His Ford started dead last on the grid and was at one point lodged in a fence, yet somehow Chaz Mostert dragged it home to win the longest and most extraordinary Bathurst 1000 in Australian touring car history.
It was just the 22-year-old’s second start in the endurance classic, having crashed out in the 2013 edition it was also his first finish; and what a finish it was for the young winner.
The Ford Performance Racing (FPR) young gun did not lead until the last lap, when he overtook the spluttering Holden of championship leader Jamie Whincup who was running on empty.
Nissan’s James Moffat crossed behind in second, with the Holden of Nick Percat in third. Whincup coasted home in fifth, behind the Mercedes of Will Davison.
The race lasted for seven hours and 58 minutes, becoming the longest ever on the mountain, the previous record being set at 7 hours, 50 minutes in 1974.
Being held-up for 63 minutes after officials suspended the race to repair a damaged section of the newly-resurfaced track only added to the drama.
No driver had previously won the Great Race from further back than 19th – a feat achieved by the late, great Peter Brock, David Parsons and Peter McLead in 1987.
“Words can’t even describe how I feel right now,” said Mostert.
“To be up the front at a Bathurst 1000, after coming off last year with a damaged car for the race is unbelievable.
“I just kept screaming in the cockpit, ‘Cough you bastard, cough!’ It started to slow on the last couple of laps.
“It was the best feeling ever to cross that line in front of all the Ford fans.”
Mostert was born the year after his co-driver, Paul Morris, 46, debuted at Mount Panorama.
It was also Morris’s maiden Bathurst V8 victory in 22 attempts and FPR’s second in a row following Mark Winterbottom’s breakthrough win last year.
Morris was handed the reins to start the FPR Falcon from 25th on grid, having been excluded from qualifying for passing a car under red flags.
And it was a red flag with 100 laps to go in Sunday’s race that turned an already dramatic race into one of the most controversial.
There were a total of eight retirements and a record-equalling 10 safety car interventions.
One was the result of a kangaroo on track, but most came on the back of accidents at turn two – where a patch of new tarmac was breaking up heavily.
Morris was among the victims, crashing into the wall at high-speed, as did Moffat’s co-driver Taz Douglas – twice – and Scott Pye’s Ford.
The area was filled and sealed with resin before the race resumed.
Never before has the 161-lap epic been stopped and restarted.
“It was a bit scary but it kind of helped us a little bit – all the safety cars got us in position back up there,” Mostert said.
“From 25th, I never even thought I’d get to the top 10 today.
“We got the 10 – just without the zero there.
“Who knew we’d go from 25th to first? Next year I might just not even qualify and just save our tyres for the race.”
Pole-sitter Shane van Gisbergen looked set to come home first before stalling his Holden during a pitstop and being unable to restart it with 11 laps to go.
The mistake left last year’s podium finishers Winterbottom, Whincup and Craig Lowndes to fight it out for victory.
Lowndes took out Winterbottom in the dying stages and was penalised, the move ending both their hopes of a win.
“There was a lot of sun glare and I made a mistake,” said Lowndes, who finished 10th and Winterbottom sixth.
Whincup, who broke the race lap record during his charge from 23rd on the grid to the front before eventually being passed by Mostert, coasted home in fifth.
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