'That's rude': Scott McLaughlin at centre of fresh Bathurst controversy
A wildcard was expected to turn heads in the Supercars Eseries third round on Wednesday night.
But few would have suspected it would be rookie Brodie Kostecki.
All eyes were on Australia's former IndyCar champion Will Power after he became the latest motorsport star to enter the virtual racing competition, a week after Formula One gun Max Verstappen impressed.
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Power was solid on Eseries debut despite being forced to race on a simulator in his North Carolina home at 5am local time, finishing sixth, 11th and 10th respectively in the three races staged at Bathurst's legendary Mount Panorama.
However, it was fellow wildcard Kostecki who threatened to upstage the star studded field.
The 22-year-old Supercars second tier Super2 driver grabbed two podiums and was only denied victory in the finale by a post-race penalty.
In a pulsating finish to the last 14-lap race, two-time Supercars defending champion Scott McLaughlin had to dig deep to hold out an aggressive Kostecki. .
But McLaughlin appeared to lock up his brakes and hit the wall on the race's final corner, allowing Kostecki to overtake the New Zealand gun and snatch a stunning last gasp victory - or so he thought.
Stewards reversed the top two placings and gave McLaughlin the win after ruling that the young wildcard had made contact with the Supercars star, sending him into the wall.
Ive gotta say.... reading through all the comments and the passion from the fans about the finish. Well done to @supercars and I hope you all enjoyed the finish and this is what racing is about. Well done to @smclaughlin93 on the win https://t.co/yTAAoxvQuk
— Brodie Kostecki (@BrodieKostecki) April 22, 2020
The win helped McLaughlin - who finished seventh and fourth respectively in the opening eight-lap races - claim overall round three honours.
"I thought I had a fair bit of help there (going into the wall)," McLaughlin told Fox Sports.
"But that was a good battle, I had my work cut out there."
"That's rude"
So rude that the result is reversed and Scott McLaughlin is declared the winner of Bathurst Race 3#VASC pic.twitter.com/CO5OxMNr2T— Sportsbet.com.au (@sportsbetcomau) April 22, 2020
Eseries star Brodie Kostecki makes a splash against McLaughlin
Kostecki may not be Australian motorsport's biggest name, despite impressing in the Super2 series and earning a Supercars Enduro Cup co-driver gig in 2020 for Penrite Racing.
But it seemed he was always going to be one to watch in the Eseries third round.
He is considered a simulated racing ace, so much so that organisers asked him to help create the set ups for every car in the Supercars Eseries.
Kostecki sounded his intentions early in round three, falling short of pole position for race one by just 0.009 of a second before finishing second behind Holden gun Shane van Gisbergen.
He emerged from a reverse grid in race two to finish ninth before the thrilling finale.
Race two was won by McLaughlin's Ford teammate Fabian Coulthard.
Meanwhile, NASCAR champion Joey Logano will be a wildcard for next week's Eseries fourth round to be staged at Canada's Circuit Gilles Villeneuve and New York's Watkins Glen International.
