- Brodie Kostecki won by 1.35 seconds
- He saw of Broc Feeney to win his first Bathurst title
- Kostecki started in pole alongside co-driver Todd Hazelwood
Reigning Supercars champion Brodie Kostecki led from start to finish over 161 laps to win his first Bathurst 1000.
The Erebus driver fended off red-hot rival Broc Feeney in the six-hour-long marathon at Mount Panorama on Sunday to win Australia’s biggest domestic motorsport prize.
Starting from pole position with co-driver Todd Hazelwood, Kostecki was uncatchable before a Matt Payne crash resulted in the race’s first and only safety car with 28 laps remaining.
The 26-year-old proved his mettle against Feeney, paired with four-time Bathurst winner Jamie Whincup, in a sprint showdown to the finish line.
Kostecki won by just 1.35 seconds.
Reigning Supercars champion Brodie Kostecki (right) led from start to finish over 161 laps to win his first Bathurst 1000
Starting from pole position with co-driver Todd Hazelwood (right), Kostecki was uncatchable
Kostecki was lost for words after the race, stating ‘I just can’t believe it, I’m in awe at the moment’
Feeney’s Red Bull teammate and championship leader Will Brown finished third with co-driver Scott Pye.
‘I just can’t believe it. I’m in awe at the moment,’ Kostecki said.
‘Broc was breathing down my neck the whole time. It was just balls to the walls the whole time.
‘It’s kind of funny around here. If you bring your pace back a little bit, you can actually get yourself into trouble.
‘I just knew that if I just did shootout laps every single lap, I knew I wouldn’t make a mistake.
‘It’s redemption from last year, for sure.’
Feeney who agonisingly only just missed out on the win, lumped praise on Kostecki and Hazelwood but defiently said he would return to get back to the ‘top step’ one day.
‘I drove my heart out out there. I didn’t leave anything on the table,’ Feeney said.
Kostecki showed his mettle to beat Broc Feeney in a sprint showdown towards the finish line
The pair climbed on top of their car after being crowned winners and celebrated with fans at Mount Panorama after the marathon race
Kostiecki claimed that the result was a ‘redemption from last year’ after he had lost out on a first-place finish despite starting first on the grid
‘These guys next to me, Brodie and Todd, absolutely killed it today – they were faultless.
‘We’ll be back one day. We’ll get up on the top step.’
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