The unseen side of Kostecki/Hazelwood saga
DJR engineer George Commins had his hands full in Darwin
Brodie Kostecki battled virus, competed on Friday and Saturday
Todd Hazelwood raced on Sunday after Kostecki withdrew
The Brodie Kostecki/Todd Hazelwood swap was a head-scratcher for many, none more so than Shell V-Power Racing Team engineer George Commins.
Kostecki fought a virus all week and battled through Friday and Saturday, impressively scoring a pole and podium before requiring treatment post-race on Saturday.
The 2023 champion deteriorated and was ruled out of Sunday’s action, with co-driver Hazelwood parachuted in for qualifying and the race.
While Hazelwood had runs on the board with his Trans Am commitments, his first laps in the #17 Shell V-Power Mustang came in Boost Mobile Qualifying. He duly ended up 13th, before defying clutch issues and discomfort to come home 12th.
Each session was different for Commins, whose weekend started with Kostecki remonstrating in the car on Friday amid throttle issues. The race wasn’t much better, Kostecki dropping from pole to fourth.
Commins stood on the podium as Kostecki was whisked away to medical on Saturday. By that stage, the experienced Commins must have known this weekend was not like the others.
The trusty hands of Hazelwood saved the day, giving Commins a point of relief, even if he went from managing one driver’s illness to another’s discomfort.
“It's been an interesting day, to say the least," Commins said on Supercars’ Equip Super Cool Down Lap podcast.
"Very impressed [with Hazelwood]. No practice laps at all. 200 (kilometres), stops and a Shootout, you really can't ask for much more than that. And then he did a really solid job in the race.
“Had some feet going to sleep because the seat obviously wasn't quite right. We haven't poured his enduro seat yet. So to push through all of that, and come home in 12th is really good.”
On the Kostecki withdrawal call, Commins added: “Definitely the right call not to be in the car today.
“So he'll head home now and start getting some treatment tomorrow.”
Hazelwood didn’t have a seat insert, and 70 laps left him fighting numbness. Another curveball emerged in the form of clutch issues, with Hazelwood fearing he wouldn’t make it.
Commins brought Hazelwood home, and when asked if there were nerves, the quietly spoken engineer admitted it’s all part of the job.
“That's the name of the game. There's always something you can do better and always an issue that you've gotta find,” Commins said.
“We'll go through the clutch. It seems to have got a bit hot, but we'll get to the bottom of it.”
Kostecki is set to return to his #17 Ford for the NTI Townsville 500 on July 10-12.
