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Start last, finish first: How Mostert's Bathurst miracle stacks up

02 Oct
The remarkable against-the-odds Bathurst win of Mostert and Morris still holds a unique place in Great Race history
3 mins by James Pavey
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  • Mostert and Morris won from 25th and last in 2014

  • With 28 cars entered in 2023, the record could be broken from lowest grid spot for winner

  • Just six times has a Bathurst winner from from outside the top 10

The remarkable against-the-odds Bathurst win of Chaz Mostert and Paul Morris in 2014 still holds a unique place in Great Race history, with the victory coming from 25th on the grid.

Mostert launched from 25th (and last) on the grid for the 2014 Great Race after he was excluded from qualifying for ignoring red flags. It remains the lowest ever starting spot for a Bathurst winner.

The record could be broken in 2023, with 28 cars slated to enter this year's Repco Bathurst 1000. In 62 runnings of the Great Race at Mount Panorama, just six times has the winner come from outside the top 10.

Of course, starting positions seldom have a major influence on a 161-lap, 1000km-long race - but Mostert and Morris' efforts remain unbeaten.

Steven Richards holds a unique place in Bathurst history; of his five Bathurst wins, three have come from 12th or worse on the grid.

In celebration of the Mostert/Morris win, Supercars.com lists the five other occasions the Bathurst winner started from outside the top 10.

19th: Peter Brock/David Parsons/Peter McLeod, 1987

Pole-sitter: Klaus Ludwig (EXC)

On This Day: Brock's final Bathurst 1000 win Open Graph Image

Sierras filled the top five positions in the shootout, with rookie Klaus Ludwig a runaway pole winner. Eggenberger Sierras ran away with the race, with Steve Soper and Pierre Dieudonné taking the chequered flag two laps ahead of teammates Ludwig and Klaus Niedzwiedz.

Peter Brock, Peter McLeod and David Parsons were third, but were handed victory after the two Eggenberger cars were disqualified for illegally modified front wheel arch guards.After an appeal, the disqualifications were upheld; Brock, McLeod and Parsons were declared race winners.

It was a record ninth Bathurst victory for Brock, and his final victory in the race. It came after the Brock/Parsons car had failed on lap 34, with the pair moving into the Holden Dealer Team's second car.

17th: Will Davison/Jonathon Webb, 2016

Pole-sitter: Jamie Whincup (11th)

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Jamie Whincup and Paul Dumbrell were peerless in the 2016 race, but Whincup’s late incident with Garth Tander and Scott McLaughlin opened the door for Tekno Autosports. Davison qualified 17th for the race, but was in the right place at the right time to claim the win.

Whincup’s post-race 15-second tie penalty handed victory to Davison, who crossed the line just 0.1434s ahead of Shane van Gisbergen.

15th: Jason Bright/Steven Richards, 1998

Pole-sitter: Mark Skaife (sixth)

BRIGHT-JUBOBathurst

A practice crash had the Steven Richards/Jason Bright entry on the back foot. However, the duo combined to win the Stone brothers their only Great Race. Richards would win again in 1999 from 12th, and from 15th in 2015.

15th: Craig Lowndes/Steven Richards, 2015

Pole-sitter: David Reynolds (sixth)

1lowndes-win-2015

With Friday qualifying moved to Saturday after Chaz Mostert’s heavy crash, Craig Lowndes could only manage 15th in a rain-affected session.

Jamie Whincup and Paul Dumbrell led for most of the race, but Whincup ignored a call to pit during the last Safety Car period. Whincup passed the Safety Car and was handed a drive-through penalty, all but guaranteeing victory for Lowndes and Steven Richards.

12th: Greg Murphy/Steven Richards, 1999

Pole-sitter: Mark Larkham (DNF)

Murphy-Richards-Bath-1999-Cov-1

Greg Murphy and Steven Richards delivered Gibson Motorsport its third and final Bathurst win in 1999. Gibson previously won in 1991 and 1992 in Nissan Skylines, with Richards' legendary father Jim winning with Mark Skaife.

The 1999 result was Steven Richards' second straight Bathurst win, 12 months after winning from 15th alongside Jason Bright for Stone Brothers Racing. Murphy became a two-time winner after winning from pole with Craig Lowndes in 1996. He won again in 2003 and 2004 with Rick Kelly and Kmart Racing.

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