Paul Dumbrell

Son of former racing driver Garry Dumbrell, Paul Dumbrell started racing in karts in 1996 and by the end of 1997 Dumbrell was looking to further his racing. He was educated at Xavier College in Kew, Melbourne and resides in Melbourne, Australia. He competed in the Australian Sprint Kart National Championships in April 1998. He then attended a driving course at Sandown Raceway where he briefly drove the ex Craig Lowndes Van Diemen RF85. Paul then attended the Jim Russell International School of Racing in England. During the course, Dumbrell drove a Formula Vauxhall. At age 15 he was the youngest in the class and even though he was the fastest graduate from the school, he was ineligible for the final race, for which drivers had to be 16.

On returning to Australia he looked to do a couple of races in Formula Ford but broke his hip when hit by a car while training on his mountain bike. This injury prevented him from racing for 8 weeks and put an end to any chance of running a Formula Ford. At the end of 1998 he entered his first production car race, the GT Production three-hour at Bathurst in a Subaru WRX, but his race ended with mechanical failure.[1] For the 1999 season he drove a Formula Holden in the Australian Drivers' Championship, and had his first race in the V8 Supercar Championship Series in August 1999 at Symmons Plains, in Tasmania.

After a full year's experience in a Formula Holden, Dumbrell had the chance to test a Formula 3000 car with Mark Webber for Paul Stoddart's Arrows Team, driving 20 laps in the car at Donington Park. When he returned to Australia he took up a permanent driving spot in the Konica V8 Supercar Development Series. 2001 saw Dumbrell consistently at the front, and he won the Series in 2002.

Dumbrell made his first Bathurst 1000 start at 17 years and 74 days, and was the youngest ever driver to drive a V8 Supercar. He raced a Wynns/Falkuner Racing No. 96 Holden VS Commodore with Matthew White, qualifying the car in 33rd position but retiring on lap 15 after he hit the wall at McPhillamy Park.[2]

2002 saw Dumbrell picked up by Castrol Perkins Racing's Team Owner Larry Perkins as his co-driver in the Castrol Perkins Holden VX Commodore at both the Queensland 500 and Bathurst 1000. At Bathurst that year, Perkins and Dumbrell finished a surprise fifth position overall.[3]

Dumbrell's fifth placing at Bathurst in 2002 helped him secure a 2-year deal with Castrol Perkins Motorsport for 2003 and 2004. In 2005, Dumbrell achieved his best-ever round V8 Supercar Championship Series result at Symmons Plains, Tasmania - the venue of his first ever V8 Supercar start - ending the round in fifth place.[4] 2005 also saw his best ever Championship placing, finishing in 20th, after placing 29th in 2003 and 24th in 2004.

2006 saw Paul driving the number 11 Holden VZ Commodore to 12th place, his best ever V8 Supercar Championship Series placing. He finished 5th at Bathurst and was within reach of a podium finish until slowed by mechanical problems.

For the 2007 season, Dumbrell moved from Jack Daniels Racing to Supercheap Auto Racing, replacing Greg Murphy. He had a poor season due to the unreliability of the cars, and the only highlight was a 6th placing with Paul Weel at the Sandown 500.

The Holden VE Commodore of Paul Dumbrell at Queensland Raceway 2008.

In 2008, Dumbrell joined the HSV Dealer Team to drive the No. 16 Autobarn Holden Commodore, as teammate to 2006 V8 Supercar Champion, Rick Kelly. It was a difficult season for the team and Dumbrell finished 21st in the championship.

In 2009 Dumbrell stayed under the Walkinshaw umbrella with the newly formed Walkinshaw Racing, the team which replaced the newly-defunct HSV Dealer Team. He drove an Autobarn-sponsored Holden VE Commodore.

The Ford FG Falcon of Paul Dumbrell at the 2010 Clipsal 500 Adelaide.

For the 2010 V8 Supercar season, Dumbrell signed with Rod Nash Racing to drive their No. 55, "The Bottle-O" sponsored, Ford Performance Racing prepared Ford FG Falcon in a deal encompassing 2010, 2011 and 2012 seasons. This marked his first experience of racing a Ford, having competed in Holdens throughout his V8 Supercar career.

Dumbrell recorded his first V8 Supercar Championship podium finish at the 2010 Falken Tasmania Challenge[5] and followed this up with his first Championship race win[6] and first Championship pole position[7] at the next event, the 2010 Norton 360 Sandown Challenge. On 8 August 2011, Dumbrell announced he will retire from full-time driving at the end of the 2011 season.[8]

Jamie Whincup's 2012 car in which Dumbrell would later co-drive to victory at the 2012 Bathurst 1000

Paul Dumbrell won his third Sandown 500 in 2018, driving with Jamie Whincup

Despite his retirement from full-time racing, Dumbrell returned in a limited basis from 2012 onwards as a co-driver for the two-driver endurance races in V8 Supercars, the Sandown 500, Bathurst 1000 and since 2013, the Gold Coast 600. Dumbrell drives alongside seven-time series champion Jamie Whincup for Triple Eight Race Engineering.

Dumbrell and Whincup's partnership was almost immediately successful, winning the 2012 Supercheap Auto Bathurst 1000. In 2013, they won the 2013 Wilson Security Sandown 500. In 2014, Dumbrell and Whincup won the Enduro Cup as the highest scoring driver combination across the three endurance events, which included winning for a second year running at Sandown in the 2014 Wilson Security Sandown 500.

In 2014, Dumbrell entered the Dunlop V8 Supercar Development Series once again, and won the championship for a second time.

Year	Team	Car	Co-driver	Position	Laps
1999	John Faulkner Racing	Holden Commodore VS	Matthew White	DNF	11
2000	Rod Nash Racing	Holden Commodore VT	Rod Nash	DNF	13
2001	Garry Rogers Motorsport	Holden Commodore VX	Leanne Ferrier	DNF	41
2002	Perkins Engineering	Holden Commodore VX	Larry Perkins	5th	161
2003	Perkins Engineering	Holden Commodore VX	Tomas Mezera	14th	155
2004	Perkins Engineering	Holden Commodore VY	Tony Longhurst	DNF	129
2005	Perkins Engineering	Holden Commodore VZ	Steven Richards	DNF	28
2006	Perkins Engineering	Holden Commodore VZ	Steven Richards	5th	161
2007	Paul Weel Racing	Holden Commodore VE	Paul Weel	12th	161
2008	HSV Dealer Team	Holden Commodore VE	Rick Kelly David Reynolds‡	20th	127
2009	Holden Racing Team	Holden Commodore VE	Craig Baird	21st	153
2010	Rod Nash Racing	Ford Falcon FG	Dean Canto	14th	161
2011	Rod Nash Racing	Ford Falcon FG	Dean Canto	DNF	144
2012	Triple Eight Race Engineering	Holden Commodore VE	Jamie Whincup	1st	161
2013	Triple Eight Race Engineering	Holden Commodore VF	Jamie Whincup	2nd	161
2014	Triple Eight Race Engineering	Holden Commodore VF	Jamie Whincup	5th	161
2015	Triple Eight Race Engineering	Holden Commodore VF	Jamie Whincup	18th	161
2016	Triple Eight Race Engineering	Holden Commodore VF	Jamie Whincup	11th	161
2017	Triple Eight Race Engineering	Holden Commodore VF	Jamie Whincup	20th	124
2018	Triple Eight Race Engineering	Holden Commodore ZB	Jamie Whincup	10th	161

‡ Kelly replaced Reynolds in the No. 16 post-qualifying after an event-ending accident for Rick's original car.