Minimising time on sidelines critical for Goddard

Having now officially missed out on a full-time 2022 Repco Supercars Championship gig, Zane Goddard is determined to ensure his absence does not extend beyond 12 months.

A former European open-wheel racer, Goddard spent two years in the Dunlop Super2 Series before graduating to the main game at Matt Stone Racing, firstly with a partial SuperLite programme and then the entire 2021 campaign.

Despite impressing with some standout qualifying efforts, including a second-row start at Symmons Plains, the 22-year-old was unable to secure a seat for the coming season.

Tim Slade and Lee Holdsworth have recently proven that it’s possible to return after a year out, although James Golding’s plights have shown the dream does become exponentially more out of reach the longer the time on the sidelines grows.

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“I think once you start getting past that [one year], it’s bloody hard to get back in, so the target is definitely to be back in for the Gen3 cars,” Goddard told Speedcafe.com.

Working in his favour is the fact that missing 2022 might be less of an issue anyway, given the current Mustang and ZB Commodore will be obsolete next year.

“It sort of works out nicely the way that the years have fallen – obviously it will be everyone’s first year in the Gen3 so it doesn’t really put me behind in any way,” added Goddard, who’s now seeking a leading co-drive for the Repco Bathurst 1000 in October.

“So in that regard it works out quite well but obviously I’d still rather be racing full-time [in 2022] as well.”

Further helping Goddard’s cause is that he’s quickly gathered vital insight into the next-generation cars, after testing both models during the week at Queensland Raceway.

“I want to be on the grid in 2023 racing these things, for sure,” he said.

“I’m just really grateful for the opportunity from the team, Supercars, everyone involved, it’s cool to be a part of this whole process. It’s something I haven’t done before.

“It’s just cool to be part of this, for sure.”

As revealed by Speedcafe.com, the next lot of Gen3 testing has been pushed back a week to allow for additional analysis plus the arrival of new parts.