David Reynolds is yet to begin contract negotiations with rival Supercars teams after he announced earlier in the week that he had split with Erebus Motorsport.
Reynolds brought an end to a ten-season deal with Erebus after just one year where he failed to live up to the expectations of himself and the team.
Brodie Kostecki has replaced the 2017 Bathurst 1000 winner for the 2021 championship year at the Melbourne-based squad.
Reynolds, meanwhile, is now rumoured to be the leading candidate for the vacant Kelly Racing drive.
With only a handful of seats left available for the 35-year-old to slot into, none look as inviting as the Kelly Racing outfit given the team’s strong return to competitive form this season.
But nothing has been confirmed, and Reynolds says he hasn’t begun any contract negotiations with other teams and he is keeping his options open.
“Everyone is saying ‘you have finished up with Erebus, where are you going next?’ But I don’t have anything yet,” he said on the Below the Bonnet podcast.
“I don’t have anything signed or guaranteed because when you are in a contract, there is a part of your contract which says that you cannot negotiate or sign a deal with another team, and I haven’t done that yet. I am true to my word.
“Now, I am free. I am allowed to go into the marketplace and start talking to other teams and finding what else is there.
“Everyone is like ‘you’re starting over again, are you afraid?’
“I would say no, I’m not afraid. This time I’m not starting from scratch. I’m starting with the experience and knowledge I have from the past couple of years with [Erebus].”
Reynolds refused to go into detail over why he opted out of a ten-year contract so early into the deal.
But he revealed that even if internal factors had triggered his premature exit, leaving the team has still left him crestfallen and empty.
“To end one year into a 10-year deal, it’s not a very good feeling,” he said. “But I think it’s the best for myself and the best for [Erebus] as well.
“Whatever way they want to take forward, and whatever way I want to take forward, I understand. And I can’t say anything bad about them. I had such a great time with them.
“We won a lot of races, had a lot of pole positions, won the biggest race of the year. I watched everyone from top down grow within themselves and become a great team. It’s a shame it had to end.”
