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HomeNewsMOSTERT’S LOST CHANCE TO JOIN TEAM’S BIRTHDAY STREAK

MOSTERT’S LOST CHANCE TO JOIN TEAM’S BIRTHDAY STREAK

THE rescheduling of the Beaurepaires Tasmania SuperSprint has cost Chaz Mostert the opportunity to join an elite club of legendary drivers to have achieved an unusual Repco Supercars Championship feat.

Saturday 10 April marks Mostert’s 29th birthday – happy birthday Chaz! – and was originally the scheduled date for Race 6 of the 2021 championship at Symmons Plains.

The Tasmanian event would’ve marked the first time Mostert has started a championship race on his birthday, and his first opportunity to become just the fourth driver to win a championship race on their birthday.

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A common link among the trio augered well for Mostert’s hopes of joining them: his Walkinshaw Andretti United team.

The first driver to win a race on their birthday was no less than Peter Brock, who drove his Holden Racing Team Commodore to victory in the second race at Symmons Plains in 1995 on his 50th birthday.

Brock ran down John Bowe to win an ATCC race on his birthday in 1995. Pic: an1images.com / Graeme Neander

The next driver to achieve the feat was Craig Lowndes, who celebrated his 24th birthday by winning the opening race of the 1998 Calder Park round for HRT.

He also sealed the round victory by dint of his second-placing in the second race, while the third was cancelled due to rain.

Bob Jane provided a birthday cake for Lowndes at Calder in 1998! Pic: an1images.com / Graeme Neander

The scheduling of Hidden Valley’s round for mid-late June gave Lowndes four more cracks at a birthday win during his time with Triple Eight, but the best he could manage was a pair of second places in 2014.

The most recent driver to score a birthday win is Todd Kelly, whose victory for HRT with Mark Skaife in the 2005 Bathurst 1000 coincided with his 26th birthday.

Todd Kelly celebrated his 26th birthday with a Bathurst 1000 victory. Pic: an1images.com / Dirk Klynsmith

Skaife himself might seem a curious omission from this list given his 90 career ATCC/SC race wins, many of which were earnt at HRT.

However, the stars never quite aligned: although Skaife started 479 ATCC/SC races across his career, not one of them took place on his birthday, April 3.

Similarly, Supercars’ most prolific winner also seems unlikely to join the list given his looming full-time retirement.

Whincup’s birthday falls on February 6 and an ATCC/SC race been held on that date only once – and he was definitely not in a position to take part in it!

The Calder Park round in 1983 was held on the day the future seven-time champion was born.

George Fury leads the field through the Esses early in the 1983 ATCC round at Calder, held the same day Jamie Whincup was born. Pic: an1images.com / Ian Smith
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