Aaron Seton scored first career podium at Bathurst
Seton and polesitter Zach Bates starred in #10 Bendix Camaro
Chasing full-time opportunities currently off 28-year-old's radar
Aaron Seton had never finished any better than 14th in his first 10 Supercars starts. For his 11th start, the chances of that changing skyrocketed as he ticked off another first; starting a Supercars race from pole position.
And it wasn't just any pole position, it was pole at Bathurst, with previous winners Todd Hazelwood and Lee Holdsworth in behind.
It was massive pressure placed on Seton's shoulders, and across a 23 lap opening stint, the third generation star didn't just stay in front, he excelled.
Seton's stints proved vital in placing the #10 Bendix Camaro third on the podium at the end of the race, Zach Bates bringing the pole-sitting entry home as top Chevy after leader Anton De Pasquale ran out of fuel on the last lap.
If it wasn't for a late Safety Car, there's every chance Bates and Seton would have won the race. However, for the 28-year-old, the chance just to climb the podium that grandfather and 1965 winner Bo, and legendary father Glenn had also climbed was a pinch me moment.
"All three of us [Brodie Kostecki/Hazelwood, Will Brown/Scott Pye, Bates/Seton] were fighting up the front for a long time, so it was pretty cool there to be at the end and be able to watch it from the pits," said Seton after his first career Supercars podium.
"Zach did a phenomenal job, the whole team at MSR Bendix Racing did an amazing job, and our car was great all weekend.
"It was nice to drive, and I just had to focus on checking off all the boxes, and just not getting distracted by any emotions."
Seton was also quick to praise both MSR and Bates for their efforts across the weekend, humbly deflecting from his own standout performance early in the race.
"It's a pretty special moment obviously, but it's a team effort," added Seton.
"Zach did a phenomenal job all weekend, Bendix Racing gave us a great car, so it's pretty cool to be up here with these guys and have my first Bathurst podium."
Seton had lined up a solo wildcard program with MSR to better prepare for the enduros, a move that paid dividends at Bathurst. Seton also got extra miles at Townsville after the late withdrawal of Cameron Crick.
The retro-liveried #30 Camaro proved a hit with fans, but also left Seton sharpened ahead of the enduros, with his Bathurst drive the culmination of his strongest enduro lead-in yet.
Asked whether his Bathurst podium could see his attention turn back towards chasing a full-time opportunity, Seton didn't offer a definitive answer, still caught up in the moment of finishing on the Bathurst podium.
"To be honest I don't have the answer for that, my aim coming back to doing the wildcards was to be a good consistent co-driver," Seton explained.
"We'll see what that looks like moving forward."
