Kostecki eyes Bathurst win after title triumph
Supercars
12 Dec 2023
Bathurst win part of 'unfinished business' for Brodie Kostecki
Kostecki has finished third, fourth and second in last three Great Races
Erebus driver dominated 2023 weekend, headlined by Shootout pole
Brodie Kostecki is eyeing a maiden Great Race victory in 2024 to add to his first Supercars championship crown.
The 26-year-old clinched his first ever championship title with a race to spare at the VAILO Adelaide 500 last month.
The Erebus Motorsport driver was the class of the field in 2023, and his prowess was on display at October’s Repco Bathurst 1000.
Kostecki was the pace-setter in practice and qualifying, and crushed the field in the ARMOR ALL Top Ten Shootout.
A raging favourite to win the race, Kostecki and co-driver David Russell ultimately settled for second behind Triple Eight’s Shane van Gisbergen and Richie Stanaway.
Such is Erebus’ determination to win the Great Race again, the team locked Russell in alongside Kostecki for 2024 just weeks after the 2023 race.
The Kostecki/Russell pairing has proven one of the most formidable at the Mountain, with finishes of third, fourth and second — but Kostecki wants Bathurst victory amid the lure of a second championship and more NASCAR starts next year.
“I want to win it next year,” Kostecki said of the 2024 championship.
“And obviously, there’s Bathurst and a few other races I want to win as well.
“I’ll just take it as it comes, but yeah, I’ve got plenty of unfinished business here.”
Kostecki and Russell finished second in both of this year’s enduros, with Erebus still searching for its first enduro win since its 2017 Bathurst triumph.
For Erebus team owner Betty Klimenko, winning the 2023 championship carried a similar feeling to the 2017 Great Race victory, given it still seemed unexpected despite a dominant performance.
“There’s nothing to express how you feel,” she said after the Adelaide finale.
“I thought ‘Yeah, I’m gonna feel wonderful, fantastic.’ I actually feel quite numb.
“[Winning the championship] was like Bathurst, I wasn’t expecting it.
"I was outside chatting away to people and someone said, ‘You better go in there; you’re about to win Bathurst.’ It’s the same thing here.”
Erebus welcomes Jack Le Brocq to the team in 2024, with Will Brown off to Triple Eight. The team will also put a new driver alongside Le Brocq for the enduros, with Jack Perkins joining Blanchard Racing Team last week.
