25 best Supercars drivers since 2000: #25 Fabian Coulthard

As 2025 gets underway, Supercars.com is ranking the top 25 drivers of the last 25 years, starting with Fabian Coulthard, who comes in as our #25.

A winner at two different teams, surprise championship contender and now enduro expert, Fabian Coulthard hit success across a hugely competitive period in Supercars.

Coulthard was a co-driver for Tasman Motorsport, Paul Morris Motorsport and Team Kiwi Racing before he got his first full-time season in 2007, and after a solid first year with Paul Cruickshank Racing in 2008, he finally broke through for a maiden Supercars podium in Tasmania aged 26.

After two rough seasons with Walkinshaw, Coulthard became a force at Brad Jones Racing, punching above his team's weight with wins and three consecutive top eight finishes. His sixth in 2013 remains the best championship result by a BJR driver.

He jumped at the chance to join DJR Team Penske in 2016, which proved a brilliant decision as he fought for the 2017 championship. After a tough 2018 campaign, he bounced back in Mustangs, before a disappointing final full-time season with the struggling Team Sydney in 2021.

Coulthard has since become a leading co-driver for Walkinshaw Andretti United, finishing second in the 2022 Great Race, five years after he raced to third in an equally action-packed Bathurst 1000.

Fabian Coulthard's key stats since 2000

Years active: 2004-present

Rounds: 215

Races: 472

Best championship position: 3rd (2017)

Best finish: 1st (13 wins)

Top three finishes: 61

Best start: 1st (9 pole positions)

Best Bathurst result: 2nd (2022)

The highlight

With 13 wins and 61 podiums, there was plenty to choose from from Coulthard's 400-plus race career. He won races in Tasmania, Circuit of the Americas, Winton, Phillip Island, Darwin, Sydney, Perth and The Bend, but any time you can race to victory in Adelaide, you've done a sterling job.

A winner with BJR in 2013 and 2014, Coulthard kicked off 2015 with a Race 2 victory in Adelaide, in the brief era where the first two races were sprints.

Coulthard scored a surprise victory in an action-packed race, taking the lead with 15 laps to go after Jamie Whincup made an error. James Courtney overtook Whincup and Craig Lowndes, but was unable to catch Coulthard.

It was a big win on the biggest stage, and remains a defining result for BJR as wins dried up for the Albury squad in later years.

Why we picked him

After a circumspect start to his career, Coulthard was a front-runner for the best part of a decade, and grabbed wins, poles and plenty of podiums while pitted against some strong teammates.

Only 15 drivers have won more races than Coulthard's 13 since 2000, and eight of them are champions. In a hugely competitive era, Coulthard transformed himself into nearly-ran to title contender, and had he not suffered some poor luck at the end of 2017, he could have become champion himself.

Ultimately, titles and Bathurst wins didn't come to pass, although his tenacity and drive to improve and extract results, notably with BJR, was impressive.

Scott McLaughlin, 11 years Coulthard's junior, always seemed destined to have the rub of the green at DJR Team Penske. However, Coulthard's 2017 campaign was brilliant, and he never gave in from there.

The views in this article do not necessarily express the opinions of Supercars, teams or drivers.