With 100 laps down of the Bathurst 1000, let’s recap what we’ve seen so far.
Pole position holder Brodie Kostecki is second on track behind reigning Bathurst champion Shane van Gisbergen after an incredible weekend flying through practices and qualifying.
Series leader Kostecki’s cousin and fellow Supercars driver Jake Kostecki has crawled from the back of the grid after stalling at the start.
Fan Favourite Craig Lowndes fell two laps behind after a broken broken lower gear linkage forced him to pit on lap 18.
The unfortunate WORD would be deja vu for the seven-time Bathurst winner after a similar problem shattered any hopes of victory in the 2016 race.
More than 100 laps into the Bathurst Supercars 1000, Shane van Gisbergen is leading the grid followed by Brodie Kostecki and Broc Feeney
Craig Lowndes, Kevin Estre and Jake Kostecki lost positions early in the race (pictured, Shell fans at Bathurst)
However, two safety cars triggered by Matt Payne’s co-driver Kevin Estre on lap 27 of his Bathurst debut and Dale Wood on lap 36, helped the 888 driver catch up with the rest of the pack.
Payne’s number-19 Mustang managed to rejoin mid-field later in the race but Estre admitted the mistake cost the team precious time.
‘Shane [van Gisbergen] was in front of me and I pressed the brake too hard, too big of a peak on the attack, I locked the front and then I couldn’t unlock it,’ he said, V8 Sleuth reports.
‘I went slowly into the wall but I couldn’t get out, I’m really angry with myself and frustrated because I think we have a good car.
‘We’re back on the lead lap as it looks, sl that’s good, but we lost quite a lot of track position so I’m a bit pissed off with myself.’
Dale Wood triggered the second safety car after making tyre contact with Scott Pye and colliding with the tyre wall at the final corner.
He co-driver Andre Heimgartner’s car was later taken out of the race on lap 68 after flames and smoke were seen shooting out the back.
The BJR cars suffered a dramatic position loss after colliding with each other, causing Jack Smith’s number-four to spin.
Lap 70 saw James Moffat trigger the third safety car of the day after crashing the Monster Energy Mustang at The Dipper.
The crash saw the race restarted on lap 74.
Dale Wood and Andre Heimgartner’s car (above) was taken out of the race after a crash caused smoke to pour out its back
‘Hugely disappointed, but I know I’m not the first person to do that and I won’t be the last,’ Moffat said.
‘Just disappointed in myself – I pride myself on not making errors like that.
‘Sorry for all the team, all the guys, I can see them, they’re back at work now trying to put it back together.
‘We were definitely fighting with one, maybe both hands tied behind our back today mate. It was tough out there, but that’s no excuse for what I did.’
The cars have started filing into pit lane for the mandatory brake change.
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Read more at DailyMail.co.uk