In what could be his last race at Mount Panorama, Shane van Gisbergen (SVG) along with co-driver Richie Stanaway, have won the 2023 Repco Bathurst 1000. The victory has helped SVG slash Brodie Kostecki’s lead in the championship to 131-points with Erebus Motorsport extending its teams’ championship lead to 149-points.
“What an awesome day,” commented van Gisbergen. “Richie (Stanaway) drove awesome, and it’s been so cool to have him a part of the team and a part of this experience this year.
“The team did a fantastic job. We were a little but under the radar this week doing our race runs and just being methodical about our setup and tuning it as we went, and obviously our race went pretty good. It was a pretty special moment for two Kiwis to be on the top step.”
Pole-sitter Brodie Kostecki finished a distant second with David Russell in the #99 Coca-Cola Chevrolet, with Anton De Pasquale/Tony D’Alberto first Ford home in third in the #11 Shell V-Power Mustang.
It marked Triple Eight’s 10th Bathurst win, surpassing Holden Dealer Team/HDT Racing’s tally of nine Bathurst 500/1000 wins. It was also the first win by an all New Zealander combination since Greg Murphy and Steven Richards won in 1999.
It was a first Bathurst win for Stanaway who will move into full-time driving in 2024 with Penrite Racing.
“It was obviously an incredible result today, and I couldn’t have asked for much better,” said Stanaway. “It’s been incredible to be a part of this team. I’ve always known Supercars has been such a team sport, but I hadn’t really learnt the true meaning of it until I joined Red Bull Ampol Racing and seen it from the inside.
“It’s been truly incredible to be a part of it. When I signed the contract to drive with Shane and the team about 11 months ago I knew we’d have a good chance of getting these results, but with such a big tough race like this, you never know – anything can happen. I’m just really happy that we got the win today.”
NASCAR-bound van Gisbergen became the first driver in 15 years to win consecutive Bathurst 1000s, and won his third Great Race in the last four years.
“I’m really going to miss this place and miss the fans, and it was an amazing experience on that podium,” said van Gisbergen.
The 2023 Repco Supercars Championship will resume on the streets of Surfers Paradise on October 27-29 with the Boost Mobile Gold Coast 500.
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