Mostert/Holdsworth: 5th
Wood/Coulthard: 15th

Another Great Race is in the books, with both cars throwing everything at it, but we didn’t quite get the one we were chasing.

For Chaz and Lee, they left nothing out there in the Mobil 1 Optus Racing No. 25, but that was all it had in it today.

For Woody and Fabs, P15 didn’t tell the full story, but overall, for Woody to cross the line in his first Bathurst 1000, after running inside the Top 10 in the final stint, and for Fabs to put two excellent stints in, there were some positives to take.

As for the race itself? The pace was hot. It was the quickest ever Bathurst, the race was green for over 130 laps, and it was a sprint home.

As the jets flew over, the lights went out and both the Mobil 1 Optus Racing No. 25 and the Mobil 1 Truck Assist Racing No. 2 had good starts, maintaining positions and keeping it clean in the opening laps.

Chaz handed the car over to Lee early in the race, splitting strategy between Car 25 and Car 2, with eyes forward Lee settled into the rhythm bringing the car back cleanly and in a top 10 position.

Woody had a run in with the tyre bundle on his in-lap, and while he added some yellow paint to the side of the Mobil 1 Truck Assist No. 2, it was no harm no foul.

Early on in the race the cars were struggling with balance, falling slightly down the field before the track surface gripped up around lap 60 where the cars started making their way forward.

Fabian was one of the fastest co-drivers out there, helping bring Car 2 up to the back end of the top 10 with the track gripped up suiting the set-up of the car.

In the middle part of the race the cars were following the leader, with both Car 25 and Car 2 maintaining positions, with green flag running up to that point.

At lap 133 Matt Payne caused the first safety car of the race, with 27 laps to go and both cars came into the lane, it would be ultimate fuel save to the end, bunching the field back up again.

Ryan made his way up to P10 in the final stint but ran wide at turn one smartly maneuvering the car away from the sand trap avoiding damage to the car, rejoining the track P15.

With eyes forward, elbows out and determination running through his veins, Chaz had Car 25 on the limit, moving forward on the rear bumper of Waters fighting for P4, ultimately running out of laps, crossing the line P5.

Not the way we wanted to finish the weekend but it’s eyes forward to Gold Coast in less than a week and a halves time, it’s a tight turnaround for the team so it’s straight back to the workshop to get these cars prepped.

A massive thank you to all our partners, your support means so much more than just a sticker on the car, we wouldn’t be able to do what we love and race on one of the best tracks in the world without your support.

Ryan Wood

“Pretty cool to have done my first Bathurst 1000, I’ve been dreaming of this day for as long as I remember, even though it was a tough day, pleased we did the whole 161 laps.

“It was a pretty eventful day of us today, Fabs did an amazing job today, we put him in some tough situations today and he really stepped up, he was really quick out there!

“I made a whole bunch of mistakes today, had a whole bunch of fun, a massive thanks to the whole crew for all of their efforts this weekend.”

Fabian Coulthard

“We definitely have been working on the balance all weekend, we never got fully comfortable but we never gave up the fight which I’m proud of everyone.

“Ryan is pretty hard on himself tonight, but he did a great job all weekend, it’s a huge weekend and he will take so much from it.

Thank you to the team, and to our partners for having me this year, it’s been fantastic and I’m looking forward to cheering the boys on for the final two rounds.”

Chaz Mostert

“We threw everything at it, it’s fair to say, that was a big day.

“We didn’t get what we were hoping this weekend, but it wasn’t through a lack of trying. From the moment we rolled out we’ve been working on this car, it definitely wasn’t as happy as it has been in the past, but I’m really proud of the work everyone has done this weekend and all year.

“Always nice to have Holdsy alongside me, and thank you to the team, and all our partners for the support. We will be all in at the Gold Coast.”

Lee Holdsworth

“We didn’t leave anything out there today, Chaz certainly left nothing on the table in those last few stints, so we definitely should be disappointed with a top-five in what was a grueling week.

“It was a tough weekend, we were trying to find our feet since Thursday but the crew did an awesome job turning these cars around.

“It’s always a pleasure getting to drive alongside Chazzie, we had a lot of fun, I’ve enjoyed every minute and I’ll be cheering him on for the rest of the championship!”