Analysis: The laps that helped Kostecki weather Waters storm

At last year’s Repco Bathurst 1000, Brodie Kostecki had to put in a gut-busting effort to hold off a challenge from behind.

On Sunday, albeit in a new car, with a new team, at a new track, he did it again.

The 2023 Supercars champion’s charge to victory in the AirTouch 500 at The Bend was set up by a brilliant stint by co-driver Todd Hazelwood, but the race came back to Kostecki’s rivals in the second half.

Chaz Mostert loomed as a brief threat, leading amid a four-stop strategy play, but fell away. With Penrite Racing opting for aggressive undercuts, and the Broc Feeney/Jamie Whincup entry dropping out, Kostecki was left with one chief rival: Cam Waters.

Supercars.com breaks down the race, and where the #38 toppled the #6.

Hazelwood lays the foundation

Hazelwood cleared Whincup for the lead on lap 15, and was peerless before handing over to Kostecki.

With the Mostert/Fabian Coulthard car on a four-stopper, and with Feeney/Whincup out of it, it emerged as Kostecki/Hazelwood’s to lose.

However, the Waters car was quietly in contention courtesy of a solid yet unassuming effort by Mark Winterbottom, who kept pace with the leaders through the first stops and remained within distance.

With Mostert five seconds up the road, Kostecki suddenly had Waters coming at him, with the margin coming down before the final stops. By the time Tickford Racing pulled Waters in, the margin was half a second.

The run home

Waters’ in and out laps were strong, with the former spent right behind Kostecki. Dick Johnson Racing pitted their star immediately in response, and Kostecki emerged with a 1.2s lead after his stop. Kostecki was armed with two green rear tyres, but Waters was up to speed on his scrubbed Dunlops.

In a burst of speed, Waters shaved 0.893s off the margin between laps 77 and 80, and ranged up behind the #38 Shell V-Power Mustang. Turn 6 was Waters’s strongest spot, with the #6 Monster Mustang repeatedly showing the nose.

In response, Kostecki reeled off six consecutive times faster than Waters between laps 81 to 86, gaining 1.031s back to establish himself. Kostecki gained another 0.614s between laps 93 and 95, before Waters returned serve with three quick laps of his own to claw back 0.549s.

While tyre degradation wasn’t a major issue on the billiard table-smooth Bend surface, both drivers needed to keep their heads. Neither faltered, with few lock-ups and missed apexes in sight.

Kostecki had a buffer big enough to frustrate Waters, who was being bugged by a faulty fuel sensor. In a final four-lap burst, Kostecki pulled the pin and gained 1.392s, forcing Waters to put up the white flag. On the final lap, Kostecki put 0.685s on Waters. Victory margin, 3.018 seconds. Job done, DJR.

All told, the difference between the two across 25 laps between lap 77 and 101? Just 0.5161s. Epic.

The aftermath

Waters played down the possible influence of the tyre offset and the fuel sensor issue. When it mattered, as it did in Bathurst last year, Kostecki simply had the answers when it mattered most.

All told, between laps 75 and 101 after the stops, the difference between Kostecki and Waters was just 0.1s. Waters gave it away on the 102nd and final lap, knowing Kostecki had enough in reserve.

When was the race won? There’s no doubt Hazelwood laid the platform, but as it was at Mount Panorama 11 months ago, Kostecki needed to hold his nerve in a blockbuster run home to seal the deal.

"I wasn't nervous, just the car was a little nervous on entry to the corners," Kostecki said post-race.

"You can't be nervous when you drive for such a great team like Shell V-Power Racing, and I get to share the car with a bloke like this who did an awesome job, gave us a good margin to settle into the race.

"The stint before last the car was a little bit too edgy for me, so we tuned it up and were able to just manage the gap to Cam and bring it home. Super stoked for everyone at Shell V-Power Racing."

Kostecki vs Waters: Final stops to chequered flag

* Denotes driver's fastest lap

- (Kostecki gain)

+ (Waters gain)