Wood learning from Mostert's 'serious' side

Ryan Wood has shed light into the intensity of teammate Chaz Mostert, saying the two-time Bathurst winner’s “serious” racing nature has been an “eye-opener.”

Wood, who is 11 years Mostert’s junior, is currently five rounds into his rookie Supercars campaign at Walkinshaw Andretti United.

The young New Zealander is teammate to reigning Barry Sheene Medal winner Mostert, one of Supercars’ most popular drivers and a noted larrikin in the paddock.

However, Wood is currently learning the hard racer side to Mostert, who is currently third in the championship, behind Triple Eight teammates Will Brown and Broc Feeney.

“He's pretty blunt, to be honest,” Wood said in the first episode of Supercars' new Drivers Only podcast.

“He's pretty larrikin, he's one of the dudes, but I probably underestimated how serious he is when it comes to the racing side of it.

“Which I am as well, but there's only one result he wants to achieve, like the rest of us – win.”

Wood cited Mostert’s reaction to his unsafe release penalty in Perth, which cost the WAU star back-to-back wins, as evidence of the 32-year-old’s burning desire to win.

“Even, Perth was a great weekend for us but because he made a mistake in that Sunday race, I couldn't believe how [hard he took it],” Wood said.

“It's an eye-opener for me as a rookie, though, because it gives me perspective of how much it means to not only us as a driver but our team and everything like that.

“So, just learning that side of it's been cool.”

The 2024 season will resume at this weekend’s NTI Townsville 500.