Michael Caruso out, 2019 grid seemingly set.

Well, Michael Caruso's out of his ride at Nissan Motorsports in 2019. He's been at Kelly Motorsports for six years but hasn't made much in the win column. 2 wins in 11 years.

Kelly Racing confirms that Michael Caruso will not be returning with the team in 2019. Michael joined the team ahead of the 2013 season alongside the Nissan Supercar program. Since 2013, Michael has been an outstanding ambassador of the team and his on-track success delivered the team's second victory during the Nissan Motorsport era with a win at Darwin in 2016. Kelly Racing thanks Michael for his contribution over the last six seasons and we wish him the best with his future endeavors.

Well, for poor Michael Caruso, there isn't really much in the way of "future endeavors", like Tander before him, his full-time career is (most likely) over. Caruso had a tough 2018 season, finishing 3rd in the 2018 Last-Place championship with 3 Last-Place Finishes, 6 Bottom 3 finishes and 8 Bottom 5 appearances just in 2018.

His first last-place finish was race 2 at Barbagallo Raceway with Wheel Hub dramas, while both of his other 2 last-place finishes cam at Townsville. Race 1's last-place finish was due to Electrical dramas, while the Race 2 last-place finish after he collided with Anton De Pasquale on lap 60, sending him hard into the tires.

So, who will replace Caruso? Well, there really is only one candidate, and it's an obvious one.

Garry Jacobson.

It makes sense, he's a former Super2 Championship winner, and he's got talent and sponsorship. We'll have to wait and see how he goes in the main game.

Disappointing for Michael Caruso, but a big opportunity for Garry Jacobson to show what he can do.

So, Rookie of the Year will be contested by Macauley Jones in the #21 for Brad Jones Racing, and Garry Jacobson, possibly in the #23 for Kelly Racing. We'll see over the next two weeks.

Why do drivers from outside Australia and New Zealand (almost) always struggle in Supercars

So. With 2 years down, Simona De Silvestro has, a top 10, but not much else to show.

Some idiots are claiming that this because she's a woman. This is not true.

There is actually a better reason why Simona's struggling. Well, there are multiple reasons, but the main reason why Simona's struggling is a similar reason to why Maro Engel, Robert Dahlgren, and many others have struggled in the Supercars series.

Put simply, in my view, it's because they're not from Australia or New Zealand. Let me explain. But before I do, let me note the few exceptions to this.

Firstly and most obviously. Allan Moffat. He's from Canada, and he got four wins at Bathurst and four Championships.

The other notable "exception" is Alex Premat.

I will note Alex Premat because he has only tasted success as a co-driver to Scott McLaughlin. He struggled badly as a full-time driver and only started doing well as an endurance driver.

So, those are the most notable exceptions to the rule.

Also, to note, Simona De Silvestro is covered by this rule, as she's from Switzerland.

Now, onto the main reason why people not from Australia or New Zealand struggle in the Supercars. And there's one very good reason why. It's because they're not used to the Supercars.

Let me explain.

If you work your way up to the Supercars series in either Australia or New Zealand, and particularly if you're racing in Super 3 or Super 2, you will be racing cars that are similar, though older, to the main game cars. This gives you experience in those cars, so you (theoretically) have an idea of how they work.

However, if you are not from Australia or New Zealand, then its unlikely you'll have encountered these Supercars. And they're unique cars so it can be very hard for someone not used to the cars to adjust.

This is also why so many drivers from outside the US, again, with very few exceptions, struggle with NASCAR. Juan Paublo Montoya and Marcos Ambrose being the two big examples of very successful drivers from other motorsport series (IndyCar and Supercars respectively) not making that bigger splash in NASCAR.

(Of note: Both of them did impress on the Road Courses).

Australia Supercars are unique machines, and the field today is ultra-competitive, so if you're not in sync with the car and the track, you're down the back, and it doesn't matter if you're Tim Blanchard or Jamie Whincup.

So, to put it succinctly, the reason why racers not from Australia or New Zealand tend to struggle in the Supercars series is that they're not used to the unique cars we race.

As for Simona specifically, it at least in part because the team isn't that great. Sure, Rick Kelly can wheel his car around really well, but the rest, not so much.

I'll be returning to Last-Place finishes soon, as well as doing potential other hot takes in the future, so please follow me on Twitter and this Blog.

Garth Tander Co-Driver to Shane Van Gisbergen. A follow-up to Garth Tander's full-time career is over. Why?

So, It's time I did a follow-up to my announcement that Garth Tander is being shunted by Garry Rodgers Motosrsports, by discussing what is going to be the second most powerful Enduro Pair in this field.

Shane Van Gisbergen/Garth Tander.

With Garth Tander turfed out of GRM to make way for Richie Stanaway and Boost Mobile, he's now part of Holden Red Bull Racing Team as a co-driver of Shane Van Gisbergen at Bathurst, Gold Coast and Sandown.

So this is going to be an incredible pairing, and these two, who have been racing each other since Shane Van Gisbergen joined the Supercars at Oran Park in 2007, are going to be tough to beat.

Well, if it wasn't for probably the greatest pairing in the modern era, a pairing so strong that the rules had to be changed to split them up.

Of course, I'm talking about the re-uniting of Jamie Whincup and Craig Lowndes as the other pairing.

This is also a big opportunity for Craig Lowndes to see if he can reach the 9 Bathurst wins of the legendary Peter Brock. Considering that Craig Lowndes already has 7 Bathurst wins, 9 is not out of the question.

The worst part of Garth Tander being turfed out of GRM, is that 2019 was going to be Tander's final full-time year, he ahd basically already announced it.

Anyway, there are several very strong pairings heading into the 2019 Pirtek Enduro cup, and it'll be very interesting to see who wins.

Tune in next week when I explain why, with only two exceptions (Allan Moffat and, as a Co-Driver, Alex Premat), drivers coming to the Supercars from outside AUstralia or New Zealand have struggled.

Garth Tander's full-time career is over. Why?

So, Garth Tander’s been pushed into retirement.

Yes, you read that correct. Garth Tander’s full-time Supercars career is over. I was nearly correct with my prediction that, after Craig Lowndes announced his retirement that Garth Tander would be next (Though that as scuttled by Blanchard).

And all evidence points to Tander being pushed by Garry Rodgers, who wanted to “future proof” his team, by having 2 2^nd-year drivers in his team, Richie Stanaway and James Golding.

Now, it should be made abundantly clear that Garth Tander was contracted through to the end of 2019. Was there a clause in the contract, like with Stanaway? It seems so. Especially since Stanaway has brought a sponsor with him, Boost Mobile.

As I have hinted earlier, the main reason why Tander's out and Stanaway's in is sponsorship. With Wilson Security out, Garth Tander would have needed another sponsor, while Stanaway had one.

Now despite this, I disagree with GRM’s decision. I understand where they’re coming from, but Tander should have been given the kind of send-off that Craig Lowndes got last year, not treated like this.

Will Garth continue as a co-driver? Likely. Garth Tander/Shane Van Gisbergen would be a killer Co-Driver/Main Gamer Drive combo on par with Craig Lowndes/Jamie Whincup that was announced recently.

To be honest, this decision could, and there’s a good chance it will, come back to bite GRM, as Stanaway has had a very rough first season, as I’ve documented multiple times. And the move to GRM, as well as replacing Garth Tander, means Stanaway is going to have to show some of the brilliance he showed in Super 2 to really fill Tander’s massive shoes.

So, in summary, Tander out with his full-time career done, Stanaway in, and he has BIG shoes to fill. Stanaway has a sponsor, but Tander should have been given a similar send-off to what Lowndes got in 2017.