Emotional Erebus boss breaks silence over Kostecki row
Erebus Motorsport boss Barry Ryan has broken into tears over a contract dispute with reigning Supercars champion Brodie Kostecki.
Alongside team owner Betty Klimenko, Ryan addressed the dramatic off-season fall-out on Friday for the first time since Erebus announced Kostecki would not race the season-opening Bathurst 500 in January.
Endurance driver Todd Hazelwood will take Kostecki’s spot at Mount Panorama this weekend, alongside new recruit Jack Le Brocq.
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By continuing you agree to our Terms and Privacy Policy.Klimenko and Ryan did not comment on the nature of the dispute, leaving a question mark over whether Kostecki will hit the racetrack again under the Erebus banner.
“It’s still ‘TBA’. We respect Brodie’s privacy and we’ll see where it comes to in the next week or two,” Ryan told Fox Sports.
“It’s not up to us yet.”
Klimenko added: “It’s not in our hands.”
Ryan became emotional and struggled to hold back tears when asked about the fall-out.
“At the end of last year, we were on top of the world. Everybody believed in us,” Ryan said.
“To have people that decided that they didn’t believe in us anymore, that hurts.
“There’s been so much hate, and I’m not that sort of person. I’m not a bully.
“And these will be (seen as) fake tears by social media. I’m prepared for all that.”
Klimenko and Ryan have copped criticism from all corners since the news broke of Kostecki’s absence from the season opener.
Three-time Supercars champion Shane van Gisbergen labelled the row a “sad situation” for Kostecki, while former competition powerbroker Roland Dane accused Erebus of being a “toxic workplace”.
A number of sponsors - including Coca-Cola, Shaw and Partners and Southern Cross Truck Rentals - also withdrew their support.
“(The record) will be set straight at some point. That’s not what matters,” Klimenko told Fox Sports.
“What matters is that we respect Brodie’s privacy. We respect the fact that we can’t say anything and we’ve just had to take this on.
“We’ve had to take on the haters ... but sometimes in the dead of the night, you just can’t let it go.
“Coming in today, I burst into tears on the plane. I just wanted to go home, but then I thought, ‘no, I’ve got a team down here waiting for me’.
“The hurt is something that is real.”
