Australian racing legend Craig Lowndes to retire at the end of 2018

The Australian racing legend Craig Lowndes announces today that he will retire from full-time Supercars Championship competition at the end of the 2018 season. The 44-year-old driver made the announcement on Friday morning during the press conference at the Watpac Townsville 400.

Lowndes is one of the most decorated drivers in Supercars history. He has 652 Supercars starts, 106 victories, three championship titles, six Bathurst crowns and five Sandown 500 wins to his name.

Although Lowndes’ current two-year deal with Triple Eight also covers the 2019 season, Lowndes announced that he will step back from full-time driving sooner. He will continue as a co-driver for his Autobarn Racing Team and Triple Eight Race Engineering, the team he has been with since 2005.

Lowndes announced retirement today in Townsville

“I’ve always said there are two key factors keeping me racing and those are my motivation to keep getting up and doing what I love and my competitiveness, and for me, nothing has changed. But at the same time I want to make sure I finish my last full-time season with some strong results in the bag and after this year’s results so far Roland [Dane] and I came to the decision between us that this will be my last full season behind the wheel. I feel extremely lucky to have been able to keep doing what I love at a competitive level for such a long time.

I have to thank my family and friends, the whole team at Triple Eight and KRE, Supercars, my personal and team sponsors and of course the fans for supporting me throughout. Ultimately, the fans are the backbone of our great sport and the reason I’ve pulled my helmet on every race weekend, so to them, thank you,” Lowndes said.

Photos: Supercars,