Brodie Kostecki was sidelined for the Darwin finale of the Supercars Championship due to illness, dealing a blow to his title aspirations. The Ford driver was ruled out after struggling with a virus and dehydration, which worsened during Saturday’s race because of a malfunctioning in-car drinks system. Following his third-place finish, Kostecki was taken to the track medical centre for treatment and was unable to compete in Sunday’s race.

In response, Dick Johnson Racing’s Todd Hazelwood was called up on short notice Sunday morning to replace Kostecki. Hazelwood qualified 13th for the 70-lap race and improved to finish 12th.

Kostecki’s teammate Thomas Randle also missed the event after suffering a cool suit failure on the warm-up lap of Saturday’s race amid 32-degree Celsius heat at Hidden Valley. This issue forced Randle to seek medical attention post-race and ultimately led to him being declared unfit for Sunday’s contest despite completing qualifying and securing 15th place on the grid.

Tickford Racing enlisted veteran Mark Winterbottom, who was present at Darwin in his role as a Supercars commentator, as a last-minute substitute for Randle. Winterbottom started from the pit lane due to not participating in qualifying and finished 22nd in the race.

Prior to the final round, Kostecki was third in the championship standings, trailing leaders Broc Feeney and Matt Payne. However, his withdrawal allowed Cam Waters to move ahead, dropping Kostecki to fourth place. The developments at Darwin substantially reshaped the title picture as the season approached its conclusion.