Team Sydney Supercars team sold to drag racer Peter Xiberras
Team Sydney has been sold to drag racer Peter Xiberras who is taking over the Supercars squad from the Webb family.
The impending sale of the team was first revealed last November, which prompted strong denials by team boss Jonathon Webb via other media outlets.
However, as predicted, the team has indeed changed hands which has seen successful drag racer and businessman Xiberras become the new owner of Team Sydney.
Autosport understands the deal was put to the Supercars Board as early as December but has only now been finalised.
The team will re-branded to PremiAir Racing and will effectively be built from the ground up with a new base in either Queensland or Victoria, depending on where the majority of new staff come from.
"Jonathon and I have been talking for some time," Xiberras told Autosport.
"To be up front, we didn't get close until Bathurst. We've been in negotiations since then. It's a big deal, a lot to be considered, but long story short, late last week we all agreed to make it happen.
"There were discussions about delaying it into this year, or whether we do a fresh start with Gen3. Those options were on the table.
"But for us, while we might be coming in at the wrong time, we're going to use this as a learning year. There's a lot to learn, a lot of mistakes to make, and this will be a good year to do that.
"And then when Gen3 comes along we'll be competitive."
Fabian Coulthard, Team Sydney Holden
Photo by: Edge Photographics
The deal casts doubt over the current driver line-up of Fabian Coulthard and Garry Jacobson, with no firm guarantees either will stay as the team changes hands.
"I can't comment too much," said Xiberras when asked about drivers.
"There's a lot going on in a short time. But I'm confident we'll line up, look half decent and won't embarrass ourselves at the first meeting."
The sale of the team brings the era of Tekno Autosports in Supercars to a close.
The team started out as a satellite Dick Johnson Racing entry driven by Webb in 2010, before becoming a standalone team the following season.
In 2013 Tekno signed Shane van Gisbergen and, operating as Triple Eight's top customer team, won a number of races.
When van Gisbergen moved to T8 in 2016 Will Davison joined the team, he and Webb winning that year's Bathurst 1000.
However the team has struggled to be competitive in recent seasons, the promise of a new dawn as Team Sydney left unfulfilled.
Webb and wife Kobe thanked a number of Tekno supporters in a statement provided to media.
"Kobe and I are grateful that Peter Xiberras and PremiAir Hire will continue to build Team Sydney within the Supercars Championship," it read.
"We are thankful for the support and friendships we have welcomed over the past 12 years of racing – significantly Tony Quinn, Triple 8, KRE, ARDC, Steve Hallam, Dr Geoffrey Slater, Mick Shortus (our first employee who remained with us for our entire Supercars journey), and many more.
"Thank you to our drivers, crew, and families."
Related video
Percat paired with Bathurst-winning engineer for 2022 Supercars season
Pither linked to Supercars return with PremiAir
Ranking the top 10 Supercars drivers of 2021
It may have been a one-man title fight in Supercars this season, but behind dominant champion Shane van Gisbergen were some fascinating performances. Autosport picks out the best drivers of the 2021 campaign.
The well-travelled racer now Supercars' elder statesman
James Courtney has been around the block in his motorsport career it's fair to say. After a single-seater career cut short, he's won everything there is to win in Supercars. Following a rocky ride recently in the Australian category, he's found a happy hunting ground with Tickford Racing, as Andrew van Leeuwen explains
How taming his temper shaped Supercars' slow-burn star
His decision to leave Brad Jones Racing was the biggest shock of the Australian Supercars silly season so far. But for Nick Percat, it comes as the culmination of a personal journey that has made him into one of the most rounded drivers in the series, now in search of a seat that can make him a champion
Why replacing Supercars' GOAT with a teenager is worth the risk for T8
On the face of it, picking an 18-year-old rookie to replace arguably the greatest Supercars driver of all time is a risky move. But as Jamie Whincup takes up a team principal role and hands his car to Broc Feeney, it's one that he is confident will be rewarded in the fullness of time - time which wasn't afforded to Whincup in his early days
How crisis talks over Supercars’ Gen3 future could leave it without a paddle
With Supercars’ Gen3 era on the horizon, a shift is set to take place – in more ways than one – but, as has become clear in recent weeks, the plan to bin the stick and use paddles with electronic assisted shift has been met with fierce opposition
Can DJR still be a Supercars powerhouse after Penske?
OPINION: Roger Penske's operation helped lift Dick Johnson's faltering Ford team back to the top of Australian tin-tops. But, despite The Captain's departure, along with star driver Scott McLaughlin, there's no reason to expect an imminent decline from DJR
Why Whincup's next move is no calculated gamble
Supercars' most successful team of the past 15 years is set for a radical shakeup next year when Jamie Whincup retires from driving and takes over the reins at Triple Eight. But the team's outgoing boss Roland Dane has full faith that he'll be up to the task
The top 10 Supercars drivers of 2020
In a year of few constants, the Australian Supercars championship could be relied upon for its usual blend of rough and tumble racing with a V8 soundtrack. But who were its top performers in 2020?