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The best charges through the field in 2021 so far

14 Sep 2021
On 17 occasions has a driver gained 10 or more places in a race
3 mins by James Pavey
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The 2021 Repco Supercars Championship has seen some remarkable charges through the field.

On 17 occasions so far this season has a driver gained 10 or more places in a single race.

Considering the majority of races held are 110km-long sprints, gaining such ground is a superb feat.

Remarkably, one driver gained a staggering 21 positions in one race - and on three occasions in 2021 he has been the biggest mover.

Supercars.com lists the biggest gains in the season so far.

10 positions

Jake Kostecki, Race 1 (23rd to 13th)

Kostecki claimed his career-best solo finish in the Mount Panorama season-opener, a result he improved to fifth in Darwin later in the season.

Brodie Kostecki, Race 4 (23rd to 13th)

Kostecki's famous Race 5 podium at Sandown overshadowed his charge from 23rd to 13th in the day's earlier race.

Todd Hazelwood, Race 6 (24th to 14th)

Hazelwood put a poor qualifying performance behind him to gain 10 spots in the Tasmania opener in April.

Nick Percat, Race 8 (20th to 10th)

Percat ended the Tasmania weekend with consecutive powerhouse performances, driving from 20th to 10th.

Shane van Gisbergen, Race 10 (13th to 3rd)

The Bend flashback: Chaotic chain reaction wipes out contenders

Van Gisbergen bottled qualifying for the first Sunday race at The Bend, but avoided the first-lap carnage to claim an unlikely podium.

Will Davison, Race 12 (24th to 14th)

Davison's Sunday poles were his Darwin highlights, but his Saturday charge from the rear to 14th deserves some praise.

11 positions

James Courtney, Race 12 (21st to 10th)

Courtney could have gained 16 positions in the Darwin opener; he crossed the line fifth, but was penalised for a Safety Car restart breach.

Andre Heimgartner, Race 12 (26th to 15th)

In the same race as Courtney's charge, Heimgartner vaulted from 26th and last to just fall short of a brilliant top 10 finish.

Mark Winterbottom, Race 15 (21st to 10th)

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Winterbottom recovered from his worst Townsville qualifying effort to finish 10th.

Scott Pye, Race 17 (18th to 7th)

Pye overturned his poor luck to put in a brilliant performance in Townsville, racing into the top 10 from 18th on the grid.

12 positions

Will Brown, Race 5 (19th to 7th)

As teammate Kostecki stole the spoils for his Sandown podium, Brown powered from 19th on the grid to finish seventh in the wet.

Jack Le Brocq, Race 9 (22nd to 10th)

Le Brocq stayed out of trouble on a greasy Tailem Bend circuit to clinch a top 10 finish after starting a lowly 22nd.

Tim Slade, Race 18 (24th to 12th)

Tim Blanchard's team made an early call to stop Slade for the second time in as many days in Townsville, and it paid dividends with a 12-position gain.

15 positions

Tim Slade, Race 17 (19th to 4th)

Another early strategy play by the CoolDrive squad aided Slade's massive undercut effort in the WD-40 Townsville SuperSprint opener.

16 positions

Shane van Gisbergen, Race 3 (17th to 1st)

Van Gisbergen completes charge with final-lap Waters pass

In one of the most epic winning performances of all time, van Gisbergen motored from 17th on the grid - all while nursing a broken collarbone - to steal victory from Cameron Waters on the final lap at Sandown.

18 positions

Will Brown, Race 12 (22nd to 4th)

Brown powered to fifth on the road in the chaotic Darwin opener, and was promoted to fourth following Courtney's post-race penalty.

21 positions

Nick Percat, Race 9 (26th to 5th)

On paper, the best performance of 2021 so far belongs to Percat, who played the long game in the changeable conditions at The Bend.

Percat nearly emerged with the most unlikely of victories after starting dead last.

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