Supercars champ quits in 'huge loss' to sport
In a sensational move, last year's Supercars winner Brodie Kostecki is set to leave the team that brought him his first championship.
On Tuesday it was revealed by motorsport outlet Speedcafe that the 2023 champion has parted company with Erebus Motorsport.
It's reported Kostecki is set to be sidelined for the start of the season but could sit out the 2024 calendar in its entirety.
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In any case, Erebus Motorsport will field a completely new line-up this year.
Brodie Kostecki celebrates winnint the Supercars title with Erebus Motorsport. (Daniel Kalisz/Race Project via Getty Images)Kostecki is set to be replaced by Todd Hazelwood, who lost his seat at the Blanchard Racing Team at the back end of last season.
Hazelwood is set to be signed on a round-by-round basis, leaving the door open for Kotecki to return if the team can convince him to return.
Erebus Motorsport announced late last year that Triple Eight Race Engineering-bound Will Brown would be replaced by Jack Le Brocq.
It marks a return of sorts for Le Brocq, who drove for the team in the 2013 Australian GT Championship, the 2014 Bathurst 12 Hour, and the Bathurst 1000 in 2015.
This year will be the first time Le Brocq has raced full-time in Supercars for Erebus Motorsport.
Le Brocq and Hazelwood raced alongside each other in 2022 at Matt Stone Racing.
Brodie Kostecki drives for Erebus Motorsport in Supercars. (Daniel Kalisz via Getty Images)The last time a Supercars champion left the team for another rival outfit after winning the title was James Courtney.
He won the crown with Dick Johnson Racing in 2010 and joined the Holden Racing Team in 2011.
In that instance, the circumstances were far more amicable with Kostecki's split with Erebus Motorsport understood to have been brewing for months.
"This is a huge loss for Supercars and those supporting partners and most importantly the fans," wrote Kostecki's personal sponsor Peter Adderton of Boost Mobile.
"It's clear there are issues across the board from teams to drivers. No Brodie, no SVG, what a huge loss."
With Scott McLaughlin in the IndyCar Series, Shane van Gisbergen headed to NASCAR, and Jamie Whincup retired from full-time driving, it means Mark Winterbottom is the most recent champion having last won the title in 2015.
