Scott Robert Pye (born 8 January 1990) is an Australian professional racing driver. He currently competes in the Repco Supercars Championship, and drives the No. 20

Holden ZB Commodore The Opel Insignia is a large family car (D-segment in Europe) developed and produced by the German car manufacturer Opel since 2008. Taking its name from a 2003 concept car, the model line serves as the flagship Opel car line, slotted above th ...

for

Team 18 Team 18 (formerly known as Charlie Schwerkolt Racing) is an Australian motor racing team currently competing in the Supercars Championship, running two Holden ZB Commodores. The team's current drivers are Mark Winterbottom and Scott Pye. Hist ...

Racing career

Early days

Pye started out in go-karts, winning six state championships. Pye moved up to the

Formula Ford Formula Ford, also known as F1600 and Formula F, is an entry-level class of single seater, open-wheel formula racing. The various championships held across the world form an important step for many prospective Formula One drivers. Formula For ...

level in 2007 when he raced in the State Series Formula Ford in Australia for Borland Racing Developments/ Cams Rising Star. 2008 saw Pye move up to the

Australian Formula Ford Championship The Australian Formula Ford Championship is an Australian motor racing competition for drivers of Formula Ford racing cars, held annually since 1970. From 1970 until 1992 it was a national series and from 1993 until 2013 the series was sanctione ...

, again with Borland Racing Developments/ Cams Rising Star. He finished the championship in seventh place in

2008 File:2008 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: Lehman Brothers went bankrupt following the Subprime mortgage crisis; Cyclone Nargis killed more than 138,000 in Myanmar; A scene from the opening ceremony of the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing; ...

and in third position in 2009.

International foray

Pye joined fellow Australian driver

Nathan Antunes Nathan Antunes (born 23 April 1988) in Sydney, Australia is best known as an Australian race car driver. Educated at Trinity Grammar School in Sydney, he has raced in a variety of classes throughout the world. Racing career Junior Kartin ...

in the European Technique team for the

2008–09 Toyota Racing Series The 2008–09 Toyota Racing Series was the fifth running of the Toyota Racing Series. The Toyota Racing Series is New Zealand's premier open-wheeler motorsport category. The Series includes races for every major trophy in New Zealand circuit racin ...

New Zealand New Zealand ( mi, Aotearoa ) is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and over 700 smaller islands. It is the sixth-largest island count ...

. He achieved a podium finish in his first race at Ruapuna and completed the weekend with a win in the third race which saw him take home the Wigram Cup. Pye continued his good form in round two at

Timaru International Motor Raceway Timaru International Motor Raceway is a motor racing circuit situated about 10 minutes or outside of Timaru, New Zealand. The circuit is accessible from either State Highway 1 or the Timaru-Pleasant Point Highway. It is often called ''Levels'' ...

when he won the final two races, earning him the round win. For 2010 Pye moved to the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the European mainland, continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotlan ...

to compete in the

British Formula Ford Championship The British Formula Ford Championship was an entry level single seater motor racing category, designed to give racing drivers their first step into car racing after karting. Drivers from around the world were attracted to the United Kingdom to ...

. Racing a

Mygale Mygale Racing Car Constructor (Mygale SARL) is a French racing car manufacturer that specialises in the production of single seater chassis for use in formula racing. It is most notable for its Formula Ford chassis. Mygale also produces the chas ...

for British team Jamun Racing, he won the championship with 12 race wins and 17 pole positions. He also finished second in the

Formula Ford Festival The Formula Ford Festival is an annual meeting of Ford-powered single-seat racing cars which is held at the end of the British racing season, at the Brands Hatch motor racing circuit in the county of Kent, in Southern England. The events are hel ...

in 2010. Pye competed in the

British Formula 3 Championship The British Formula Three Championship was an international motor racing series that took place primarily in the United Kingdom with a small number of events in mainland Europe. It was a junior-level feeder formula that used small single seat ...

for 2011 with Double R. Pye's Mercedes-engined CampingF1 sponsored

Dallara Dallara is an Italian race car manufacturer, founded by its current President, Gian Paolo Dallara. After working for Ferrari, Maserati, Lamborghini and De Tomaso, in 1972 in his native village of Varano de' Melegari (Parma), Italy he created ...

lapped the 2.7-mile

Oulton Park Oulton Park is a hard surfaced track used for motor racing, close to the village of Little Budworth, Cheshire, England. It is about from Winsford, from Chester city centre, from Northwich and from Warrington, with a nearby rail connection al ...

International Circuit in 1m 27.621s, more than a second inside the 2010 pole position time set by eventual champion

Jean-Éric Vergne Jean-Éric Vergne (born 25 April 1990), also known as JEV, is a French racing driver who competes in the FIA Formula E Championship with Dragon Racing. He became the 2017–18 ABB Formula E Champion, after clinching fifth in the New York ePrix ...

. He finished tenth in the championship with one win at Rockingham and a second place at the season-ending Silverstone weekend.

Return to Australia

Development Series

In February 2012, Pye returned to Australia and made the switch to

touring cars Touring car racing is a motorsport road racing competition with heavily modified road-going cars. It has both similarities to and significant differences from stock car racing, which is popular in the United States. While the cars do not mo ...

, becoming the new driver of

Triple Eight Race Engineering Triple Eight Race Engineering, (branded as Red Bull Ampol Racing) is an Australian motor racing team competing in the Supercars Championship. The team has been the only Brisbane based V8 Supercar team since its formation, originally operating ...

's championship-winning Monster Energy/GearWrench backed

Holden VE Commodore The Holden Commodore (VE) is an executive car that was produced by Holden from 2006 to 2013. It was the first iteration of the fourth generation of the Holden Commodore, Commodore. Its range included the luxury variants, Holden Berlina (VE) and ...

in the 2012 V8 Supercar Development Series. Pye finished the championship in second place behind

Scott McLaughlin Scott Thomas McLaughlin (; born 10 June 1993) is a New Zealand racing driver. He currently competes in the IndyCar Series, driving the No. 3 Dallara-Chevrolet for Team Penske. He previously raced in the Supercars Championship, in which he won ...

Lucas Dumbrell Motorsport

In 2013 he graduated to the

International V8 Supercars Championship The Supercars Championship is a touring car racing category in Australia, running as an International Series under Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile (FIA) regulations, governing the sport. Supercars events take place in all Australian ...

. driving for

Lucas Dumbrell Motorsport Lucas Dumbrell Motorsport was an Australian motor racing team that competed in the Virgin Australia Supercars Championship. The team was sold to Phil Munday and re-branded as 23Red Racing at the end of 2017. Background Lucas Dumbrell comes f ...

in a

Holden VF Commodore The Holden Commodore (VF) is an executive car that was produced by Holden between June 2013 and October 2017. It was the second and last significantly restyled iteration of the fourth (and final) generation of the Holden Commodore to be manufa ...

with sponsorship from Ekol and

Hog's Breath Cafe Hog's Breath Cafe (also known as Hog's Australia's Steakhouse from 2016 to 2020), is an Australian and international restaurant chain and franchise of steakhouse restaurants. The restaurant purveys prime rib as its signature dish, which is slow ...

. Pye endured a difficult season, including a heavy crash at

Symmons Plains Raceway Symmons Plains Raceway is a motor racing circuit in Australia, located about south of Launceston, Tasmania. Since the closure of the Longford circuit in the 1960s it has been Tasmania's premier motor racing facility. The circuit is one of the ...

that caused him to miss the

Pukekohe Pukekohe is a town in the Auckland Region of the North Island of New Zealand. Located at the southern edge of the Auckland Region, it is in South Auckland, between the southern shore of the Manukau Harbour and the mouth of the Waikato River. ...

round due to the lack of a spare car.

Dick Johnson Racing/DJR Team Penske

Scott Pye 2014 Sydney Motorsport Park 400

After one season at Lucas Dumbrell Motorsport, Pye signed a two-year deal with

Dick Johnson Racing Dick Johnson Racing (formerly DJR Team Penske), is Australia's oldest motor racing team competing in the Supercars Championship. The team currently fields the #11 and #17 Ford Mustang (sixth generation), Ford Mustang GTs for Anton de Pasqu ...

, driving a

Ford FG Falcon The Ford Falcon (FG) is a full-sized car that was produced by Ford Australia from 2008 to 2014. It was the first iteration of the seventh and last generation of the Falcon. Its range no longer featured the Fairmont luxury badge, replaced inste ...

with

Wilson Security Wilson Security is an Australian private security company. In 2014 it acquired the security contracts of ISS A/S Security in Australia and First Security Business in New Zealand. Wilson Security is a part of the Wilson Group which is Hong Kong ow ...

sponsorship for

2014 File:2014 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: Stocking up supplies and personal protective equipment (PPE) for the Western African Ebola virus epidemic; Citizens examining the ruins after the Chibok schoolgirls kidnapping; Bundles of wat ...

. However, in September 2014,

Team Penske Team Penske (formerly Penske Racing) is an American professional auto racing organization, competing in the IndyCar Series, NTT IndyCar Series, NASCAR Cup Series, and the FIA World Endurance Championship. Debuting at the 1966 24 Hours of Daytona ...

bought a stake in the team and eventually elected to run only a single entry in 2015 for two-time champion

Marcos Ambrose Marcos Ambrose (born 1 September 1976) is an Australian former racing driver and current Garry Rogers Motorsport competition director. He won the Australian V8 Supercar series' championship in 2003 and 2004. In 2006, Ambrose relocated to the Un ...

, in his return from

NASCAR The National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing, LLC (NASCAR) is an American auto racing sanctioning and operating company that is best known for stock car racing. The privately owned company was founded by Bill France Sr. in 1948, and ...

. Pye signed on as

Enduro Cup The Enduro Cup (formally known as the Pirtek Enduro Cup for sponsorship reasons), was an award given out to the highest points scorers over the three endurance events in Supercars; the Sandown 500, Bathurst 1000 and the Gold Coast 600. Format Q ...

team-mate to Ambrose at the renamed DJR Team Penske, but after mixed performances at the

Adelaide 500 The Adelaide 500 (also known as the VALO Adelaide 500 for sponsorship reasons) is an annual motor racing event for Supercars held on the streets of the east end of Adelaide, South Australia between 1999 to 2020 and again from 2022. It is someti ...

and the non-championship Supercars Challenge, Ambrose stepped down from the seat, leaving Pye back in a full-time drive for the remainder of the season. With the team signing

Fabian Coulthard Fabian "Fabs" Coulthard (born 28 July 1982) is a British-born New Zealand professional race car driver, currently competing in the Repco Supercars Championship, driving as an endurance co-driver for Chaz Mostert with Walkinshaw Andretti United. ...

for

2016 File:2016 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: Bombed-out buildings in Ankara following the 2016 Turkish coup d'état attempt; the Impeachment of Dilma Rousseff, impeachment trial of Brazilian President Dilma Rousseff; Damaged houses duri ...

, Pye once again faced an uncertain future before the team elected to expand to two cars. Following this confirmation, Pye went on to score his first championship podium at the ITM 500 Auckland. In 2016, Pye scored two more podiums, at

Phillip Island Phillip Island ( Boonwurrung: ''Corriong'', ''Worne'' or ''Millowl'') is an Australian island about south-southeast of Melbourne, Victoria. The island is named after Governor Arthur Phillip, the first Governor of New South Wales, by explore ...

and another at Pukekohe on the way to a career-best top 15 championship result. Despite this, he was once again out of a drive for

2017 File:2017 Events Collage V2.png, From top left, clockwise: The War Against ISIS at the Battle of Mosul (2016-2017); aftermath of the Manchester Arena bombing; The Solar eclipse of August 21, 2017 ("Great American Eclipse"); North Korea tests a s ...

, with his former Development Series rival McLaughlin being signed for DJR Team Penske to join Coulthard.

Walkinshaw Racing/Walkinshaw Andretti United

In September 2016, Pye was announced as the replacement for

Garth Tander Garth Tander (born 31 March 1977) is a multiple-championship winning Australian motor racing driver competing in the Virgin Australia Supercars Championship's Enduro Cup, co-driving the No. 97 Holden ZB Commodore for Triple Eight Race Engineer ...

Walkinshaw Racing Walkinshaw Andretti United is an Australian motor racing team based in the Melbourne suburb of Clayton. The team currently fields two Holden ZB Commodores in the Supercars Championship for Nick Percat and Chaz Mostert, along with a Porsche ...

for

, the team's first season since losing the ''Holden Racing Team'' moniker. In a difficult season for the team, Pye finished 12th in the standings, ahead of team-mate

James Courtney James Anthony Courtney (born 29 June 1980) is an Australian racing driver competing in the Repco Supercars Championship. He currently drives the No. 5 Ford Mustang GT for Tickford Racing. Courtney won the 2010 V8 Supercar Championship Series ...

, with the highlight for Pye being a second place at the

2017 Supercheap Auto Bathurst 1000 The 2017 Supercheap Auto Bathurst 1000 was a motor racing event for the Supercars Championship, held from October 5 to 8 2017 at the Mount Panorama Circuit in Bathurst, New South Wales, and consisted of a 1000 kilometre race. It was the elevent ...

driving with

Warren Luff A warren is a network of wild rodent or lagomorph, typically rabbit burrows. Domestic warrens are artificial, enclosed establishment of animal husbandry dedicated to the raising of rabbits for meat and fur. The term evolved from the medieval Anglo ...

. Just as happened while Pye was at Dick Johnson Racing, the team was bought out by international interests during his first season at the team, with

Andretti Autosport Andretti Autosport is an auto racing team that competes in the IndyCar Series, Indy Lights, Indy Pro 2000, and Formula E. The team also has a 37.5% ownership stake in the Australian Supercars Championship touring car team, Walkinshaw Andretti ...

and

United Autosports United Autosports is a sports car racing team, founded by American businessman and entrepreneur Zak Brown and former British racing driver Richard Dean. In 2020, United Autosports became the first ever team to win the prestigious 24 Hours of ...

each taking part-ownership in the team which became known as ''Walkinshaw Andretti United''. Pye did retain his seat into

2018 File:2018 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: The 2018 Winter Olympics opening ceremony in PyeongChang, South Korea; Protests erupt following the Assassination of Jamal Khashoggi; March for Our Lives protests take place across the Unit ...

and took his first championship race win in dramatic circumstances at the second event, the Melbourne 400 on the

Albert Park Grand Prix Circuit The Albert Park Circuit is a motorsport street circuit around Albert Park Lake, three kilometres south of central Melbourne. It is used annually as a circuit for the Formula One Australian Grand Prix, the supporting Supercars Championship Melb ...

. Pye had led the race comfortably until a late-race shower brought

Jamie Whincup Jamie Whincup (born 6 February 1983) is an Australian professional racing driver competing in the Supercars Championship. He currently is team principal for Triple Eight Race Engineering. He has driven the No. 88 Holden ZB Commodore, won a rec ...

back into contention in the final laps. On 7 October Pye, driving with Warren Luff, went back-to-back with second-place finishes at the Supercheap Auto Bathurst 1000 and later he finished 7th at Newcastle and in the points standings. On 6 November 2019 he announced he will be leaving

Walkinshaw Andretti United Walkinshaw Andretti United is an Australian motor racing team based in the Melbourne suburb of Clayton. The team currently fields two Holden ZB Commodores in the Supercars Championship for Nick Percat and Chaz Mostert, along with a Porsche 91 ...

Team 18

On 7 November 2019 he announced that he would be joining

for the 2020 season.

Career results

Supercars Championship results

Complete Bathurst 1000 results

Complete Bathurst 12 Hour results

References

External links

Toyota Racing Series – toyotaracing.co.nz
*
Profile at Racing Reference
{{DEFAULTSORT:Pye, Scott 1990 births British Formula Three Championship drivers Formula Ford drivers Living people Racing drivers from South Australia Toyota Racing Series drivers Supercars Championship drivers Team Penske drivers Andretti Autosport drivers United Autosports drivers Dick Johnson Racing drivers Double R Racing drivers