The ultimate challenge for any aspiring race car driver who aims for the top is picking the right path to be armed with the credentials to turn pro.

Once upon a time, Formula Ford was the obvious route, it was the one-stop solution from karting – win the national title, get picked up a V8 squad, and you’re set for life.

In more modern times, the options and paths have become more polluted and confusing.

F4 came and went, then there is the Porsche pathway, which ultimately is perfectly suited to sending youngsters on a route to international sports cars.

Exhibit A being Matt Campbell, who parlayed his local ladder success into a Porsche factory prototype gig with Roger Penske.

From the SpeedSeries side of the equation, categories such as TCR, Trans AM and S5000 are seemingly destinations of their own.

Super2 and Super3 is an obvious route, but it’s a big ask to step straight out of karts into the high-powered tin tops.

It’s perhaps a game-changer in grassroots competition, but the Hyundai Excel is a front-wheel drive oddity that has taken the nation by storm.

Parallels exist with the good old HQ Holdens – close racing, big fields, and action galore, with well over 500 of the Korean pocket rockets being constructed to date.

However, the machines themselves are at opposing ends of the scale – while HQs tended to labour around racetracks, occasionally axle hopping, with the good old Holden red motor decidedly doughy when mated to a three-speed transmission, Excels have evolved into a sporty setup.

The tunability of the control shock package provides drivers with a sound grounding in race car engineering.

The category had its genesis in Queensland in 2010 before spreading its wings around the country, with an annual national title contested since 2016.

In 13 years, the category has become a star attraction, with key meets on the calendar, especially enduros, attracting the cream of the professional stocks moonlighting in guest appearances.

That honour roll includes the likes of Brodie Kostecki, Will Brown, Tim Slade, Declan Fraser, Zane Goddard, Aaron Seton, Paul Morris, Jonathon Webb, John Faulkner, Steven Johnson, Chelsea Angelo, Steve Owen, Prince Jeffri Ibrahim, Jordan Boys, Zak Best, Kai Allen, Ryal Harris, Aaron Cameron, Ryan Hansford, Adam Macrow, Melinda Price and more.

Guests have had a dabble too, like Jason Akermanis, as well as Roland and Jessica Dane.

A growing list, however, are starting out in Excels, or utilising the class as a step out of karting.

Names like Broc Feeney, Nash Morris, Jett Johnson, Mason Kelly, Ben Bargwanna, Michael Clemente, Max Vidau, Bailey Hall, Ben Grice, Jordan Caruso, Jordyn Sinni, Cooper Webster and more have learned the ropes as category regulars.

Another driver who has climbed the ladder from Excel origins is Jay Robotham.

Coming from a speedway family, Jay went BMX racing when he was five years old, before commandeering an old go kart at the age of 11, ultimately taking in various tours across Victoria and around Australia.

Before he turned 14, the price of karting was becoming prohibitive, and with Excels the up-and-coming thing, the Robothams took the plunge and purchased Max Vidau’s car, which was a proven machine at the time.

“Dad took it to a Tampered Motorsport day at Sandown and wrote the thing off,” said Robotham.

“But back then, you could buy a shell for $250, that’s all it cost to rebuild the whole thing.

“It was cheap at the time, but the cars have gotten a lot quicker now, and a bit more expensive.

“It’s a good category to step out of after go karting, you get to race on all of the big tracks, and the competition is always really good.

“I did the South Australian championship and the Victorian Championship, and then I did a few rounds in Queensland, you meet a lot of people, and I still go back and race with Brett Parrish up in Queensland, we’ve become good friends with them.

“Everyone gets together, races hard, and it’s good fun.”

The Next Step

The step up into Toyota 86s was a logical one, the expenses weren’t bad compared to Excels, the competition ramped up a notch, and you got to race on the Supercars undercard in front of a big audience, plus take in the various street circuits around the country.

A podium on debut in Australia was a solid start, while he ultimately found more success in New Zealand, where he was sitting second in the standings with a lone event remaining in the season before the pandemic shut down the world.

Pre-COVID, Robotham also ran a concurrent program in the Asian TA2 series, where he was first exposed to V8 power, and he promptly cleaned up.

“The first time I went, I went with John Ruggiero and David Reynolds, we had a test day at Buriram International Circuit, I loved the cars, and at the time they were the quickest thing I had driven, it was awesome,” said Robotham.

“There was an opportunity to race the year after, so we did that, and in hindsight, it was a really smart move.

“It’s a bit different over there, it’s just hot, and you’re battling to stay cool and keep hydrated, the atmosphere at the track is a bit different, you really have to experience it in person to understand it.”

Fresh from success in V8 powered kit, at the start of 2020, Super2 and Super3 were on the agenda, with the Robothams deep in discussions with team owners for a drive as the season loomed.

“When COVID happened, and we had to leave the state that day – Matt (White) said that if you want to race, we have to go today,” said Robotham.

“We just bit the bullet and did it, we wound up finding sponsors along the way, and that worked out really well.

“I won all four races in Super3, I mean the competition might not have been peak, but it got my name out there, I got the drive in Super2, and I did that for a couple of years.

“There were times when I had good pace, and there were other times where I struggled, and I had a decent crash in Townsville in my second round (of Super2 in 2021).

“I’m not sure if that affected me mentally leading into the rest of the year, but we struggled.

“Last season we won a race at the opening round and were a lot more competitive.

“We missed the Bathurst round due to running the Wildcard, but we showed a lot more promise that year.

“I think the key to those cars is just getting heaps of seat time, and being in the right place at the right time.”

Climbing the Mountain

Perhaps the most Supercars seat time Robotham has received has been in his Wildcard start alongside Matt Chahda in last year’s Repco Bathurst 1000 aboard the Caltex Young Stars machine.

The entry was a complete dark horse – with a borrowed Walkinshaw Andretti United ZB under them, precious little was expected of the family-run Chahda outfit.

But it’s a weekend that brings a smile to Robotham’s face to this day.

“It was crazy, leading into last year, my whole goal in racing was to race at Bathurst,” he continued.

“Getting there, it did feel like a long week… with anything I’ve done before, you don’t understand what the main game drivers have to deal with appearances and everything that goes with competing at the top level.

“That Wednesday before the 1000 we had to be in five different places at once, then trying to keep your head focused to drive the thing, that was something I’ve been warned of, and I took that into account.

“That race day itself went really quick; Matt and I were in our race suits at 6:30am doing driver change practice, and before you know it, the whole race is done and it’s 6:30 at night, and we’re still in our suits talking shit – it was just crazy.

“It was a buzz for a few days, we didn’t have the best result, but we finished 14th… without the brake caliper seizing (on the compulsory brake change stop), we would have been on that lead lap the whole race – we finished on the lead lap with the new wave by rule, but without that problem, we probably would have been a bit further up because a few other guys got caught up in dramas.

“We were all happy – our aim was just to finish, and we did that, we held our own, and we were able to fight against some of the other cars out there, and we were sitting pretty strong in the mid-pack.

“We flew under the radar, I think.”

2023: The Journey Continues

Having climbed his career Mountain, but still wanting more, the new year has seen a change of tact for Robotham, who has somewhat returned to his roots, with dual campaigns in the TA2 National Series on these shores with The Racing Academy, and in the ever-competitive Super Pickup class in the Thai Super Series.

“Super2 got real expensive with the new cars coming in,” said Robotham.

“I did the first round this year in Newcastle, but that was just a last-minute thing.

“We’ve now gone down the Trans Am path, with that being a lot cheaper – it’s a good alternative for someone who wants to race a V8, they move around, and really teach you how to drive.”

The Thai gig is with the same squad that he ran with in TA2 on those shores, Corliss Race Engineering, which is headed by Kiwi ex-pat Craig Corliss, who has previous experience campaigning an ex-BJR Falcon and a Triple Eight Commodore Supercars across the region.

For the season opener in Buriam, Robotham was a late fill-in for the team’s Trans Am Mustang, which he promptly took to victory.

His Ranger Pickup, however, is a totally different kettle of fish, with the category overflowing with factory backing from the likes of Ford and Isuzu, and regularly attracting over 60 entries.

The competition is a true arms race, with teams looking to engineer the fastest hot rod.

“Because it is so hot over there, they like to run a lot of boost and a lot of the engines blow up,” said Robotham.

“We sort of keep it a bit conservative, we might not be the quickest, but we have a lot better chance of finishing the races.

“Some of the cars are 30km/h faster on the straights – I was racing the TA2 car there, and these utes were nearly getting the same speed as the Mustang, it’s just crazy…

“In testing, we wound three or four pounds of boost in and found four seconds on the track.

“I think at Bangsaen (the wild seaside street circuit), we should be a lot closer.

“It’s not as wide open a track, and hopefully, it will be more dependent on the drivers.

“The car handles great, it’s good around the tight stuff.”

As for the future, Robotham has unfinished business, with his test this week with Truck Assist Racing in their Gen3 Camaro a big deal.

“I’ve got a taste for doing the Bathurst 1000, I’d love to pick up a co-drive, obviously the goal is to race in the main game full-time – I’ve just got to wait for an opportunity, but it’s very rare it comes,” he said.

“I love racing anything, racing overseas again is good, hopefully, it opens up some more doors.

“We’ll see how the Supercars avenue goes, otherwise we’ve made a few connections to do the overseas thing, and we’ll see where that leads us.”