AUSTRALIA - Continuing his progression in the Supercars Championship, Thomas Randle will compete at three Supercars events as a wild card entry in 2021, piloting the No. 55 Castrol Racing Ford Mustang for Tickford Racing. Making his season debut at The Bend Motorsport Park in May, Randle and Castrol Racing will also compete at the Darwin Triple Crown in June and the Perth SuperNight in September, before Randle co-drives in one of Tickford’s three full-time entries in the Bathurst 1000. The Castrol Racing Mustang will also feature significant support from ACT Fence Hire, which has supported Randle and Tickford Racing for several years, and Canberra-based steel supplier Herzog Steel.

Melbourne native Randle is understandably ecstatic at his expanded opportunity to race at the Supercars level.
 
“I am just absolutely thrilled to have the opportunity to drive the Castrol Racing Ford Mustang for Tickford Racing at three events this season,” Randle said. “Tickford and Castrol have been huge supporters of my career thus far, and are both iconic brands in Australian motorsport, so to represent them on the grid in this capacity is incredibly special. I’m very familiar with the team at Tickford, of course, and I have a lot of experience driving their cars so I feel like I can slot in and be comfortable straight away at Tailem Bend. Obviously we put together a wild card at Tailem Bend a couple of years ago that went quite well, so hopefully we can be just as strong, if not stronger, on our debut and carry that to the other two events, which are very exciting as well. I have so many people to thank, not just Tickford and Castrol, but the continued support from ACT Fence Hire, who first supported me in my 2019 wildcard appearance, Herzog Steel, Rusty French, my family, and so many others. I’ll be working hard to do them all proud at Tailem Bend and beyond.”

The 25-year old made his main game Supercars debut at The Bend in 2019 aboard a Tickford wild card entry, putting in an impressive performance competing with the championship’s regulars. Noting Castrol’s support of Randle’s 2019 entry, Jotika Prasad, Castrol Marketing Director, ANZ expressed her delight in the global brand’s involvement in the program.
 
“Castrol are enormously excited to be onboard with Thomas Randle at The Bend and beyond this season,” Prasad said. “Castrol was part of his Supercars debut here in 2019, and we’re thrilled to be able to join forces again with one of the most exciting young drivers in Australia.”
 
Castrol has been the sole oil and lubricant partner of Tickford Racing since its inception, which has spanned over 550 Supercars races since 2003. The Castrol Racing wild card entry comes in addition to an already-expanded partnership between the two parties, and offers an exciting opportunity for one of the sport’s up and coming stars.

“The Castrol Racing Mustang looks amazing,” Prasad added, “Tickford Racing have brought to life this vision of the green machine in 2021 and we can’t wait to see Thomas push it to the edge it at Tailem Bend. Both Tickford Racing and Thomas Randle have showcased how well they perform under pressure, with Castrol and Castrol EDGE playing the perfect supporting act in those feats, giving our drivers the confidence to unlock the edge of performance.”
 
Tickford Racing CEO and Team Principal Tim Edwards added his enthusiasm towards the program, and providing another step in Randle’s Supercars development, which started with his Super2 debut in 2018.
 
“We’ve obviously spent a lot of time developing Thomas the past few years, so it’s fantastic to put this next step in place for his career, and to have Castrol come on board for these events is tremendous,” Edwards said. “Castrol have obviously been a partner of ours since day one, we had already expanded our partnership heading into this season, so to add the cherry on top and have the Castrol Racing Ford back on the grid, with a talent like Thomas behind the wheel, is an excellent outcome for all of us. We are thrilled to put this program together and certainly believe Thomas and the Castrol Racing crew will do a great job, and we can’t wait for them to hit the track at The Bend.”
 
Randle and Castrol Racing will take to the track on Tuesday for a test day at Winton Motor Raceway in preparation for The Bend SuperSprint, taking place May 8-9 in South Australia.