Jaguar Hilariously Rejects V8 Supercars Speculation

Calling it “frankly insane” and claiming “I don’t know what it does for AMG to get flogged by a V8 Commodore week after week, but it’s their brand, their issue. And the same thing will happen to Volvo to be honest,” Jaguar Land Rover’s Managing Director of the Asia Pacific region, David Blackhall, shot down all speculation that the Indo-British brand would be joining Ford, Holden, Mercedes-Benz AMG, Nissan, and Volvo in the Australian V8 Supercars series.

 

Two teams made overtures to the brand, with one even offering to just slap a leaper on its current engine, but Jaguar has cited the cost of fielding a competitive car is just too high. This is despite the existence of several rear-drive, V-8-powered sedans in its lineup.

 

There’s also a question of bang for the buck. V8 Supercars is popular, but according to global boss Adrian Hallmark, there’s just not enough exposure in domestic racing.

 

Meanwhile, we can also rule out Jaguar returning to Formula 1, as Hallmark explained, “For us, the only bet is F1 if you really want to get media coverage on a global level," said Hallmark. "We’ve been there. And the fizzy drink that took over [Jaguar’s F1 team] is not doing too bad. But we wouldn’t go back again."