Mostert to lead charge

Ford primed for fightback

Chaz Mostert is hungry to reverse a “one-way street” and lead a Ford fightback at Symmons Plains, knowing he must force his way on to the winners’ list if he is to have any chance of mounting a title assault this year.

Ahead of this weekend’s Tasmania Supersprint, Mostert is the best of the Mustang drivers, sitting second in the Supercars standings behind series leader Brodie Kostecki, but is yet to taste a win in 2023.

The dual Bathurst 1000 champion is the only Ford driver positioned inside the top five of the championship, sitting ahead of Chevrolet pilots Shane van Gisbergen, Will Brown and Broc Feeney.

While Tickford Racing’s Cam Waters was declared the winner of race one in Newcastle after Triple Eight’s van Gisbergen and Feeney were disqualified for a technical breach, Ford has not had a driver cross the line in first place this year.

The only driver outside of Triple Eight and Dick Johnson Racing to have won at Symmons Plains in the past five years, Mostert was bullish about putting the Blue Oval back in front.

“It’s a bit of a one-way street at the moment, but we’re all definitely hungry on that side to try and deliver more wins to go forward,” Mostert said.

“I am feeling really optimistic for this weekend, it is a pretty good hunting ground for Walkinshaw Andretti United over the last couple of years here.

“I got my first win for the team when I joined forces with WAU, so we know we can be quick around here, but to throw a spanner in the mix, we have got completely different cars and a different manufacturer we are representing.

“Hopefully, we can get up the pointy end and to grab a trophy would be really nice and, if not, just keep grabbing some good points until we get on top of things … I am hungry for a good result.”

Parity has been a hot topic for the start of the sport’s Gen3 era given the dominance of the Chevy Camaros so far this year.

But a diplomatic Mostert did not want to get involved in any parity debate.

“I’m not going to get into the P (parity) politics with everything that is going on,” Mostert said.

“Supercars are working hard and we’ll just have to go from there.”

Mostert had two second-places to kickstart the Gen3 era in Newcastle – also benefiting from the T8 disqualifications in race one – but has not featured on the podium since.

But the 31-year-old knew he needed to start winning if he was to be a serious title contender.

Mostert has twice finished third in the Supercars championship, but remains confident he can be a threat this year.

“You can’t really keep using the rookie excuse anymore, I have been in this series for 10 years now,” Mostert said.

“I want to be trying to win championships.”