Tickford Racing has signed experienced driver Michael Caruso to a co-driving role for the 2019 Enduro Cup campaign in the Virgin Australia Supercars Championship. The 35-year old Caruso joins Tickford Racing with 11 full-time Supercars seasons under his belt and 346 race starts to his credit.
Caruso, who hails from Sydney, comes to the team having raced full-time in Supercars from 2008-2018, and in 2019 will co-drive alongside Cameron Waters, who enters his fourth full-time season.
“I’m happy to join Tickford Racing, particularly with the Mustang coming on this year,” said Caruso, who now resides in Melbourne. “That and driving with Cam, no doubt it’s going to be a fantastic partnership. We’ve got a great relationship from the past, we both race hard, and we’ll hopefully fight for some great results at this year’s Enduros.
“I wanted to team up with a team, car, and driver where the combination would work well and give us the opportunity to win races, and this is a fantastic place to position myself to do that.”
The spirited Caruso looks forward to getting back in a Ford for the first time since 2007, when he raced to runner-up in Super2 with Ford Rising Stars Racing, overseen by Tickford Racing in a BA Falcon.
“I have previous experience with the team in Super2 in 2007,” Caruso continued, “so I’m familiar with the team operations, and though it’s been some time, I know a lot of the team still, and I started my career with a Ford, so to get back in one is an exciting opportunity.”
Team principal and CEO Tim Edwards is pleased to bring Caruso into the team, citing the driver’s recent experience as reason to believe he’s capable of producing strong results for Tickford in the upcoming endurance season.
“To have a career as long as Michael has had, you need to do a lot of things right in and out of the car,” Edwards said. “He’s obviously been able to do that for a long while and probably deserves more trophies than he’s gotten over the years. Hopefully we’ll help him add to that tally this year.
“The nice thing about Michael having his recent experience is we know he can hold his own against the main game guys. Last year we brought Moff (James Moffat) in a similar situation, and he was sensational, so we’re very excited at the prospect of having Michael on our side.”
In 2009, Caruso stood on the third step of the podium at the Bathurst 1000, his best finish in the iconic event. With his first race with Tickford slated for October at Mount Panorama, Caruso is eager to celebrate that decade anniversary with another run at the Peter Brock Trophy.
“I haven’t spoken to Cam, but I’m pretty sure we’re on the same wavelength, and we’re going there to win,” he said of the Great Race. “We’ve got a strong line up in our camp, and the way the Enduro pairings are shaping up up and down pit lane, you need to have two really strong drivers to have a chance to win, so I’m looking forward to teaming up with Cam and seeing how we go.”
Caruso joins former Kelly Racing teammate James Moffat on the team’s Enduro Cup line up, with further additions to come. He will get his first taste of the Ford Mustang Supercar Thursday, 14 February in Supercars preseason testing at Phillip Island.