22/05/2026
J&S Racing have made the difficult decision to cease operation of the J&S Drilling W60 team. The team has enjoyed great success over the years; however it is now time for team owner John McLellan to focus his energy and time into the expansion of his J&S Drilling business which is currently constructing a new workshop and offices facility in Central Queensland. J&S Drilling are a leading exploration, waterwell, geotechnical and environmental drilling specialist with over 40 years of experience. Headquartered in Perth WA, the business operates across Australia and the Asia Pacific region delivering exceptional service on land and over water.
Whilst the team’s final race has been run, the memories and achievements will remain, and we are deeply grateful to everyone who has supported the team. We would now like to take this time to reflect on an unforgettable journey.
John’s original interest in speedway was that of a fan, however he began sponsoring Ben Ellement for the 2010/2011 season whilst he was driving the W44. John’s interest in the sport grew substantially once associated with a driver and he began buying up equipment and purchased his first Inglis 410 motor during the second season of the sponsorship arrangement. After 3 years with Ben, John decided to step up his commitment to the sport, and he established the W60 team in 2014 with Jarrad Hart serving as the team’s first ever crew chief.
The 2014/2015 inaugural season saw the W60 team contest the 360 sprintcar division with Cameron Gessner & Kaiden Manders in the seat. Kaiden would then go on to pilot the 360 on many occasions in the series between 2015-2019 and enjoyed great success, winning back-to-back Australian 360 Championship Titles in 2017/18 and 2018/19.
Next up, it was time for the J&S W60 team to take on the World Series Sprintcars, with John running a young Lockie McHugh in the car for the east coast swing, whilst Brock Hallet would take the wheel for the west coast swing.
The team ran two cars during the 2021/22 season in the 360 series with Kye Scroop and Owen Peet in the seats. Kaiden Manders then returned in 2022 to drive the 410 car, with Owen continuing to run selected 360 shows.
The 2024/25 season was huge, with 42 nights of racing across WA, NT, QLD, SA and Victoria with Kaiden Manders which included Chariots of Thunder, High Limit International, Grand Annual Sprintcar Classic, and the Australian 410 Title amongst many others.
The 2025/26 season would see Owen joined by James Nightingale to share the 360 seat although there were very limited shows as the team were busy building up new cars in readiness for a big summer series which would see Carson Macedo drive the W60 in the WA Speedweek Series, High Limit International and an east coast swing which included the Classic.
The W60 cars have always been on the pace thanks to the exceptional crew chiefs that have led the team. Keith Giles and Jason Mansell have consistently delivered a first-class car and have more importantly help mentor both the drivers and the crew members.
A great testament to the quality of the equipment that the team has operated and maintained can be found during the most recent 360 Australian Championship. The W60 team had formed a great bond with the Newton family as they had operated out of John’s workshop whilst racing on the west coast and both teams also enjoyed a great working relationship with Scotty Inglis for motors and Glenno for shocks. With Ryan in need of a motor for the title event, John sent the same motor that he had previously won the title twice with over to Ryan who would then go on to win the 2025/26 360 Australian Title with the same Inglis 360 motor that had propelled Kaiden Manders to success all those years ago.
The goal for John has always been to give an opportunity to young talent. And this has been evident across the entire team – from drivers to crew. In recent years much of the crew has been comprised of young outlaw kart drivers and their associated families, and they have revelled in the opportunity to work with sprintcars at the top level in Australia. John has also enjoyed having his brother-in-law Ray serve as a long standing and valuable member of the team throughout the journey, with Ray also taking the young crew under his wing to provide guidance.
The entire crew have always been professional as John has instilled his values in all that work for him, and the W60 shirt has been worn with pride by all that have been fortunate enough to put it on.
Whilst the J&S Drilling team name will be noticeably absent from the 410 entrants list this upcoming the season, John’s legacy can be found in the spirit of the past W60 drivers that are at the top of their game and the young up and coming drivers that he has helped nurture over the years. There are still decades of racing ahead for those that have been privileged to work for and alongside John McLellan.
For now, John will return to how it all it began, and he will enjoy simply being a fan sitting on the hill watching the sprintcars rip around the Perth Motorplex.
John would like to personally thank Keith, Jason, Ray, Owen, James, Luka, Jarrad & Paul along with their respective families for all their hard work and friendship.
And finally, a big thank you to all of our sponsors that have made it possible to go racing:
Grant @ NAPA Parts Bibra Lake.
Dave @ East Coast Logistics
Scotty @ Mincon Rockhampton
Jan @ Castrol Australia
Graham @ Warrnambool Crane Hire
Danny @ Porter Heavy Haulage
Steve @ Cowaramup Contracting
Jarrad @ Motorsport Media Australia
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