The 2025 Supercars Enduro Cup kicked off with a gruelling 500km at The Bend Motorsport Park, where Brodie Kostecki and Todd Hazelwood combined to deliver a commanding victory for the Dick Johnson Racing Team.
The pair converted a strong early pace and flawless strategy into the win, leading home a Ford 1-2-3 podium with Cam Waters/Mark Winterbottom second and Kiwi Matt Payne/Garth Tander in third.
The result marked the first-ever 500km enduro at The Bend, run entirely without a safety car, the first time such a feat has occurred in Supercars since the 1990 Sandown 500.
Qualifying Recap:
Saturday’s qualifying set the grid for the Top 10 Shootout and the 81-lap contest, and all five Kiwi full-timers featured prominently.
Matt Payne and Ryan Wood impressed early, holding second and fourth on their initial flying laps, while Jaxon Evans was the quickest Kiwi mid-session in fifth. Andre Heimgartner and Richie Stanaway settled into the mid-pack in 14th and 19th.
Walkinshaw Andretti United delivered both Mustangs into the shootout, with Chaz Mostert (partnered with Fabian Coulthard) ninth and Wood in tenth. Payne also earned a place in the one-lap dash.
In the shootout, Payne clocked a sharp 1:49.133 to briefly hold top spot before settling for sixth on the grid. Wood ran wide during his lap and started ninth, alongside Mostert/Coulthard in tenth.
Pole went to Broc Feeney/Jamie Whincup with a 1:48.654, ahead of Hill/McLeod.
Starting grid for the Kiwis: Payne/Tander 6th, Wood/Ojeda 9th, Mostert/Coulthard 10th, Heimgartner/Fraser 14th, Evans/Smith 15th, Stanaway/Morris 19th.
500km Enduro Race:
When the lights went out, it was Whincup who got the jump into Turn 1, leading Hazelwood, Moffatt and Winterbottom. But trouble immediately struck several Kiwi entries.
Declan Fraser, co-driving Heimgartner’s #8 BJR Camaro, cooked the clutch off the line, dropping him out of contention before Turn 2.
Jack Smith in Jaxon Evans’ #12 entry slipped a spot to 16th, while Jayden Ojeda in Ryan Wood’s #2 WAU Mustang ran wide at Turn 6 and tumbled six positions, down to 15th.
Nash Morris brought Stanaway’s #62 PremiAir Camaro into pit lane just minutes into the race with a shredded right-rear tyre and further technical concerns, effectively ruining their day.
Among the bright spots, Fabian Coulthard climbed two places to eighth in the opening lap in Mostert’s #25 Mustang, while Payne’s co-driver Garth Tander held firm inside the top ten despite losing a few positions.
Further up front, Hazelwood wasted no time, diving past Whincup at Turn 1 to put Ford into the race lead.
By Lap 20, Hazelwood controlled the race ahead of Whincup, Winterbottom, Murray and Moffatt.
At one point, the top seven runners were all Mustangs, Hazelwood, Winterbottom, Tander, Coulthard, Moffatt, D. Wood and Ojeda.
The opening pit stop cycle brought the first drama. Whincup and Feeney’s #88 Camaro lost huge time when the fuel rig repeatedly failed to engage, forcing a minimal 18-litre top-up.
The mistake dropped Whincup out of the top ten and raised doubts over whether the car had enough fuel to make its stint.
Those fears proved correct as Whincup was forced to pit again earlier than planned, rejoining in 23rd. He then compounded the misery with an off at Turn 10, losing another six seconds.
Elsewhere, penalties also shuffled the order. Will Davison/Tony D’Alberto’s #17 Mustang copped a drive-through for pit lane limiter breach, while David Russell in James Golding’s PremiAir Camaro was hit with a five-second penalty for contact on the opening lap.
Meanwhile, Coulthard pitted on Lap 17 for tyres and fuel, but Walkinshaw Andretti mechanics had to repair significant right-rear bodywork damage that was badly hurting straight-line speed. Coulthard later described it as “like having a parachute” on the straights.
The second stint was defined by aggressive racing and contrasting tyre strategies.
Tander and Pye clashed at Turn 3, with Pye shoved wide and onto the grass, losing ground. Later, Randle and Wood waged a fierce duel for seventh, swapping positions several times but costing each other precious time.
Declan Fraser’s rough day continued as steering damage forced the BJR entry into the garage by Lap 9, effectively ending Heimgartner’s hopes.
By the halfway point, Payne had taken over from Tander and was circulating in third behind Kostecki and Waters.
Wood had also jumped in for Ojeda and ran sixth, while Evans was 14th, Stanaway 23rd after their tyre issues, and Heimgartner 27th, three laps down.
The final phase of the race saw a tight-knit battle at the front of the field.
Mostert took over from Coulthard and, despite being buried in 15th after their final stop, used fresher tyres to charge through the field. He set a new lap record before climbing to eighth by the flag. Allen then went on to set the fastest lap of the race on fresh tyres after his late pit stop with 1:51.1569 lap.
At the front, Kostecki took over from Hazelwood and emerged in the lead after the final pit cycle, though Waters shadowed him closely. Payne remained in contention in third, while Brown/Pye surged up the order as the best of the Chevrolets.
Remarkably, the race ran flag-to-flag without a safety car, a rarity for modern Supercars enduros.
The uninterrupted green-flag running meant strategy, tyre life and fuel economy defined the outcome.
After 102 laps and 500km, it was reigning Bathurst 1000 winners Kostecki/Hazelwood who stood on the top step. Waters/Winterbottom secured second, with Payne/Tander completing a Ford 1-2-3.
Brown/Pye finished fourth after climbing 12 places from 16th, the biggest movers in the field, while Percat/Slade rounded out the top five.
Wood/Ojeda delivered a strong sixth, ahead of Murray/Stewart, Mostert/Coulthard in eighth, Randle/Moffatt in ninth, and De Pasquale/Jones completing the top ten.
Among the other Kiwis, Evans/Smith finished 18th, Stanaway/Morris 23rd, and Heimgartner/Fraser a distant 27th, four laps down.
Feeney/Whincup, hampered by their pit dramas, came home 19th, while Craig Lowndes and Zach Bates salvaged 16th in the Supercheap Auto wildcard.
The result reshaped both the Supercars Championship standings and the new Enduro Cup.
In the drivers’ championship, Feeney retains the lead despite finishing 19th, with Payne closing the gap to 158 points. Brown is third, 188 points behind, followed by Waters, Mostert, and Kostecki, with all six now mathematically locked into the finals.
Enduro Cup standings after The Bend 500:
- 1st Kostecki – 300 pts
- 2nd Waters – 276 pts
- 3rd Payne – 254 pts
- 4th Brown – 234 pts
- 5th Percat – 215 pts
- 6th Wood – 198 pts
- 7th Murray – 182 pts
- 8th Mostert – 167 pts
- 9th Randle – 154 pts
- 10th De Pasquale – 142 pts
For Heimgartner, it was a devastating blow. He entered The Bend eighth in the championship but fell outside the top ten and into 11th after finishing last, allowing Kai Allen to move into the playoff positions.
Attention now turns to the biggest event of the year, the Bathurst 1000 at Mount Panorama, running October 9–12.
Ford will arrive with momentum after sweeping the podium at The Bend, but Chevrolet teams will be desperate to hit back on the mountain.
For Kiwi fans, Payne’s podium, Wood’s top-six, and Mostert/Coulthard’s gritty recovery run keep the flag flying high as endurance season shifts to Bathurst, where fellow Kiwis Evans, Stanaway and Heimgartner will be fighting for redemption on the mountain.
Header Image: Supercars
