Channel 7 Bathurst 1000 reaches 5.55 million across race weekend – More than 5.55 million Australians watched some of the 2026 Repco Bathurst 1000 coverage across Channel 7 and 7plus Sport, according to audience figures released after a dramatic final-lap victory for Brodie Kostecki and Todd Hazelwood.
Sunday’s race reached 3.97 million nationally and drew a Total TV average audience of 1.45 million. Those are different measures: reach counts people who watched at least part of the broadcast, while the average reflects the audience across the programme. The weekend figure is the cumulative reach for the broader three-day coverage, not the race’s average audience.
The result gives Channel 7 a strong sporting audience story beyond the finish itself. The race was the day’s number-one programme among total people, viewers aged 25–54 and 16–39, and grocery shoppers, according to Seven’s figures. It also set a Supercars high on 7plus Sport, where the race audience of 241,000 was up 15%.
Final-lap drama at Mount Panorama
Kostecki and Hazelwood moved into the lead on the final lap after long-time leader Anton De Pasquale ran out of fuel. The win went to the Dick Johnson Racing pair after a race whose outcome remained in doubt almost to the chequered flag.
Seven Network Head of Motorsport Angela Rampal described the finish this way:
It’s hard to imagine a better finish to the Bathurst 1000 than last year, but yesterday may have just topped it.
Angela Rampal, Seven Network Head of Motorsport
Rampal also congratulated Kostecki, Hazelwood and the Dick Johnson Racing team on their victory.
Bathurst 1000 audience breakdown
The Sunday race was the weekend’s largest single broadcast. The Top 10 Shootout on Saturday also delivered a substantial audience, while the supporting sessions and practice added to the three-day reach. These figures are national reach and national average audience respectively:
- Sunday race: 3.97 million reach; 1.45 million average.
- Sunday supports and warm-up: 2.23 million reach; 521,000 average.
- Saturday supports: 1.45 million reach; 521,000 average.
- Saturday Top 10 Shootout: 1.53 million reach; 785,000 average.
- Friday qualifying and supports: 1.09 million reach; 264,000 average.
- Saturday practice: 523,000 reach; 203,000 average.
Across all three days, viewers streamed more than 167 million minutes of Bathurst 1000 action on 7plus Sport. Seven says 7plus held a 61.2% share of BVOD viewing on Sunday. That share describes the streaming market, not Channel 7’s free-to-air network share.
Next Supercars events on Channel 7
Seven’s motorsport coverage continues with the Gold Coast 500 on Saturday 24 and Sunday 25 October. The 2026 Supercars Championship then concludes with the Adelaide Grand Final on Saturday 28 and Sunday 29 November. Both events are scheduled to be available live and free on Channel 7 and 7plus.
The figures come from VOZ 5.0 national audience data cited by Seven. Programme audience figures are overnight What Watched results; Seven’s comparison excludes encores. The race result and audience figures provide a separate look at Bathurst’s performance alongside TV Central’s wider daily ratings coverage.
For the event’s television schedule, read TV Central’s Bathurst 1000 broadcast guide, and visit 7plus Sport for official streaming coverage.
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