Kostecki slated over 'lack of loyalty' after bowing to Erebus Supercars demand

Kostecki will start his Supercars title defence when the championship heads to Taupo in New Zealand on 19-21 April after sitting out the initial two weekends to “prioritise my health”, as per a statement issued on Monday.

This comes after a prolonged period that saw allegations of bullying directed at team owner Betty Klimenko and CEO Barry Ryan – something both have repeatedly denied – while Kostecki remained silent on the matter.

But Adderton has not been shy in offering his thoughts on the saga, publicly backing Kostecki while criticising both Erebus and Supercars for its handling – or lack of – since the chequered flag fell last year in Adelaide.

Writing on social media following the announcement of Kostecki’s return with Erebus, Adderton said: “I will always shoot straight.

“For those who are asking, yes, I got a call from Brodie today telling me he was going back to Erebus and one of the conditions was Betty demanded he remove all Boost Mobile Australia, and other sponsors who supported him, branding from his helmet, which he advised us today.

“We are disappointed and sad, to be honest, after all the years of support we gave Brodie and felt he would have said no, but he clearly didn't. That's for Brodie to say why, not me.”

In his attempts to get Kostecki back onto the grid, Adderton had created a run of t-shirts for the season-opening Bathurst 500, that were free to fans, carrying the message ‘#LetBrodieRace’.

Boost Mobile also awards $5,000 to the pole winner for each race, something which has also garnered headlines with some drivers initially refusing to wear a branded cap for the presentation and later granted exemptions from the obligation due to a conflict of interest with existing partners.

“Funny how bullying was the at the center of the whole Brodie, Erebus Motorsport drama and making it a condition to remove us or you can't race . Go figure,” added Adderton.

In a separate post, he continued: “Today, I was taught a valuable lesson in loyalty or lack of it in this instance and how you can be so wrong about people, people you have gone to war for and stood up for and supported for years would simply throw you under bus without giving it a second thought.

“Supercars has, in my opinion, hit an all-time low for me today, and frankly, my interest level has fallen to zero.

“There are always consequences for our actions ,this I have learned over the many years, but the call I got today was an all-time low for me.

“I am not mad, I am disappointed in myself for ever believing that people actually care about our support and passion and loyalty, I learned a very valuable lesson so there is that.”