially the Dunlop Series.

“There is no doubt that Nick has a lot of talent behind the wheel. If you look at our team history with unlocking driver talent, I think Nick will be yet another driver we can get to the front. He is undeniably fast.

“Having Nick on the team also means we’ve got two proud South Australians on the team, so kicking off at the Clipsal 500 next year is undoubtedly going to be a big event for us.

“I believe 2017 will be a strong year for us at Brad Jones Racing.”

Percat made a spectacular entrance to the Supercars scene in 2011 when he won the Bathurst 1000 on debut alongside Garth Tander at the Holden Racing Team. In 2014 he switched to the minnow LD Motorsport squad, before adding a shock Clipsal 500 win and Bathurst 1000 podium to his CV this season.