Former Supercars champion Brodie Kostecki has returned serve to Aaron Cameron after the rival driver questioned his actions during a last-lap tangle at the Sydney 500. Kostecki and Cameron were jostling for fourth place on Sunday in the Supercars season opener, when Kostecki hit Cameron on the inside while trying to overtake.
Cameron was sent spinning and dropped 13 places from fourth to 17th, while Kostecki was later hit with a 15-second penalty that relegated him to 12th. Speaking post-race, Cameron questioned why Kostecki was so intent on gaining one place when neither could realistically make the podium, and pointed out they’re both Ford drivers.
Brodie Kostecki collided with Aaron Cameron on the final lap. Image: AAP/Supercars
“It just doesn’t make sense to me why you would do that,” Cameron said, pointing out the incident cost Ford an all-Mustang top five. Fellow Ford drivers Broc Feeney, Matt Payne and Cam Waters made the podium.
But speaking on the ‘Lucky Dogs’ podcast, Kostecki fired back and joked that Cameron simply needed to use his mirrors. “It’s a bit of a shame at the end. [They] actually had to buy some mirrors off of us because they didn’t have enough mirrors, and Aaron still couldn’t use them for the last lap,” he said.
Brodie Kostecki slams Aaron Cameron’s ‘cop out’ claim
When pressed further, Kostecki said he’ll always try and finish as high as possible regardless of whether he can make the podium and who he’s competing against. “I was using the exit of [Turn] 5, I was blowing out because I didn’t use any track limits. I was blowing out of 5 and he said that I was going to make a move into [Turn] 6 most likely,” he said.
“So he disregarded the whole other part of the race track, and was just going to focus on 6 basically, from what he said. Then he said ‘why would I bother for fourth, I could understand if it was for a podium’. I race for every position and if I wouldn’t, then I wouldn’t be a race car driver. That’s just how it is. We’re employed to get the best finish possible. So that’s just a cop out for one.
“He said that it was going to be top five all Fords, and I ruined that. Like I’m really thinking about the top five being Fords at that point in the race. I obviously want Fords to run well, but like I really [don’t] give a shit to be honest.”
Brodie Kostecki looks on from the garage.
(AAPIMAGE)
Kostecki admitted he’s actually gained some newfound respect for Cameron after he vowed revenge. “Obviously I’m disappointed that it ended like that,” he said. “He said he was going to try and get me back or something, so yeah, that’s good, I rate it. I’ve actually earned a bit more respect for him now after that.”