Image: Richard Childress Racing
Brodie Kostecki made his long-awaited NASCAR debut at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway on the weekend, finishing 22nd after starting from the rear of the grid.
In what was a mostly disrupted weekend for the Australian due to technical problems in his #33 Chevrolet, Kostecki put in a brilliant performance to qualify 11th fastest – but would ultimately start at the rear of the grid after a crash later on in the session.
While the crash meant the win was out of sight for the West Australian, he was still able to impress, moving up almost 20 places in the race.
While he may not be Australian, Supercars champion Shane van Gisbergen also made his return to the series after his remarkable debut win in Chicago last month.
After qualifying in eighth, the Repco Supercars Champion would eventually cross the line in tenth – a great effort in his first stint on an oval track.
Kostecki wasn’t the only Aussie in action in Indianapolis over the weekend, with Will Power back in action in the NTT Indycar Series.
Taking place on the Speedway’s Road Course, Power endured a difficult weekend but was able to make the most of a disappointing qualifying session that saw him start back in unfamiliar territory in 17th.
Despite the setback, Power would end up being the only Penske driver to finish the race in the top six, passing Alex Palou in the dying stages to finish in an impressive sixth place.
Image: Will Power
Power was two places ahead of another Aussie-loved Kiwi, Scott McLaughlin – who crossed the line in eighth place after starting from 11th.
From the United States to the United Kingdom, three young Australians were in action in the eighth round of the Rokit British Formula 4 season, one that saw South Australia’s James Piszcyk pick up his fourth podium finish of the year.
After claiming a top 10 finish in race one, the reverse-grid second race saw Piszcyk improve to third place at a wet and slippery Knockhill Racing Circuit.
A troubled third race outing would see the South Australian finish in a disappointing 18th place, but it wasn’t all doom and gloom after picking up the fastest lap of the race.
The other two Aussies in action in F4 were Noah Lisle and Patrick Heuzenroeder, with Lisle taking the best result of the two with a sixth-place finish in race one.
Unfortunately, that was the only top 10 finish of the weekend for the West Aussie, but while Heuzenroeder couldn’t challenge the top five he was still able to muster two top 10’s across the weekend, with a pair of ninth place finishes in races two and three.
Keyword: Kostecki NASCAR debut headlines Aussies abroad