Bathurst 1000: Brodie Kostecki, Todd Hazlewood, primed to take first win at Supercars pinnacle

Erebus Motorsport chief executive Barry Ryan has declared Brodie Kostecki is “ready to win” at the Bathurst 1000, saying the defending Supercars champion was as happy as he had seen him in a “long time”.

Erebus Motorsport chief executive Barry Ryan has declared Brodie Kostecki is “ready to win” at the Bathurst 1000, saying the defending Supercars champion was as happy as he had seen him in a “long time”.

After enduring a tough title defence in 2024 when he sat out the opening two rounds of the season, Kostecki and his co-driver Todd Hazelwood will be aiming to top Kostecki’s two previous podiums at Mount Panorama.

Kostecki blasted his way to pole position at Bathurst last year before he finished runner-up alongside co-driver David Russell behind winners Shane van Gisbergen and Richie Stanaway.

Defending Supercars champion Brodie Kostecki and leading championship contender Will Brown. Picture: Getty Images

The 26-year-old also finished third at Mount Panorama with Russell in 2021.

This season has been a tough campaign for Kostecki, who did not race until the third round in New Zealand after the widely reported falling out with his team.

This year’s Bathurst 1000 will be Kostecki’s last for Erebus Motorsport after signing to join Ford squad Dick Johnson Racing in 2025.

But Ryan was buoyant about Kostecki’s prospects of signing off from the team with a Bathurst win to his name.

“We are here to win. That is the only reason why I come racing and have for 27 years now coming to Bathurst,” Ryan said when asked about Kostecki’s chances ahead of Thursday’s opening practice.

“Brodie’s in a really good space, he’s back as part of the team.

“It’s unfortunate what happened, but he is as happy as I have seen him for a long time.

“We’re ready to go, we’re ready to win races.”

After his maiden title win last season, Kostecki sits well down in the championship standings in 24th with just one podium this year when he finished third at Hidden Valley in Darwin.

While it was a fairly trouble-free run to the drivers and teams championships for Erebus last year, Ryan conceded the team had experienced some “bad luck” this season.

“We got a puncture when Todd (Hazelwood) tried to pass (Jamie) Whincup (at Sandown) on his exhaust, cut the tyre, and then Todd drove it back up from last to 10th,” Ryan said.

Defending Supercars champion Brodie Kostecki has an eye on Bathurst 1000 glory. Picture: Getty Images

“We’ve had engine (things), a piston cracked, nothing to do with the mechanics.

“I hate saying bad luck …. but this year unfortunately we’ve had a few things niggle at us.

“As long as that is all gone we can win Bathurst. We have the team, we have the car, just got to get the strategy right.

“As the great Larry Perkins said, the fastest way to win a race is with the fastest car, if we have got the fastest car, then we have a shot to win the race like 2017 (when David Reynolds won for Erebus) and nearly 2018.”

Erebus Motorsport has already signed young gun Cooper Murray, who is campaigning in a Triple Eight wildcard alongside Craig Lowndes at Bathurst, as Kostecki’s replacement for next year.

Murray impressed with his fifth placing with Lowndes in the Sandown 500 and Ryan said the rising talent was ready to make an immediate impact.

“We only pick drivers that are ready to win and Cooper has probably been ready to win for a couple of years and I’m surprised some other team hasn’t picked him up,” Ryan said.

“As we do, we had the balls to do it and Betty (Klimenko) backs us to do it and we’ve got another guy that’s ready to win races next year.”

Originally published as Bathurst 1000: Brodie Kostecki, Todd Hazlewood, primed to take first win at Supercars pinnacle