Braking News: Team 18 relations get frosty following high speed post-race Supercars crash
An ugly spat has erupted within a Supercars team as one of their drivers wears the blame for a “terrifying” crash. Plus, the latest motorsport gossip in our Braking News column.
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Team 18 boss Charlie Schwerkolt is refusing to speak to Todd Hazelwood after blaming the rival racer for causing a ‘terrifying’ crash after the finish line.
Schwerkolt’s driver Mark Winterbottom had already crossed the finish line when he was tagged by Hazelwood in a contact that sent both hurtling towards the fence at over 200km/h.
Claiming the incident was the most terrifying moment of Winterbottom’s career, Schwerkolt said that he would not be accepting an apology for the reckless crash causing act.
“I don’t want to speak to him,” Schwerkolt said.
“I am crook at him. He came down to speak to me but I had already left. I was that gutted. I still don’t want to speak to him.”
Schwerkolt said his veteran driver feared he would roll after being punted at the start of the warm-down lap.
“Hazelwood decided to drag race Mark when the race was over,” Schwerkolt said.
“He went down the inside and tagged him. This guy just kept on going and spun Frosty at 240km/h. Mark said it was the biggest off he had ever had. He thought he was going to roll.”
Schwerkolt and his team were still cleaning up the mess on Monday.
“We are still dragging rocks and mud out of the car,” Schwerkolt said.
“We are going to have to strip the thing. I reckon we have pulled out 1kg of rocks alone. We were lucky to get away without minimal damage but it is still a lot of work.”
Drama after the chequered flag! 😧@Todd_Hazelwood and @mwinterbottom come together 💥#7Motorsport#RepcoSCpic.twitter.com/Ul2idKUhKK
— 7Sport (@7Sport) March 6, 2022
DE SILVESTRO’S ICY NEW QUEST
Former Supercars driver Simona de Silvestro is attempting a bold switch from the racetrack to the ice in a bid to achieve her “dream” of competing at the Winter Olympics.
Always inspired by watching the Winter Games, the Swiss racer has turned her hand to another high-speed pursuit – the bobsleigh – in her quest to reach the top in a different sport.
De Silvestro revealed she had spent her racing off-season in the northern hemisphere winter coming to grips with “sliding down the ice tracks”.
The former IndyCar racer competed in her first ever race at the Swiss championships in the monobob late last month, finishing fifth.
“Since quite some time I (have) always felt inspired watching the Olympic Games,” De Silvestro wrote on Instagram.
“A few years ago I started thinking (about) how I could achieve this dream. I looked at all the sports and came to the conclusion that with my racing background Bobsleigh could be the sport to get me there.
“So last summer I decided that if I wanted to achieve this dream I would need to give it a go this winter.
“Since December it has been a busy racing off-season with getting to grips of sliding down the ice tracks before the racing season starts again.”
After her first competition, De Silvestro, who earned the nickname the Iron Maiden during her racing career, said she still had a lot of work to do.
“First fun race outside of a race car,” she said.
“Starts need some improvement. Sprint training here we come.”
After two wildcard appearances at Bathurst in 2015 and 2016, De Silvestro became the first full-time female driver in Supercars when she raced for Nissan Motorsport/Kelly Racing for three years between 2017 and 2019.
She achieved a highest placing of 19th in the Supercars championship in her final season, finishing 13th at Mount Panorama the same year.
De Silvestro made a name for herself internationally racing in IndyCar in the United States where she had one podium finish in 69 races.
Since leaving Supercars, De Silvestro has worked as Porsche GT factory driver and reserve driver for Porsche in Formula E.
KOSTECKI ONE TO WATCH IN 2022
Anton De Pasquale has anointed Brodie Kostecki as a “contender” after the Erebus young gun spent the weekend fighting at the front.
“I don’t think you can disregard anyone in this championship,” the Dick Johnson Racing pilot said.
“Obviously Brodie is as big a threat as anyone and we saw that today. He led most of that race and Chaz won. Everyone else behind us was catching us at one point there and it’s a fight with everyone, he’s as good a chance as anyone.”
MAN OF THE MATCH
Shane van Gisbergen for pulling off a minor miracle by finishing 6th after almost going two laps down. His come-back-from the dead rescue mission was every bit as impressive as his win on Saturday night. The ‘Giz’ will take a lot of beating this year.
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