Richards loses battle

V8 Supercar driver, New Zealander Jason Richards has lost his battle with adrenal cortical carcinoma, an aggressive and rare form of cancer after a year-long battle. He was aged 35.

Jason Richards was diagnosed in November 2010 after not feeling well towards the closing stages of the 2010 V8 Supercar Championship. The surprise diagnoses saw Richards opt to sit out the entire 2011 Championship while he attempted various treatment options to try and overcome the illness.

Richards was one of most likeable and flamboyant drivers in the field, always a crowd pleaser who was always more than willing to sign autographs or chat with eager fans.

The Kiwi-born 35-year-old started his career in the V8 Supercar Championship in 2000 after being drafted in to race for the now defunct Team Kiwi Racing. Throughout a ten year career he drove for three further teams including Team Dynamik, Tasman Motorsport, before having his career cut short while driving for Brad Jones Racing.

While driving for start up team Team Dynamik the up-and-coming driver shocked many when he almost pulled off a remarkable Sandown 500 victory only to be pipped late in the race by Mark Skaife.

Despite the result in 2003 it helped cement his position as a tough competitor who loved everything to do with racing and was eager to learn the ropes.

Richards then moved on to Tasman Motorsport in 2004, with a five-year stint at the team yielding two Bathurst podiums (2005 with Jamie Whincup and 2008 with Greg Murphy) in addition to his one-and-only V8 Supercars race win (Winton 2006). The 2009 season, Richards’s first with Brad Jones Racing, saw the Kiwi make a third trip to the Bathurst rostrum (with Cameron McConville), and equal his best championship result of 14th.
Although being diagnosed with cancer prior to the penultimate round of the 2010 championship spelt the end of Richards’s full-time racing career, he made two spectacular V8 Supercars appearances this year – winning on debut in the Fujitsu Series in Adelaide, before proving one of the fastest entries in the main game a week later at Albert Park, recording a best race result of second.

Jason Richards is survived by his wife Charlotte and their two children Sienna (3) and Olivia (2).