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Supercars Sydney: Mostert wins under the lights

Sydney Motorsport Park has hosted a classic tortoise-and-hare Supercars battle, with Walkinshaw Andretti United's Chaz Mostert taking his second win of the season on Saturday night.

In the only Supercars event of the season to be run under artificial lighting Mostert, who started from third on the grid, caught the leader Matt Payne with five laps to spare.

While nearly every other driver opted for a two-stop strategy over the 51-lap journey and some even ran a three stop plan, Grove Racing changed strategy early in the race and switched 21-year-old Payne onto a one-stopper. So his single stop was far longer than anyone else's, dropping him from the lead of the race to 22nd.

But as the second pit cycle played out he found himself 14 seconds clear of the field with 15 laps remaining. Mostert, who started on the second row of the grid, chased him down to take his second win of the season. 

“It's a long slog around here, 50 laps,” said Mostert after his 2.64s win.

“I was thinking, when they told me Matty Payne was up the road, I just hoped his [tyre] deg [degradation] was just a bit worse than mine.

“You never believe until the job is done. We always knew that the strategy was going to be one or the other, I am happy to have kept the tyres on the car.”

Payne started 10th on the grid after spinning off during his qualifying lap in the Top 10 Shoot-out and started the race believing he was on a two-stop strategy. But as the rest of the field filed into the pits, he was left waiting. 

Matthew Payne, Grove Racing Ford Mustang GT (Photo by: Edge Photographics)

After exiting on fresh rubber with 28 laps to go, Payne was warned to drive "under the grip level", a clear message to look after his tyres and prevent the need for an impromptu and extremely costly late change of plan.

“We set up to do a two, but when we saw our pace drop in the first stint, they got on the radio and said a one [stop race],” he explained.

“If we did a two-stopper we would not have finished this high up. It's not easy doing 28 laps around here [on one set of tyres] but the car was pretty good. But I have to qualify better, I was on for a pretty good lap until I threw it away.”

Tickford had locked out the front with Cam Waters starting on pole position in the Monster Energy Mustang from Thomas Randle. But these positions switched after just one corner, with Randle braving the treacherous outside line before cutting across under braking for the Turn 2 hairpin, forcing Waters to accept second spot. 

“I got a slightly better jump and a black car [teammate Cam Waters], under lights... it's pretty hard to see!” he said after his first podium of the season.

“Second was the ultimate we could have got tonight, but I am rapt with a podium. They did a great job on a one-stopper, I was relieved when we stuck to a two-stopper.”

The first lap had also saw Mark Winterbottom lock up into Turn 2, with his DeWalt Racing Camaro spearing violently right and into the side of Macauley Jones Brad Jones Racing Camaro. 

Although both continued, the pair finished in 20th and 24th - Winterbottom crossing the line 10 laps down and last of those still running.

Ford dominated the top five places, with Dick Johnson Racing teammates Will Davison and Anton De Pasquale fourth and fifth, in a welcome return to form for the team.

Will Brown was the best of the Chevrolet drivers to take sixth for Triple Eight, just ahead of Waters, who had a tough race, going from pole position to seventh at the flag. A refiller glitch prompted the team to hold him at his second stop, to be certain to meet the 80-litre minimum fuel drop required by the regulations, and he lost numerous positions as a result.

Matt Stone Racing Chevrolet driver Nick Percat was eighth ahead of Triple Eight's Broc Feeney and Erebus Motorsport Brodie Kostecki, who recovered after a vibration problem early in the race, which the team put down to his first tyre set.

The other notable driver to opt for a one-stopper was Matt Stone Racing's Cameron Hill, who took 11th position.

Brown's result maintained his points lead and has moved to 1617, with teammate Broc Feeney now 96 behind on 1521. Mostert remains third but has closed in and is on 1491, ahead of Waters (1222) and Payne (1203).

The Supercars will be back on the track on Sunday afternoon, for a 15-minute Qualifying session at 12:05pm, Eastern Standard Time. The Top 10 Shootout will start at 1:40pm before Race 16, over 51 laps, which is due to start at 4:05pm.

Supercars Sydney SuperNight Result

1
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3
1
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2
Cla Driver Car Laps Time Interval Retirement Points
1 Australia C. Mostert Mobil 1 Optus Racing Ford Mustang GT 51
150
2
M. Payne Penrite Racing
Ford Mustang GT 51

2.6412

143
3 Australia T. Randle Monster Castrol Racing Ford Mustang GT 51

4.5639

129
4 Australia W. Davison Dick Johnson Racing Ford Mustang GT 51

18.1193

120
5 Australia A. De Pasquale Dick Johnson Racing Ford Mustang GT 51

20.3561

111
6 Australia W. Brown Red Bull Ampol Racing Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 Gen3 51

27.6433

102
7 Australia C. Waters Monster Castrol Racing Ford Mustang GT 51

29.6967

96
8 Australia N. Percat Bendix Racing Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 Gen3 51

33.1724

90
9
B. Feeney Red Bull Ampol Racing
Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 Gen3 51

33.5289

84
10
B. Kostecki Erebus Motorsport Penrite
Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 Gen3 51

36.6762

78
11
C. Hill Tyrepower Racing
Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 Gen3 51

39.0481

72
12 New Zealand A. Heimgartner R&J Batteries Racing Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 Gen3 51

39.1750

69
13
R. Wood Mobil 1 Truck Assist Racing
Ford Mustang GT 51

42.0871

66
14 Australia J. Golding PremiAir Nulon Racing Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 Gen3 51

43.7372

63
15 Australia T. Slade PremiAir Nulon Racing Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 Gen3 51

44.8123

60
16 New Zealand R. Stanaway Penrite Racing Ford Mustang GT 51

52.2028

57
17 Australia D. Reynolds Tradie Beer Racing Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 Gen3 51

56.2781

54
18 Australia J. Evans SCT Motorsport Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 Gen3 51

58.1756

51
19 Australia B. Fullwood Middy's Racing Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 Gen3 51

1'00.1018

48
20 Australia M. Jones Pizza Hut Racing Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 Gen3 51

1'06.1272

45
21 Australia J. Courtney Snowy River Racing Ford Mustang GT 51

1'06.5427

42
22
L. Dalton Tickford Racing
Ford Mustang GT 51

1'25.1435

39
23
A. Love Brad Jones Racing
Ford Mustang GT 51

1'28.4713

36
24 Australia M. Winterbottom DEWALT Racing Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 Gen3 41

10 laps

30
Australia J. Le Brocq Erebus Motorsport Penrite Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 Gen3 47
Retirement
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