Supercars rocked by massive crash just minutes into 2021 season
The first practice session of the 2021 Supercars season kicked off with a bang on Friday as Will Brown crashed his Erebus Motorsport car just minutes into his full-time debut.
Brown clipped the inside wall at the Dipper before careening across the track and slamming into the outside wall at Mount Panorama.
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The incident occurred just 30 minutes into the season's first practice session and resulted in a red flag.
Brown had recorded the third-fastest time in his WD-40 Commodore, but the massive crash resulted in his car being towed back to the pits and needing major repairs.
“Just a complete balls-up on my behalf," Brown told Fox Sports.
"It’s one of those things you definitely shouldn’t do as a rookie, I did everything wrong as a rookie.
“I was just getting a lot of understeer on all my other laps so I tried to turn in early.
"It’s really disappointing. I’m probably out for the weekend now.
"It sucks for me, sucks for the team.”
Erebus boss Barry Ryan remained upbeat despite Brown’s teammate Brodie Kostecki also going off the track.
“That’s alright, he was having a crack. He was third in the session," he said on Fox Sports.
"We told him to go out there and have fun and go fast and that’s what he was doing. So no dramas.
“Apparently we’ve got two rookies, so our drivers probably don’t know what they’re doing but they’re both saying the cars are really good," he added.
“Will has obviously shown he’s fast and Brodie’s fast so no dramas with us.”
Very different feel as 2021 Supercars season kicks off
As well as a different starting venue, with the first Supercars sprint races at Bathurst in 25 years, the grid for this year's championship has a completely different feel.
After three years of dominance, defending champion Scott McLaughlin has headed to the United States to pursue an IndyCar career, while American billionaire Roger Penske has also exited the championship.
It means Dick Johnson Racing will feature a completely new lineup with Anton De Pasquale and Will Davison the Ford team's drivers.
Holden great Jamie Whincup says it is tough to gauge his rivals after such upheaval across the field.
"I've never seen so many changes up in our pitlane as far as drivers and guys moving team to team," he said.
"I'm as eager as anyone to see where everything sort of pans out, come round one this weekend."
The Bathurst 500 features 250km races at the iconic 6.2km track on Saturday and Sunday.
with AAP
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