Brodie Kostecki and co-driver Todd Hazelwood delivered a statement victory in the first endurance race of the Supercars season, guiding Dick Johnson Racing’s Ford Mustang to the top step at The Bend Motorsport Park and spearheading an all-Ford podium. The pair controlled the 500km contest and sealed the result by 3.01 seconds over Tickford’s Cameron Waters/Mark Winterbottom, with Grove Racing’s Matt Payne/Garth Tander completing the sweep.

It was a win loaded with symmetry and subtext. Just a year after Kostecki and Hazelwood triumphed together at Bathurst for Erebus in a Chevrolet, they reunited in new colours and a different make to repeat the trick—this time in DJR’s Mustang. The Bathurst-then-Bend double in different machinery underlines the duo’s adaptability and the speed of DJR’s enduro package. “He [Hazelwood] gave us a good margin in the race,” Kostecki said, noting the team tuned the Mustang through the day to keep Waters at bay.

The day unspooled without the chaos many expect from a 500km slog. In fact, it became the first Supercars 500km race to run without a safety car in 35 years—a rarity that put strategy and execution front and centre. On that score, DJR were near-flawless, while a costly refuelling drama wrecked Triple Eight’s hopes. Jamie Whincup initially led from poleman Broc Feeney, but a fuel-hose miscue forced an early extra stop; the #88 later had to pit again and could salvage only 19th. Teammates Will Brown/Scott Pye battled to fourth as best of the Chevrolets.

Elsewhere inside the top ten, Nick Percat/Tim Slade (Matt Stone Racing) grabbed fifth, just clear of Walkinshaw Andretti United’s Ryan Wood/Jayden Ojeda. Erebus fielded one of the few full-time starters in Cooper Murray, who—with rookie Jobe Stewart—banked seventh. Chaz Mostert/Fabian Coulthard rose early and even led mid-race, but a four-stop plan left them eighth once the three-stoppers cycled through.

In the points picture, Feeney remains championship leader courtesy of his Sprint Cup seeding, but the cushion shrank to 158 over Payne by day’s end. Brown, Waters, Mostert and Kostecki are also locked into the Finals Series, setting the stage for a blockbuster Bathurst 1000—next up and the final event before the cut-off on 9–12 October. After The Bend’s clean, clinical execution from DJR, the Mountain now looms as the ultimate form-guide test for Ford’s resurgent charge.

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