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Brodie Kostecki

2024 Bathurst 1000: Brodie Kostecki adds another major trophy for the first time at Mount Panorama alongside Todd Hazlewood in the 1 Chevy Camaro for Erebus Motorsport

by Sports Benches October 13, 2024

Great to hear from one-time NASCAR Cup Series driver Brodie Kostecki today with his Bathurst 1000 win for the first time alongside co-driver Todd Hazlewood at Mount Panorama. He first already won the Supercars Championship drivers’ title last year & now he gets to add another major honour in his trophy cabinet with the Bathurst win – all of which he’s achieved with Erebus Motorsport (Chevy team).

He didn’t look out of place at all from start to finish when he led the line from pole position with the team pit stops being absolutely flawless including the one late yellow before Kostecki was able to pull well clear of Triple 8/Red Bull Racing Australia’s Broc Feeney (No.88 Chevy with co-driver Jamie Whincup) during the final restart with 15 laps to go & there he goes safe and sound towards the finish line following a long 161 laps throughout today.

Congratulations to Brodie as sure he’s sticking around here for more with Supercars going into 2025 including a big switch to Ford power at Dick Johnson Racing. As far as his NASCAR ambitions is concerned, again, he could’ve done a few more starts at Cup level had Brodie not gone through a really tough off-season that saw him miss the first few races of 2024.

It remains to be seen as to whether or not if he will be back racing in the US at least part-time again. However, it looks like Brodie won’t be leaving Supercars or Australia anytime soon unlike Shane Van Gisbergen, who is currently enjoying every minute of it at Kaulig Racing in the Xfinity Series level, with a full-time Cup ride coming his way next year at Trackhouse.

Not even former team-mate, current Triple 8 driver & also fellow NASCAR one-time racer Will Brown is willing to go full-time either when he’s also happy living here with family still around him. Also unsure about Cam Waters either at Tickford Racing’s Ford outfit when he competed two Truck races and one Cup road course race earlier this year & while he will definitely come back next season, it’s still too early to tell depending on Ford Performance wanting another SVG-like impact for Waters to begin with maybe at Ryan Sieg’s team or even AM Racing.

For now, there’s still better days ahead for Brodie Kostecki while there’s also always going to be another Supercars driver – preferably young/early-mid 20s – willing to follow SVG’s footsteps by racing NASCAR full-time in the US in the near future.

October 13, 2024 0 comment

Motorsport

Thoughts on Brodie Kostecki set for a Supercars switch from Erebus to Dick Johnson Racing in 2025 and how this impacts his NASCAR plans if he wants to race there again

by Sports Benches August 28, 2024

We haven’t heard much of Brodie Kostecki’s NASCAR goals since his off-season stoush with Erebus Motorsport so far in 2024 as he won’t be coming back to race in the US at least for now according to Paul Morris a few months ago around April.

If it wasn’t for that off-season saga, then he would’ve done a couple more Cup races this year under Erebus with the support of Richard Childress Racing rather than directly for Childress as a third partial Cup team.

However, his pending Supercars move to Dick Johnson Racing next year could shake things up a bit when Anton De Pasquale just confirmed his 2025 ride yesterday as a replacement for Mark Winterbottom at Team 18. He too will switch over to Chevy having last driven a GM brand chassis formerly known as Holden back in 2020 with Erebus.

Speaking of Erebus, looks like Kostecki is going the other way round and possibly take the spot of another Erebus alumni as the last time Kostecki raced a Ford car was back in 2017 in the Super2 feeder series for Matt Stone Racing.

If he wishes to come back racing in the US, then he would be better off racing for a Ford-powered NASCAR team unlike Richard Childress Racing – who previously viewed him as a great squad member thanks to the team’s Australian connections with Erebus. Both teams race Chevy in their respective race series and it’s highly unlikely RCR would want someone who is racing that isn’t Chevy.

Plus, Will Brown raced for RCR back in June at Sonoma anyway as sure he’ll be given a warm welcome back in 2025 if Will wishes to make his NASCAR goals serious in the path like we’ve saw with 2025’s Trackhouse full-time Cup driver & former Triple 8 team-mate Shane Van Gisbergen.

Maybe Xfinity would be a good start again still part-time but RSS or AM Racing would suit him well or a good Trucks ride wouldn’t be bad either. Yes, he made his debut in a Cup car for Childress last year much like SVG also in a road course but at Indianapolis rather than Chicago. But again, he’s had a tough first half of the season or off-season as his proven Supercars track record should not go unnoticed. Therefore, Xfinity or even Trucks would be the way to go if Kostecki feels ready to race in the US again before he can think about Cup when the time is right; Maybe he’s happy living here with Supercars after all.

I hope Kostecki is well wherever he ends up ahead of next year’s Supercars season after his unexpected few months off where things will have to take time before we can see the best of him again from 2022-23.

August 28, 2024 0 comment

Motorsport

NASCAR News Today: Thoughts on Michael McDowell leaving Front Row for Spire, the end of NASCAR RaceHub & lots of Australian motorsport links with the sport lately

by Sports Benches May 8, 2024

It’s been a huge week of NASCAR news and its silly season rumour mill so far where one driver will be jumping ship to another team going into next year while a major shake up amongst the media landscape is changing regarding its weekly magazine show and the Australian NASCAR connection extends even further where we could see another Supercars driver having a crack next month & one of the renowned TCR Australia manufacturers might be joining the sport in the next few years.

A huge hole to fill at Front Row Motorsports going into next year

Michael McDowell has been outstanding in the No.34 Ford at Front Row Motorsports over the last seven years, having turned from Top 20-25 into a occasional front row to Top 10-15 challenger that saw him win two races including two Playoffs opportunities off the back from the breakthrough 2021 Daytona 500 as well as the 2023 Indianapolis Grand Prix (road course).

Yes, all great things has to come to an end when he will leave FRM at the end of this season but he will be off to Spire Motorsports though to replace former FRM alumni Zane Smith in the No.71 Chevy from 2025 as this is a team who is also looking to improve their on-track presence with plenty of ambition by turning themselves into a Top-10 outfit.

I’m sure he still has a few more years left to offer going into the 40s by fulfilling their wish with the hope of more good Top 10-15 finishes and race wins before Michael calls a day. Who will replace him? It remains to be seen with Stewart-Haas still on the lookout to sell their two charters and then possibly merging with FRM to make up four Ford cars, so Ryan Preece could be staying after all rather than being given the flick this time in McDowell’s spot for the 34. I don’t know if some of the current sponsors will be joining ship with McDowell but I guess they are tied up with the team as sure Spire has their own $$$ to support three Cup cars & Preece would be the perfect replacement who has a great racing pedigree from the ground up. Yes, he might not be doing things too good when SHR is currently struggling but again he can get things done in a good race car.

FOX Sports ending NASCAR RaceHub next month once their first-half season coverage wraps up

It looks like there won’t be a dedicated daily NASCAR TV show for race fans to tune in on weeknights now ahead of the next TV rights deal next year that incorporates a greater focus on streaming as FOX Sports has today announced that they will be finishing up NASCAR RaceHub on Monday, June 11 after 15 years on the air. It first started back in 2009 when Speed Channel was around with Adam Alexander and Krista Voda.

Over the years, Alexander remained as the original co-host all along while several others have came in and go when Voda moved on after a few years & Speed became FS1 – such as the late Steve Byrnes (who sadly passed away in late 2014) & Danielle Trotta (2013-2016) along with Shannon Spake & Kaitlyn Vincie in recent years. It was also a show that welcomed regular guests both past and present including breaking news announcements, interviews, analysis and many more that included the weekly radioactive segment from each race of the season via the in-car radio by several teams.

Gotta say 6pm won’t the be the same for race fans when there’s no reliable source that is related to NASCAR to tune in on weeknights. But again, there will be several networks airing NASCAR over the next couple of years and with FOX only airing the first-half Cup races and still the entire Truck Series season, they don’t have any other choice but to shut it down when there’s NASCAR.com or other streaming-only NASCAR related shows and even podcasts to tune in online going forward at any time rather than being required to tune in at a certain time or else having to set it up on their DVRs to watch it later.

It doesn’t say whether or not if NASCAR RaceDay will be following RaceHub out the door but I guess it will be at the end of the NASCAR season in November with a brand new pre-show incorporating the network’s race day coverage from 2025. It seems that FOX NASCAR’s days has reached its tipping point, who may be able to celebrate its 30th anniversary come 2031 , but then after that, The CW or CBS in partnership with Amazon or TNT Sports will be looking to take their place for the first half season including the Truck Series package when the next round of TV rights come into market from 2032 & beyond.

A bit of Supercars/SpeedSeries NASCAR links popping up lately

And lastly but not least, here’s some bit of Supercars and SpeedSeries links with NASCAR that you need to know over the last week:

1. Current Supercars drivers’ leader at Red Bull Team Australia and inaugural 2019 TCR Australia champion Will Brown is set to earn his opportunity in NASCAR where he will be driving the partial No.33 Chevy Camaro ZL1 race car for Richard Childress Racing at Sonoma Raceway also early next month.
2. We could see Hyundai and even Honda joining NASCAR later this decade around 2026 or 2027 if the sport can add the hybrid element having seen the sport race with Toyota, Ford and Chevy over the last 11 years after Dodge left despite ending the 2012 season with Brad Keselowski as the champion for Team Penske at the time with no other team left to take their place.

It’s been a while since Brodie Kostecki, who had long-term ambitions to race NASCAR, fell out with Erebus Motorsport over the off-season that saw him sit out the first 1-2 races before he was able to race with them again as several sponsors walked out the door including Boost Mobile. It’s a shame that he won’t be back racing NASCARs any time soon at least in the short term. But that doesn’t mean another Supercars-NASCAR link isn’t all over other than Shane Van Gisbergen racing in the Xfinity Series full-time for Kaulig Racing when the Peter Adderton effect via his MobileX backing with RCR still remains strong by asking his Triple 8 replacement & former Erebus driver Will Brown to take his place at Sonoma, which is really good news.

There’s still a long way to go for Brown if he wants to hold on both his Supercars championship hopes and the potential to win the Bathurst 1000 later this year but if he wishes to race in NASCAR full-time at some point, I’m sure he will be given the right steps like SVG in order to become the next Supercars convert to thrive in the US for the right organization. I hope Brodie can get things back on track but let’s hope this off-season saga won’t hold back his NASCAR ambitions too much.

While we saw a number of Supercars drivers plying their trade in the US initially on a part-time basis including Cam Waters lately at Truck Series level for ThorSport Racing, here’s another SpeedSeries related link that could see one of the major players end up in NASCAR in the years to come if the sport is able to roll out the hybrid element to its race cars. Enter Hyundai into the fold who has a great history of motorsport over the last few years such as the World Rally Championship as well as touring cars that extends to SpeedSeries here via TCR Australia. Now the negotiations haven’t even started yet but Ed Laukes is saying this who used to be a senior executive for Toyota in North America & is a consultant for Joe Gibbs Racing.

I can imagine though with Hyundai’s modern approach to their motorsports program, they could really be a success in NASCAR by having a Sonata sedan onboard in Cup and Xfinity level while they can use the Santa Cruz pick up truck in the Truck Series if they like. Usually a team with manufacturer backing requires 3-4 cars but Trackhouse, Spire or Stewart-Haas potentially partnering up with Front Row would be the perfect landing spots should Hyundai’s desire to join the sport is serious. It’s still early days as we still have three makes currently on track (Toyota, Ford and Chevy) but the manufacturer talk isn’t going away anytime soon with the hope of a fourth one or even a fifth coming in to turn left sooner rather than later.

May 8, 2024 0 comment

Motorsport

Thoughts on Three New Zealand airing NASCAR races live for free online this season with Shane Van Gisbergen set to begin his first full season in the US soon

by Sports Benches February 3, 2024

Image Reference: Zach Catanzareti via Wikipedia, CC BY 2.0

You wouldn’t believe it by surprise as New Zealand will get live NASCAR coverage this season & it’s free to view too without a subscription where ThreeNow will stream every race of both Cup & Xfinity Series while continuing to one-hour highlights on Sundays through their CRC Motorsports show on the main Three TV channel. It’s brilliant timing ahead of Shane Van Gisbergen’s first full season racing NASCARs in the US starting soon, although the new racing season will return on Monday morning beginning with the non-points Busch Clash race at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum.

As said, it’s exciting times for NZ’s own SVG who will compete full-time in the Xfinity Series including a few part-time Cup races with Kaulig Racing under loan development for the year from Team Trackhouse. Yes, he will have to race the ARCA main series opener at Daytona on his first racing weekend out of 2024, but that’s only for him to pass the superspeedway requirements by NASCAR before he’s allowed to raced there. He has never done it before other than road courses where he made his name in Supercars while he won at Chicago on his Cup debut + raced on a short oval with Niece Motorpsorts in Trucks last year. He won’t be lost at Trackhouse after all despite the late change due to AJ Allmendinger’s return to the Xfinity Series also to Kaulig as his new team-mate. They are preparing him well at the right place ahead of racing Cup level full-time in 2025 & beyond either in their potential third car or possibly replacing Daniel Suarez in the No.99 Chevy Camaro.

So what does that mean for Australia? It will still be on Fox Sports/Kayo every week Live for all Cup and Xfinity races where you would need to pay at $25 a month to watch these races behind a paywall. Yes, it didn’t cost that much for Three to stump up the money in order to show races live legally now in NZ. Speaking of Three, they are owned by Warner Bros Discovery whose parent cable channel TNT will return to the sport next year under the next Domestic TV rights contract (five late summer races live alongside Max as a sports streaming add-on with all 2nd half practice & qualifying events via TruTV).

But despite the Three NASCAR deal in NZ, don’t see NASCAR coming back on free-to-air in Australia anytime soon even it’s only one-hour highlights like IndyCar. Anyone can watch YouTube at anytime for a few mins highlights from the race without having to sit few hours each time & there’s always full race replays during the mid-week too that is all for free worldwide.

We don’t even know what is happening with Brodie Kostecki right now after he shockingly decided to leave Erebus Motorsport in Supercars this week not long before the new season starts soon despite winning the championship. I hope he can come back sometime this season & race part-time at Cup level again with Richard Childress Racing. There’s still always hope to see an Australian racing in NASCAR though every week alongside SVG whether it’s with or without Kostecki. Plus, you got Tickford Racing’s Cameron Waters potentially racing a few road course races there later this year for RFK Racing’s 3rd part-time vehicle in a Ford Mustang & he’s so passionate about this sport, having visited 1-2 races at Martinsville I (April) & Daytona II (August) last year.

For now, NZ Motorsport fans can enjoy watching NASCAR races live for free every Sunday & Monday thanks to ThreeNow. But for us Australians, don’t hold your breath when most top-level motorsports content is behind a paywall – even with an Aussie and SVG in there when most people are at work during the day except when you can Xfinity Series races on most Sundays.

February 3, 2024 0 comment

Motorsport

Thoughts on Erebus Motorsports looking to enter NASCAR as a part-time Cup team to further support Brodie Kostecki next season

by Sports Benches October 3, 2023

Didn’t see it coming that Erebus Motorsports has today expressed their interest to enter into the world of NASCAR via Auto Action, especially Cup level; but only on a part-time basis to support their full-time Supercars driver Brodie Kostecki’s US adventure to a further extent next year. If this happens, we expect to see him race in a Chevy Camaro (Car No. TBD) with technical support coming from their great mates at Richard Childress Racing, who helped Brodie get his foot on the door at Indianapolis (Road Course) last month.

More details will come as soon as next season’s calendar comes out both for Supercars here & NASCAR. I’m glad the group at Erebus wants to have a crack at NASCAR on top of their successful Supercars operation considering their excellent relationship with RCR. With one year left on Brodie’s existing contact, although it seems too ambitious for Erebus to go full-time in NASCAR if you look at the huge costs to run from day-to-day, but sure he will end up at a RCR affiliate team like Kaulig or even RCR’s Xfinity Series team with the blessing/support of Erebus at some point in 2025.

He does not have much ovals experience right now on a national series level just like fellow Supercars driver Shane Van Gisbergen, who will move to the US full-time next season on an initial development contact with Team Trackhouse. But he can always continue to run 1-2 more road course events at Cup level alongside an odd short track oval race to round off his 2024 NASCAR adventure. Then he can move to the US full-time just like SVG but initially at Xfinity level & go from there to earn his stripes & get more ovals experience before being ready to race on Sundays (Cup level) after that either within in-house RCR or via one of their satellite Chevy teams like Kaulig Racing.

Whichever direction Brodie is heading the next step in NASCAR, he’s got excellent potential as our next NASCAR racer from Australia – even better when racing with a team also coming from Australia & the Supercars Championship for a start that will assist with his long-term goals. He certainly won’t be rushing too quickly as Brodie has the Bathurst 1000 this weekend as well as the rest of the Supercars season in the hope of waking away as the series’ champion, but glad he will get more opportunities which will in turn come with excellent on-track results.

October 3, 2023 0 comment

Motorsport

Motorsport News, Thoughts on Brodie Kostecki’s 2024 NASCAR plans update in the hope of 2-3 part-time races with Richard Childress Racing again

by Sports Benches September 26, 2023

Weeks after Shane Van Gisbergen has announced his full-time move to the US with Trackhouse under an initial development deal, Brodie Kostecki has today updated his plans to race NASCAR as a part-time driver again following his Cup debut last month at Indianapolis Motor Speedway (Road Course) in the No.33 Chevy Camaro for Richard Childress Racing.

Although it’s too early to tell since the 2024 schedule isn’t out yet, but he hopes to be there up to three races – we just don’t which type of races could it be? One is definitely a road course since he has tons of experience there, but he could also be racing on an oval for the first time as well where he raced there a few times before a long time ago in the ARCA Series.

Although I bet it will be on a short track oval or else it will be all road course events in the short-term while he has a year left on his current contract with Erebus Motorsport in the Supercars Series here. I don’t think RCR would wanna put him on a high-banked oval so early without ovals experience unless he can do it in the lower series first, which is where everyone got their first goes there & the same will go to SVG on what is about to be his learning/work experience year with these race cars.

So yes, Brodie could be the perfect replacement for Austin Hill at RCR’s Xfinity Series team from 2025 should A.Hill be promoted to their Cup squad as long as they can get a 3rd charter off Stewart-Haas Racing’s No.10 team. Actually, this can be possible – have a look at Connor Moshack who also raced in ARCA in the past before gaining tons of road course experience in the Trans-Am TA2 series over the last two years. Then he went straight to Xfinity level for the majority this year where he split his time between Sam Hunt Racing & Joe Gibbs Racing with little ovals experience beforehand & he too got to race at these tracks more often other than road courses for the first time.

I know Brodie wants full-time Cup someday & resume his Supercars rivalry with SVG, but I’d like to see him follow Connor lead’s first once his Erebus contract is up by racing on ovals before he can race Cup every weekend.He has a bright future ahead as if it wasn’t for that qualifying crash last month, then he would’ve been Top 5-7 material but glad he’s getting more opportunities with the support being backed by RCR.

September 26, 2023 0 comment

Motorsport

2022 ARG SpeedSeries RD 5: Nathan Herne completes clean sweep in the Trans-Am while the Honda duo of Tony D’Alberto & Zac Soutar dominated yet again in Race 3 after Jay Hanson won Race 2 in the TCR Australia at Queensland Raceway

by Sports Benches August 7, 2022

It’s good to see a mix of new front runners earlier today during Race 2 of TCR Australia, especially when Michael Caruso led for the majority from reverse pole in the No.10 Alfa Romeo Giuietta, after the original polesitter Lachlan Mineeff (No.14 MPC Audi RS3) had to start from pit lane.

Sadly, a mechanical issue cost Caruso the win he desperately wanted to for Ashley Seward Motorsport which was a huge blow. That paves the way for Jay Hanson, who made plenty of spots through the field, before he chased down his Melbourne Performance Centre team-mate Will Brown in a battle of the best Audis (RS3) for the win.

Then we move onto Race 3 where Hanson remained running inside the Top 3, but couldn’t get past both Hondas where they have dominated once again. Tony D’Alberto had an amazing weekend at Queensland Raceway with 2 of out 3 wins for Wall Racing ahead of Zac Soutar, who finished 2nd twice in both Race 1 from yesterday & Race 3 earlier this afternoon.

And there’s still a lot of thrills and spills being spun across the race track over in the Trans-Am. But what hasn’t changed is Nathan Herne controlling the entire grid after he completed a clean sweep all weekend long in the No.1 Ford Mustang for Garry Rogers Motorsports.

Good to see his team-mate Owen Kelly rebound from the opening lap trouble in Race 1 yesterday with back-to-back third places today, while Jett Johnson never looked out of place in the Top 3-4. And Supercars regular Brodie Kostecki just completed his one-off stint in the No.66 Chevy Camaro here; he finished 6th earlier in Race 2 after a stellar start yesterday in 3rd during Race 1 before he added another podium this time in 2nd in Race 3. We wish Brodie all the best as we hope to see him fulfill his ambitions in the NASCAR Cup Series, even if it’s a partial ride effort next year.

What a weekend it has been at Queensland Raceway after three long years when they last hosted there before COVID got in the way. We can’t wait for Sandown Raceway in Melbourne on the 14-16th next month, with two rounds left in this year’s ARG SpeedSeries season.

For now, make sure you sign up a seven-day Stan Sport free trial right now on top of the usual $10 basic subscription to catch up every race live and ad-free alongside on-demand replays and highlights. It will also be another $10 for the Sports pack if you’re happy with their motorsports content such as IndyCar, Formula E, World Endurance Championship, World Rally Championship and Motocross beyond the seven days.

If not, Nine will continue to roll out a two-hour highlights package for free that looks back from this weekend’s event at Queensland Raceway. Tune in the following times on Thursday evening at 11pm-1am on 9Go, as well as Saturday 10am-12pm on 9Gem & next Sunday at 2-3.50 pm on 9Go.

August 7, 2022 0 comment

Motorsport

2022 ARG SpeedSeries RD 5: Thrills and spills being played out in Race 1 yesterday at Queensland Raceway with the Trans-Am and TCR Australia where both winners were too good all along from start to finish

by Sports Benches August 6, 2022

Yesterday afternoon of ARG SpeedSeries racing at Queensland Raceway was full of twists and turns, where losing control or being collected into the gravel can cost you a few spots or even dearly. It changed the course of these opening respective races with the Trans-Am & TCR Australia.

We’ll start with the TCRs and what a day it has been for Tony D’Alberto in the No.50 Honda Civic Type-R for Wall Racing. Not only he set and started pole position but he too took the opening race win which was too easy from start to finish. While Zac Soutar would’ve love to have a close sniff of Tony and challenge him for top spot, but he‘s happy to finish 2nd also in the same Honda car & hopefully go one better for the next two Sunday races.

And it’s good to see Jay Hanson back on the podium in 3rd for the Melbourne Performance Centre organisation, as well as Bailey Sweeny in 5th behind Aaron Cameron (No.18 Peugeot 308 for Garry Rogers Motorsport) following an opening lap scare through the grass that cost him a few spots. Although, Sweeny’s team-mate Nathan Morcom was unlucky to be taken out by Ben Bargwanna into the gravel.

Then we go into Trans-Am where we also saw another driver who was too good with Nathan Herne in the No.1 Ford Mustang for Garry Rogers Motorsport. He has no problems getting the job done from pole position to dominating the entire field, especially when some drivers behind him was collected through the gravel on the opening lap. While some slip and spills continue across the race track, it’s great to see 17-year-old Jett Johnson finish 2nd after he got around Supercars regular Brodie Kostecki in 3rd with credit from these restarts. So awesome seeing Brodie spend the weekend here as he hopes to fulfil his NASCAR aspirations over in the US next year, especially when he was being linked with Trackhouse Racing’s 3rd part-time Cup car that has a specific focus on International drivers.

Can’t wait for Races 2 & 3 later today with TCR & Trans-Am to round off Round 5 of 7 in the 2022 SpeedSeries season.

August 6, 2022 0 comment