Tickford to run Supercars wildcard

The famous Ford team has confirmed that Super2 points leader Best will make a pair of solo Supercars starts in a fifth Mustang alongside his programme for the team in the second tier series.

Best will make his single-driver main game debut at the Darwin Triple Crown in mid-June followed by a second outing at The Bend at the end of July.

The 20-year-old will then join Tickford for a second consecutive Bathurst 1000 campaign in October.

“I’m pumped to be joining the Supercars grid as a wildcard later this year,” Best said.

“It’s really cool to take this step with Tickford Racing and I’m looking forward to getting out there and having a crack.

"I’ve been with Tickford for a little over a year now and we’ve covered a lot of ground in that time. The next step really is to get into the main game and see how we go.

"I grew up watching a lot of the current drivers racing Supercars, so it’ll be pretty special to share the track and race against those same guys at Darwin and The Bend.

"Obviously the goal will be to just do the best I can, so I’m training hard and preparing in the best way I can to make sure I’m ready to go. I can’t wait.”

It's the second year running Tickford has fielded a wildcard after now full-timer Thomas Randle made a handful of appearances last season.

According to team boss Tim Edwards, the joint Super2/wildcard programme for Best was the "natural next step".

“Zak has impressed us at pretty much every turn since he joined the team, both in our Super2 programme and as a co-driver last year,” Edwards said.

“The natural next step for him is to make his solo debut, so we’re very pleased to have put together a couple of wildcard outings for him this season.

"It’s easy to forget Zak’s only been driving for us a little over a year, he’s had a lot thrown at him in that time and has taken it all in stride.

"It’s a whole new challenge and a considerable step up for him, but we’re very comfortable with giving it to him and are confident he’ll take it on and make the most of the opportunity.”

Best will be in action in the Tickford Super2 entry at the Perth SuperNight next weekend.