#8 Team BOC Holden Commodore VE
Widely regarded as one of the most approachable drivers in pit lane, Jason Richards is also regarded as supremely talented by his peers – especially in the wet - but is yet to find the consistency to be a true championship contender.
Richards started his motor racing career at age 8 in 1985, driving karts in his home country of New Zealand. After 35 championship titles he made his move out of karting in 1993, entering the Mini 7s.
Continued success meant Richards was offered the Canterbury Racing School Formula Ford drive for the Nissan Mobil 500 meetings at Wellington and Pukekohe.
A short stint in the English Formula Ford Championship followed before Richards returned to NZ where he signed with BMW Motorsport NZ as a junior driver. Richards won the 1995/96 Class 1 Touring Car Championship with 9 wins from the 12 race series.
Promoted to lead driver, Richards won the next three NZ Touring Car Championships prior to joining Team Kiwi for the V8 Supercar Series in 2001. In 2002 he finished a creditable 19th in spite of testing restrictions and the tyranny of distance.
Richards moved to the new South Australian-based Team Dynamik in 2003, putting in some strong results, including narrowly failing to snatch victory in the Sandown 500 from Mark Skaife in the race’s dramatic final laps.
Having moved on to the Tasman Motorsport outfit in 2004 that was born out of the former Lansvale Racing Team, Richards continued his quest for consistency and speed, all the while helping his team to battle through the teething problems associated with its rapid expansion.
Podium results in the Sandown and Bathurst endurance events in 2005 helped cement his place as a force in the V8 Supercar category.
2006 was a frustrating year for Richards as he demonstrated touches of brilliance that showed his team’s great potential, but a lack of overall consistency kept him from a final top 10 finish. A difficult start to the 2007 season again cruelled his chances for a top 10 championship finish, but a fighting fourth placing at Bathurst with Greg Murphy was an indication of the pace Richards and the team possess.
The Kiwi combination paired up to finish a brilliant second at Bathurst a year later in a season that again proved frustrating, prompting Richards to move on for 2009 to the Team BOC Commodore run by Brad Jones Racing.
After nearly a decade of trying, Richards took both his and the team’s first-ever V8 Supercar pole position in Darwin, before teaming with Cameron McConville to finish second at Bathurst.
Finishing in the top 10 in the championship remains an absolute focus for Richards, who is yet to achieve that goal in nine seasons of full-time V8 Supercar racing.
Bathurst 1000 Stats
Debut: 1997 (BMW 320i with Brett Riley)
Starts: 12
Poles: 0 (Best Qual 4th 2006)
Best Result: 2nd (2005, 2008, 2009)
Championship Results
2000, Team Kiwi Racing, Holden Commodore VT: 52nd (Bathurst only)
2001, Team Kiwi Racing, Holden Commodore VX: 24th
2002, Team Kiwi Racing, Holden Commodore VX: 19th
2003, Team Dynamik, Holden Commodore VY: 26th
2004, Tasman Motorsport, Holden Commodore VX/VY: 14th
2005, Tasman Motorsport, Holden Commodore VZ: 17th
2006, Tasman Motorsport, Holden Commodore VZ: 18th
2007, Tasman Motorsport, Holden Commodore VE: 14th
2008, Tasman/Sprint Gas Racing, Holden Commodore VE: 17th
2009, Team BOC/Brad Jones Racing, Holden Commodore VE: 14th
ATCC/V8 Supercar Championship Series Stats
Debut: 2000 Bathurst (Rd 13)
Event Starts: 119
Race Starts: 262
Race Wins: 1
Podium Finishes: 5
Poles: 1
Top 10 Race Results: 66
2009 Best Qual: 1st – 1 pole at Hidden Valley
2009 Best Result: 2nd – Bathurst (with Cameron McConville)
Other Career Highlights
NZ Touring Car Championship - 1998/99, 00/01: Winner
Bathurst 1000 – 2005, 2008, 2009: Runner-Up
Sandown 500 – 2005: 3rd
NZ Touring Car Championship – 1997/98: Runner-Up