With rain belting the 6.2km Mount Panorama circuit for almost the entirety of the near seven-hour event, Best navigated the treacherous conditions to great effect behind the wheel of the #3 CoolDrive Ford Mustang, teeing up teammate and main driver Aaron Cameron to bring the car across the line in ninth, a brilliant result considering the pair started in 20th position.
Having shown early promise in the first practice session of the weekend on Thursday morning, finishing 11th out of the 27 cars on track, the BRT entry opted to miss running in a wet second practice on Thursday afternoon; however, it seemed to matter little, as the Best/Cameron pairing slotted into 13th after practice three on Friday morning.
Practice four, the final opportunity for drivers to familiarise themselves before Friday afternoon’s qualifying session, again saw Best and Cameron on the cusp of the top 10, finishing in 14th spot.
With the top 10 drivers at the end of qualifying earning the opportunity to fight for pole position on Saturday in the top 10 shootout, the BRT pair looked a genuine chance to sneak through, having been there or thereabouts for the majority of the weekend until that point.
A super tight qualifying didn’t fall their way, however, as despite Cameron’s best effort being six tenths of a second off the fastest lap and only three tenths from the top 10, the pair were condemned to start 20th on the grid for the main race on Sunday.
Speaking on the BRT social media channels on Saturday afternoon, Best remained upbeat about the situation, determined to forge ahead despite an ordinary weather forecast for the spectacle on Sunday.
“Hopefully we have a good stint tomorrow, and hopefully the weather (holds off and) it’s not raining,” he said.
“We’d like the dry, but if it’s raining, I guess we are just going to suck it up and do our best with what we’ve got, and hopefully we can move forward and have a good result.”
Despite hoping for a dry race, the wet conditions played out perfectly for Best and Cameron on Sunday, with the BRT pair benefiting hugely from the hectic first safety car period as rain began to fall.
While the start of the race on Sunday saw a fairly benign beginning, a mistake from Dick Johnson Racing’s Tony D’Alberto on lap 55 brought out a safety car, with teams scrambling to the pits for fuel and fresh slick tires; however, as the race restarted, a second safety car was brought out as the #25 of Chaz Mostert broke down, and as the race finally got back under way the rain arrived, creating absolute havoc.
While the majority of the field braved the wet in the belief conditions would soon favour a dry tire again, Best, along with the #31 of David Russell, pitted at the end of lap 65 from 18th position, and while a few others followed their lead the next lap, a safety car was called due to a stranded vehicle on lap 67, prompting the rest of the field to dive into pit lane, and promoting Best to fifth.
The rain intensified from there, and having been fortuitous to jump much of the field after a well-timed stop, Best demonstrated all of his skill over the next 16 laps in appalling conditions, making decisive overtaking manoeuvres in the wet to climb to second, holding that position as he climbed out of the car on lap 88 to hand the duties over to Cameron.
It was an admirable effort by Best, one that earned plaudits from commentator Neil Crompton on Channel Seven’s live coverage.
“Now that has been an impressive stint,” Crompton said of Best’s effort in the wet.
“For a fellow that didn’t race in 2024 at all in anything, to come back in his second Supercar drive this year … and put on that performance in these conditions, that is noteworthy.”
A podium looked a real possibility as Cameron ticked off the laps, running in third for a long period; however, the duo were relegated at the final pit stops under safety car while needing to add more fuel than their competitors, while a late loss of position saw the pair finally cross the line in ninth, gaining 11 spots from their starting position.
The race was eventually won by Penrite Racing’s Matthew Payne and Garth Tander, who inherited the lead with a handful of laps remaining after leader Cooper Murray and second-placed James Golding collided, resulting in a five-second penalty for Golding.
Golding, driving the PremiAir Racing Chevrolet Camaro alongside co-driver David Russell, ultimately ended up crossing the line first; however, he was demoted to third due to his penalty, with Payne and Tander taking the win while David Reynolds and Lee Holdsworth were promoted to second in the TRADIE Energy Camaro.
