Chris Pither (born 3 December 1986) is a New Zealand professional racing driver. Pither has won eight national championships including; three New Zealand karting titles, the New Zealand Holden HQ Series in 2003 and 2004, the NZ V8 Ute Championship Series in 2010 as well as the NZ and Australian V8 Ute Racing Series in 2011.
| Chris Pither | |
|---|---|
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| Nationality |  New Zealander |
| Born | 3 December 1986 (age 37) Palmerston North, New Zealand |
| Racing licence |  FIA Silver |
| Supercars Championship career | |
| Car number | 22 |
| Current team | PremiAir Racing |
| Championships | 0 |
| Races | 136 |
| Wins | 0 |
| Podiums | 0 |
| Pole positions | 1 |
| 2022 position | 20th (1257 pts) |
Biography
editPither started racing in his home country, coming up through the open wheeler ranks first through the evolved Formula Vee class Formula First, then Formula Ford. After a couple of seasons racing in the one-make HQ Holden series, an impressive top five championship result in the inaugural Toyota Racing Series led to a move to Australia and two seasons in the popular V8 Utes series.[1] For the 2006 season, Pither joined Brad Jones Racing in the second-tier Fujitsu V8 Supercar Series. A sporadic 2007 campaign, switching teams mid-season did not bring positive results, however still managed to join tail-marking main-game V8 Supercars outfit Team Kiwi Racing for four rounds during the 14-event season. After subbing for regular driver Kayne Scott at the Eastern Creek Raceway round, he then participated in a second round at the Winton Motor Raceway, although the results were not spectacular. The endurance races were particularly disappointing after an engine failure in practice saw Team Kiwi Racing withdraw from the L&H 500. Pither was involved in a major accident during practice for the Supercheap Auto 1000. Pither struck a stationary Paul Weel with a heavy impact at Reid Park corner, causing extensive damage to both cars and hospitalising Weel. The Falcon was miraculously repaired in time to start the race, but unfortunately was the race's first retirement. Pither parted ways with the team and he took a hiatus from racing in 2009.
Pither's return to V8 Supercars would come in 2012 when he signed to drive in the endurance races with David Wall in the #21 Brad Jones Racing Commodore - a signing that would lead Pither to a full-time drive in the Dunlop V8 Supercar Series.
In late November 2015, it was announced that Pither would be driving for Super Black Racing in 2016. He left the now-defunct team at end of 2016. Pither then moved to Erebus Motorsport to co-drive alongside Dale Wood in 2017. The pair recorded a best result of 4th, which came at the Bathurst 1000. For 2018 Pither has moved to Garry Rogers Motorsport as a co-driver.
In 2020, Pither signed to drive for Team Sydney by Tekno full time. Coca-Cola came onboard to sponsor him throughout the season. He drove the #22 Holden Commodore. His best finish in the season would be a 5th place at Hidden Valley. He would end the season finishing 20th in the points.
Career results
editSome results sourced from:[2]
Supercars Championship results
editBathurst 1000 results
edit| Year | Team | Car | Co-driver | Position | Laps |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2007 | Paul Morris Motorsport | Holden Commodore VZ | Fabian Coulthard
|
16th | 159 |
| 2008 | Team Kiwi Racing | Ford Falcon BF | Kayne Scott
|
DNF | 8 |
| 2012 | Britek Motorsport | Holden Commodore VE |  David Wall
|
14th | 161 |
| 2013 | Britek Motorsport | Holden Commodore VF | David Wall
|
22nd | 156 |
| 2014 | Britek Motorsport | Holden Commodore VF | Dale Wood
|
DNF | 45 |
| 2015 | Garry Rogers Motorsport | Volvo S60 Mk.2 | David Wall
|
DNF | 15 |
| 2016 | Super Black Racing | Ford Falcon FG X | Richie Stanaway
|
12th | 161 |
| 2017 | Erebus Motorsport | Holden Commodore VF | Dale Wood
|
4th | 161 |
| 2018 | Garry Rogers Motorsport | Holden Commodore ZB | Garth Tander
|
6th | 161 |
| 2019 | Garry Rogers Motorsport | Holden Commodore ZB | Richie Stanaway
|
12th | 161 |
| 2020 | Team Sydney by Tekno | Holden Commodore ZB | Steve Owen
|
16th | 159 |
| 2021 | Brad Jones Racing | Holden Commodore ZB | Macauley Jones
|
12th | 161 |
| 2022 | PremiAir Racing | Holden Commodore ZB | Cameron Hill
|
21st | 153 |
References
edit- ^ "About me". Chris Pither Motorsport. Archived from the original on 19 November 2008. Retrieved 7 January 2009.
- ^ "Driver Database: Chris Pither". Driver Database. Retrieved 7 January 2009.
External links
edit- Chris Pither career summary at DriverDB.com
- Chris Pither profile on US Racing Reference
- V8 Supercars Official Profile