'One step at a time' for Kostecki in title chase
Supercars
29 Oct
Brodie Kostecki taking championship bid “one step at a time”
Kostecki could clinch 2023 title on Adelaide Saturday
Erebus driver 131 points ahead of Shane van Gisbergen with 300 remaining
Brodie Kostecki maintains he is taking his championship bid “one step at a time” after placing one hand on the crowd on the Gold Coast.
The Erebus Motorsport driver will face a nervous four-week wait to the season-ending VAILO Adelaide 500, having consolidated his points lead.
The pressure was on Kostecki heading into Sunday, with his lead over Shane van Gisbergen slashed from 131 to 104 points in Saturday’s Boost Mobile Gold Coast 500 opener.
However, Kostecki pushed it back out to 131 points after fighting Penrite Racing veteran David Reynolds for victory in Race 26, with van Gisbergen sixth.
While Reynolds held on, Kostecki did what he has done all year — finish towards the front, and pick up points. If Kostecki outscores van Gisbergen by 20 points in the Saturday Adelaide race, the title is his with one race to spare.
When asked about the possibility of winning the championship, Kostecki said: “Most definitely.
“It’s been like that all year, we’ve had speed all year. It's great that we’re going into Adelaide with the same points gap that we went into Gold Coast with.
“This place is pretty daunting, it’s very high risk to make lap time out of the cars, and anything can happen off the start line and whatnot.
“To be honest, Adelaide’s not much different. We’ve seen plenty of stuff happen there, there’s Turn 8 and everything else going on.
“The race was pretty crazy last year with the marbles. We’ll just focus on ourselves, put one foot in front of the other and go one step at a time.”
Kostecki took plenty of risks fighting Reynolds on Sunday, and an error at Turn 11 helped the Penrite Ford back into the lead.
The #99 Coca-Cola Camaro driver never settled for second, with Reynolds cutting the first chicane on the final lap after Kostecki set the fastest lap of the race.
When asked how he’s feeling after Sunday’s race, Kostecki said: “It feels like I’ve just finished in second place.
“I actually learned a lot following Dave in the last stint, he’s probably one of the best around the Gold Coast.
“He was putting on a hard fought battle, and it was an awesome race towards the end there, and I'm glad everyone enjoyed it. It’s what the sport’s about.”
The 2023 Repco Supercars Championship will conclude at the VAILO Adelaide 500 on November 23-26. Tickets are on sale now.
