Young gun Cooper Barnes, currently racing in the GR Cup, has secured a Gen3 chassis from Dick Johnson Racing (DJR), DJRS-04, as he prepares for his Super2 Series debut in 2028. The move makes him the first driver to commit to the category's Gen3 era.
Chassis DJRS-04 is no ordinary car. It was campaigned by Anton De Pasquale during the 2023/24 Supercars seasons and famously scored DJR's first Gen3 race win in Townsville, plus a Bathurst podium in 2023. In 2024, it also claimed the Jason Richards Trophy. Now, the baton passes to Barnes.
DJR officially handed over the car to the Barnes family late last month at Queensland Raceway. During the handover, Barnes was given the opportunity to complete 10 laps in a real V8 race car. The experience left a lasting impression.
“We are proud that one of our Ford Mustangs is the first car committed to race in the Super2 Series’ upcoming switch to Gen3 machinery,” said DJR co-owner Ryan Story. “Cooper will have a proven car as he takes his next step up the ladder, and securing a Gen3 car well in advance of 2028 demonstrates how serious he is about his motor racing and his desire to one day reach Supercars.”
The decision to delay the step up to Super2 until 2028 was deliberate. Cooper's father, Jamie Barnes, revealed they considered entering next year with Gen2 cars but opted to wait for the category's transition to Gen3. “We spent a bit of time looking at where we wanted to go,” he said. “We looked at entering Super2 next year with its current Gen2 cars but decided that waiting for the category to switch to Gen3 was the right thing for us. The next step was to find a car, and we felt the best option was to buy a car from the Shell V-Power Racing Team.”
For Cooper, the sensation of driving a Supercar was vastly different from the Toyota 86 he races in GR Cup. “It was awesome. Everything happened 10 times faster than I’m used to,” he said excitedly. “The car had so much more braking stability, the sequential gear-change was amazing – driving the real thing was so much better than the simulator. The speeds that you are travelling at are just crazy; you would never get up to that in the 86. Then out of corners, it had just crazy power. It was extremely fun to drive.”
A special moment occurred during the handover: the car was still in full Shell V-Power Racing Team colours, but Barnes' name and number #86 were added to the windows. “I first saw it when I went into the workshop for my seat fit,” Barnes recalled. “I couldn’t believe that they did that for me.”
While the car is now in the family's possession, the Barnes family has yet to confirm which team will run it in the Super2 Series. Nevertheless, this move underscores Cooper Barnes' serious intent to climb the motorsport ladder to Supercars. With a proven car and an impressive first taste, he is ready for the challenges of the Gen3 era.
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