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Chaz Mostert had begun wondering if he would ever taste victory again at Mount Panorama.
Mostert stunned the motorsport world when he and Paul Morris drove from the back of the grid to win the 2014 Bathurst 1000, in what was just his second start in the Great Race.
From being on top of the world, attempts to repeat that glory fell by the wayside courtesy of various dramas, from his bone-breaking 2015 qualifying crash to his unforgettable collision with then Tickford Racing team-mate Cameron Waters in 2019.
But having now entrenched himself as the face of Walkinshaw Andretti United, Mostert has become a two-time Bathurst 1000 winner after his and Lee Holdsworth’s dominant drive yesterday.
“It’s completely different, the first time I started last on the grid and this time I started first on the grid, so I have done it from completely different ends,” Mostert observed.
“But for us, it was such an enjoyable car to drive, all week we were pretty confident we were the car to beat but as this race goes, a dollar part can end your day.
“We knew we were in the race but if it was going to fall our way, that was up to the Bathurst gods to decide.”
Even a tyre failure could not stop the #25 entry, with Mostert declaring on the podium that his latest success was even sweeter than in the 2014 edition.
It came as he’d begun to fear he’d never hold the Peter Brock Trophy again.
“The first time I won in my second ever attempt so I was a little bit spoilt and you’re thinking ‘I’ve got quite a few years left in my career so I’m sure it will happen again’,” said Mostert.
“But year after year you have those hard luck stories: you crash into team-mates, you break your leg, all these kind of weird things that go on the journey around here and no doubt over time you start to doubt if it will ever happen again.
“So, just super grateful that the car that the team gave us was super fast but it’s never over until you’re 200m past the finish line and then even then it’s never done until a couple of days after.
“We have got some days to reflect on this now, it’s just such an amazing team effort, I’m so proud of all our guys and the girls back at the workshop.
“The effort they put in for this race is second-to-none. I could see that last year when we got third here, we didn’t quite have the car pace, but they work extremely hard so it’s a real credit to them.”
For Holdsworth, the maiden victory was “worth the wait”.
“Chazzie has been there before so he probably knows how long it takes to sink in,” he said. “For me, it’s been a long time, I had never won the race until yesterday.
“So, 18th attempt, just really special, and I don’t think it’s going to sink in for some time.
“Probably with about 10 [laps] to go I was more emotional than when we actually won the race, because then it was just a complete overwhelming feeling.
“I’m trying to take it in, every time someone says that we’re the Bathurst champions, I think I probably need to watch the replay to actually make that real.”
