Phillip Island Supercars: Mostert cruises to fairytale win
Chaz Mostert bounced back from two tyre failures on Saturday to win Sunday’s 250-kilometre Supercars race at Phillip Island, his first championship race victory since his horror crash at Bathurst in 2015.
Photo by: Bob Gloyn Photography
The Prodrive Racing Australia driver executed a two-stop strategy to perfection, a revised set-up allowing him to stretch his Dunlops for 27 laps to take his first win since breaking his leg at Mount Panorama back in October 2015.
“It’s been long enough,” said Mostert. “After yesterday, blowing two right rears, [the team] turned this car upside down. I’m ecstatic. It means a lot.”
Mark Winterbottom made it a PRA 1-2, while David Reynolds completed the podium for Erebus.
Crack squad DJR Team Penske’s day was hit with penalties and poor strategy, while Triple Eight was struck by tyre failures despite generally improved reliability from the Dunlop rubber compared to yesterday.
Story of the race
For the second time in as many days polesitter Scott McLaughlin was beaten to Turn 1 by his teammate Fabian Coulthard.
Coulthard’s lead didn’t last long, though, the #12 Penske Ford one of 24 cars to dive into the pits at the end of the first lap when the Safety Car was called to recover Will Davison’s beached Commodore.
McLaughlin was the only car to stay out, which meant he avoided stacking and took over the lead. When the race restarted he put that clean air to good effect, too, pulling the lead over Coulthard out to over 10 seconds before diving into the lane for his first stop.
The Kiwi took on more than 100 litres of fuel, the long stop burying him back outside the Top 20. But when the Safety Car was called again on Lap 24 – after both Red Bull Triple Eight cars suffered right-rear tyre failures – McLaughlin was filtered back to the front.
When the race restart on Lap 30 it was McLaughlin leading Mostert – who was fuelled to the end and all of a sudden a genuine contender.
Coulthard, meanwhile, dropped back through the field as he opted to cycle through the pits under Safety Car and take on more of the required fuel load.
Being stuck back in the pack wound up being the last of Coulthard’s issues, though; it was quickly noted that after making his second stop he left pitlane while the red light was showing, the points leader smacked with a drive-through penalties for his effort. He served it immediately, and popped back out in 23rd spot, his chances of victory done and dusted.
The next lead change came on Lap 41 when McLaughlin dived into the lane to take on what was left of his fuel allocation. Mostert took over at the front, while McLaughlin came out in 22nd after repairing some loose bodywork made the stop slightly longer than it needed to be.
At that point Mostert led by 2.3s over Winterbottom and Courtney, although the HSV Commodore needed to stop again. David Reynolds was fourth, fuelled to the end like Mostert and Winterbottom.
The big question for Mostert, Winterbottom, and Reynolds, though, was whether the Dunlops would make it to the finish.
In the end, the tyres did just enough. Mostert came home ahead of his teammate, while Reynolds took a fairytale third for small team Erebus.
McLaughlin, meanwhile, could only make his way back to 14th, although he was best of the ‘big two’. Shan van Gisbergen finished back in 16th, Coulthard in 17th, and Jamie Whincup in 18th.
James Moffat finished fourth for Garry Rogers Motorsport, effectively inheriting the spot with five laps to go when Craig Lowndes suffered Triple Eight’s third tyre failure of the day.
Lee Holdsworth finished fifth, Cam Waters sixth, and Garth Tander seventh.
Dale Wood capped off a great day for Erebus with eighth.
Race Results:
Cla | # | Driver | Car | Laps | Time | Gap |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | 55 | Chaz Mostert | Ford Falcon FG-X | 57 | - | |
2 | 5 | Mark Winterbottom | Ford Falcon FG-X | 57 | 2.9040 | 2.904 |
3 | 9 | David Reynolds | Holden Commodore VF | 57 | 3.5476 | 3.548 |
4 | 34 | James Moffat | Holden Commodore VF | 57 | 9.9341 | 9.934 |
5 | 18 | Lee Holdsworth | Holden Commodore VF | 57 | 10.6153 | 10.615 |
6 | 6 | Cameron Waters | Ford Falcon FG-X | 57 | 16.3874 | 16.387 |
7 | 33 | Garth Tander | Holden Commodore VF | 57 | 17.7569 | 17.757 |
8 | 99 | Dale Wood | Holden Commodore VF | 57 | 21.2174 | 21.217 |
9 | 15 | Rick Kelly | Nissan Altima | 57 | 22.3449 | 22.345 |
10 | 23 | Michael Caruso | Nissan Altima | 57 | 22.5345 | 22.535 |
11 | 7 | Todd Kelly | Nissan Altima | 57 | 24.3999 | 24.400 |
12 | 2 | Scott Pye | Holden Commodore VF | 57 | 27.7410 | 27.741 |
13 | 78 | Simona de Silvestro | Nissan Altima | 57 | 30.9586 | 30.959 |
14 | 17 | Scott McLaughlin | Ford Falcon FG-X | 57 | 31.3485 | 31.349 |
15 | 21 | Tim Blanchard | Holden Commodore VF | 57 | 36.0152 | 36.015 |
16 | 97 | Shane van Gisbergen | Holden Commodore VF | 57 | 40.4538 | 40.454 |
17 | 12 | Fabian Coulthard | Ford Falcon FG-X | 57 | 40.5929 | 40.593 |
18 | 88 | Jamie Whincup | Holden Commodore VF | 57 | 41.0715 | 41.072 |
19 | 14 | Tim Slade | Holden Commodore VF | 57 | 41.2462 | 41.246 |
20 | 22 | James Courtney | Holden Commodore VF | 57 | 41.5721 | 41.572 |
21 | 8 | Nick Percat | Holden Commodore VF | 57 | 1'04.0552 | 1'04.055 |
22 | 62 | Alex Rullo | Holden Commodore VF | 57 | 1'17.8729 | 1'17.873 |
23 | 888 | Craig Lowndes | Holden Commodore VF | 56 | 1 lap | 1 lap |
24 | 3 | Taz Douglas | Holden Commodore VF | 55 | 2 laps | 2 laps |
25 | 56 | Jason Bright | Ford Falcon FG-X | 50 | 7 laps | 7 laps |
26 | 19 | Will Davison | Holden Commodore VF | 0 |
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