There’ll be a Kiwi in Super3 next season with confirmation from Eggleston Motorsport that 19-year-old Aucklander Matthew McCutcheon will compete for them.
The teenager will contest the full championship in Supercars’ third tier in a VF Commodores built by Triple Eight Race Engineering.
It’s a big step forward for McCutcheon who is quickly establishing himself as a top young driver from New Zealand.
He sampled a Supercar for the first time last year at Erebus’s “Who’s next?” program at Winton and then again for EMS at the same venue in December.
To get the opportunity to now compete full-time is a dream-come-true for McCutcheon.
“I am so excited to be joining Eggleston Motorsport in 2023 to race in the Super3 Series,” he sais.
“I can’t thank Ben [Eggleston], Rachael and the team and all my supporters enough for this opportunity.
“It has always been a dream of mine to race in the Supercar series and this step is an amazing opportunity in achieving my goal of racing in Supercars.
“After spending time with the team at the Adelaide 500 and then again at the test at Winton a couple of weeks after, I already feel at home and I am honoured to be a part of their winning team.
“I can’t wait to kick off the season at Newcastle which is coming around fast.”
The team are also relishing the opportunity to have such a young talent competing for them, Team Owner & Manager Rachael Eggleston impressed with McCutcheon’s attitude and professionalism already.
“In our first discussion with Matt, he didn’t just say he wanted to be a Supercar driver, he said he wants to be a Supercar champion,” she said.
“We know he will leave no stone unturned to get to the top level of Supercar racing in Australia and we cannot wait to be a part of helping him get there.
“Matt and his family flew to the Adelaide 500 where Matt worked with the team, he wasn’t afraid to get his hands dirty and was doing everything from cleaning cars, tyre pressures, and everything in between.
“It was a great opportunity for him to learn how a race weekend in the category works and get himself ahead of the game for 2023.
“He had a test with us in December and showed real talent behind the wheel. He worked so well with the team to get faster and faster as the day went on.
“He has such a fantastic attitude and is just a great young guy. We are genuinely excited to hit the track and we are confident Matt will be a regular podium contender.”
It’s a step up for McCutcheon who ran in the Toyota 86 Championship last year after winning a Tony Quinn Foundation grant to help fund his competition. He claimed a race win in his rookie season and finished sixth overall.
This came off the back of a career which began in Speedway midget racing before progressing to Formula First Racing in 2019. From there it was New Zealand Formula Ford in 2021, where he finished second overall, before Toyota 86’s came into the fray.
He’s impressed in each series he has competed this far and has heavyweight Shane van Gisbergen in his corner. The Supercars’ champion has worked with McCutcheon in past and provided feedback and data from abroad.
McCutcheon will have fellow Kiwi Ryan Wood for company on the grid as Super2 and Super3 run a combined field for the season.
