Kanga Loaders backed young Kiwi Chris Pither will team up with fellow-New Zealander Fabian Coulthard in a Sirromet Wines Holden Commodore in this year’s V8 Supercar Championship endurance races at Sandown and Bathurst.

They will drive one of two Paul Morris Motorsports-built Sirromet Wines Commodores in the Sandown 500 in Melbourne from 14 to 16 September and in the Supercheap Auto 1000 at Bathurst from 3 to 7 October.

The team’s other Commodore will be shared by PMM owner and driver Paul Morris and fellow-Gold Coast racer Steve Ellery, who previously combined in 2006 to finish eighth at Sandown and sixth at Bathurst.

Pither moved to the Gold Coast from New Zealand two years ago to further his motor racing career.

 “It’s an unbelievable opportunity that I’ve been given. It’s all been made possible by the support of Alan (Porter, Group Managing Director), Kanga Loaders and their supporters (Ryco Hose, Kubota, Atlas Copco and Ameron) and also my New Zealand backer Ash Cairns (Cairns Bins) and his business associates. The best way I can show my appreciation to them is to do my very best,” said Chris.

The 20-year-old made his V8 Supercar Championship debut driving a PMM-built Team Kiwi Racing Commodore in the Bahrain round in 2006, qualifying 30th and finishing 25th, 22nd and 23rd in the three races.

In 2006 he finished 11th in the Fujitsu V8 Supercar Series driving a Kanga Loaders Ford Falcon and has contested the past two rounds of this year’s development series in a Kanga Loaders Holden Commodore.

Coulthard, 25, drove in the opening six rounds of this year’s V8 Supercar Championship in a Sirromet Wines Commodore.

Pither said teaming with Coulthard in the PMM squad at Sandown and Bathurst was an opportunity to take another step forward in his long-term aim to secure a fulltime drive in the V8 Supercar Championship.

“I had a taste of it in Bahrain last year and the thing I noticed was how much closer the competition is compared to the ‘development’ series,” said Pither. “You’ve got to get everything 100 per cent right or you are miles away.”

“I’ve known Fabian for a long time from karting and Formula Ford racing in New Zealand. Hopefully we will have a good run in both endurance races and make it to the finish. We are a similar height so there shouldn’t be any problems with the seat position.”

Morris, who has scored points for top 15 results in the past eight races of this year’s V8 Supercar Championship, said he had been impressed by Pither’s performances in the past two years.

“Chris (Pither) is serious about his racing, and shows the speed and talent to do a good job for us,” said Morris. “I’m confident that putting a couple of young guys together like Chris and Fabian (Coulthard) will give us the potential to have both cars in the top 10.”

Pither has raced at Sandown once before, in the V8 Ute series in 2005. His past experience at Bathurst includes competing in a Fujitsu V8 Supercar Series round on the 6.2km Mount Panorama circuit in 2006 and driving a BMW 335i in this year’s Bathurst 12-Hour event.

“I enjoyed driving at Sandown, and one of the (V8) Ute races I did there was in the wet,” said Pither. “Bathurst is probably the best track I’ve driven on. It’s a lot steeper than it looks on television, and the other thing that stands out when you first race there is the hump coming down Conrod Straight.”

Pither will continue his preparation for Sandown and Bathurst by driving in the next round of the Fujitsu V8 Supercar Series at Oran Park in NSW from 16 to 19 August.

Earlier this year Pither also raced a Kanga Loaders Falcon XR8 in the Yokohama V8 Ute Series and in the non-championship support events at the Australian Formula One Grand Prix at Albert Park in Melbourne.