Kostecki sneaks clear in scintilating qualifying
Mount Panorama was stunned as Brodie Kostecki topped provisional Bathurst 1000 qualifying by a whisker.
Kostecki smashed his own qualifying Gen3 lap record by more than two tenths after stopping the clock at a rapid 2:04.0307.
This was just enough to take the session, emerging 0.0064s clear of Broc Feeney.
The likes of Ryan Wood, Anton De Pasquale, Cooper Murray and Chaz Mostert were all within a tenth in the rapid fight for provisional pole.
Cam Waters, Cam Hill, Nick Percat and Thomas Randle did enough to make the Shootout and deny the likes of Macauley Jones and Will Brown.
Everyone, aside from Golding, hit the track when the light went green in sunny but cool conditions and the pace was hot instantly.
Kostecki made his latest one-lap statement on the mountain, flying into the fours on his first attempt.
The DJR driver’s 2:04.7793 was a comfortable three tenths clear of Murray, who was the only rival within half a second after the first lap.
Feeney pushed for a second lap and reduced Kostecki’s advantage to 0.3024s, but was not quite in the four’s.
Unfortunately, Davison found the limit approaching the grate, scraping the concrete and getting away with minimal damage.
Gray had an even wilder moment at Griffin’s Bend. The rookie found the grass on entry, which spat him wide.
But in an impressive display of car control, he just gathered the Mustang in time to avoid the concrete.
Kostecki’s challengers arrived when the second runs began at the 12 minute mark.
The likes of Reynolds, Waters and Mostert all had purple sectors, but fell short.
However, Kostecki was finally knocked off at the 13 minute mark by Brown, only for De Pasquale to sneak ahead instantly.
But Kostecki’s Erebus replacement Murray was cooking and he fired a 2:04.3624 to put three tenths on the field.
Behind him Feeney and Kostecki also improved to lower the rookie’s advantage by a tenth.
Waters was unable to improve after being forced to use the Murray’s Corner run off and slumped down to 25th.
At the start of the second half of the session things escalated even further.
Walkinshaw rolled out with speed and Wood managed to knock off Murray by 0.044s.
However, Murray was not holding back and found a further 0.2463s.
The only driver that had an immediate answer for the Erebus hot shot was the man who has dominated qualifying all season, Feeney.
The Triple Eight star snuck clear by 0.0565s to set a high bar at 2:04.0371.
As the final 10 minutes approached, the big question was whether or not a mystifying 2m03s time could be possible.
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De Pasquale made the first big move, rising from 16th to third with an important lap, while Tickford made a rare qualifying driver change with Gray being subbed for Dalton for the run home.
This put surprise packet Jones and Mostert on the bubble and knocked Bates out ahead of the thrilling final five minutes.
A notable omission from this period was Le Brocq, who stayed in the pits despite being down in 13th.
Few improved with their initial laps, but things quickly escalated in and around the chequered flag.
Waters and Mostert set timely laps to ensure they would not risk being dropped out.
Hill was the big mover, rising from 17th to eighth, while his teammate Percat did a similar job to slot in right behind.
Randle also did just enough under pressure to sneak in.
With Murray going off at the final turn of his final lap and Feeney not improving, Kostecki sensed an opportunity to take provisional pole.
He was fully committed and delivered, stopping the clock at 2:04.0307 to top the session by a whisker.
Jones was the hard-luck story as he missed the 10 by 0.055s despite improving on his final lap.
Brown would have been disappointed to only manage 12th, while the highest placed Grove Racing Mustang is 18th.
The relentless pace adds to the excitement of the Saturday Top 10 Shootout.
Image: Peter Norton Epic Sports Photography
2025 Bathurst 1000 results Qualifying
Pos Driver Time
1 Brodie Kostecki 2:04.0307
2 Broc Feeney +0.0064
3 Ryan Wood +0.0560
4 Anton De Pasquale +0.0570
5 Cooper Murray +0.0629
6 Chaz Mostert +0.0973
7 Cameron Waters +0.1499
8 Cameron Hill +0.1870
9 Nick Percat +0.1973
10 Thomas Randle +0.2175
11 Macauley Jones +0.2731
12 Will Brown +0.2880
13 James Golding +0.2961
14 Will Davison +0.3604
15 David Reynolds +0.4135
16 Zach Bates +0.4536
17 Jack Le Brocq +0.5283
18 Matt Payne +0.5691
19 Andre Heimgartner +0.5843
20 Aaron Cameron +0.6291
21 Kai Allen +0.6700
22 James Courtney +0.8277
23 Richie Stanaway +0.8510
24 Jaxon Evans +0.8747
25 Bryce Fullwood +0.9189
26 Cameron Crick +1.3923
27 Lochie Dalton +1.4478
2025 Bathurst 1000 schedule
Thursday, October 9
PRACTICE 1 1: R. Wood/J. Ojeda 2:05.1029 2: A. De Pasquale/H. Jones +0.4236 3: K. Allen/D. Wood +0.8132
PRACTICE 2 1: Scott Pye/W. Brown 2:06.8395 2: David Russell/J. Golding +0.1461 3: Tony D’Alberto/W. Davison +0.6345
Friday, October 10
PRACTICE 3 1: B.Feeney/J.Whincup 2:04.9763 2: R.Wood/J.Ojeda +0.0341 3: W.Brown/S.Pye +0.0784
QUALIFYING 4:10 PM – 4:50 PM
Saturday, October 11
PRACTICE 5 (co-drivers only) 10:05 AM – 11:05 AM
PRACTICE 6 1:10 PM – 2:10 PM
TOP TEN SHOOTOUT 5:05 PM – 5:50 PM
Bathurst Day, October 12
WARM UP 8:30 AM – 8:50 AM
THE GREAT RACE 11:45 AM (161 laps)
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