Hi to all you Supercars Fans around the world!
Round 4 of the 2026 Supercars Championship was the ITM Christchurch Super 440 held on April 17 – 19.
This is the first time that Ruapuna Park (currently sponsored as Euromarque Motorsport Park) was host to a V8 Supercars event. It lies on the outskirts of Christchurch on New Zealand’s South Island. The track is configured with 7 routes ranging from 1.19kms to 3.38kms. Supercars used the ‘Grand Prix’ 3.33kms circuit that includes 11 turns.
The event started with Race 10 which was supposed to be run the week before at the Taupo Super 440, but because of the approaching cyclone it was cancelled and rescheduled to this event.
Matt Payne started on pole position with Brodie Kostecki alongside him.
Brodie Kostecki took the lead in the first of the 37 lap race.
It was a special occasion for David Reynolds, his 500th race start. From P18 on the grid he stalled at the start line. The cars behind tried to take evasive action but ended up crashing into him and each other. Reynolds’ car was a mess and dragged into the garage. It must have been bad because he didn’t return to the track and received an NC (Not Complete) before even moving. I bet this was not the way he expected his 500th race to go.
Meanwhile back at the front of the pack, Ryan Wood took second place off Matt Payne. Kai Allen was in third.
As the others settled into the race, Cameron Hill’s car had fallen to the back of the pack with smoke coming from the right front. Cameron Hill was one of the victims involved in the start line pile up with Reynolds. He only made it to lap 5 before having to bail out of the race and became the second driver to get an NC.
The first car to pit was Aaron Cameron on lap 13 from 21st place.
The first of the leaders to pit was Kai Allen from 3rd place on lap 17. He came back out on track in 14th position.
In the middle of the race Brodie Kostecki still had the lead. Ryan Wood trailed by 1.967 seconds in 2nd place.
Matt Payne and Ryan Wood then pitted together. They rejoined in 8th and 10th position.
The leader Brodie Kostecki was one of 7 cars still yet to pit. Once those cars pitted it left Kai Allen in the lead.
This is Kai Allen’s second season in V8 Supercars. He handled the lead with skill beyond his years.
Brodie Kostecki and Ryan Wood made their way to the front of the pack to take 2nd and 3rd place. They were close behind Kai Allen in the lead but he managed to hold them off for the remaining laps.
The checkered flag waved Kai Allen crossed the finish line with Brodie Kostecki on his tail with only 0.742 of a second between them. Ryan Wood crowded them in 3rd place 0.444 seconds later. That was a tight finish.
Kai Allen became the 89th Supercars winner in the history of the sport. Congratulations Kai!
Race 10 Results:
1st Kai Allen – Grove Racing
2nd Brodie Kostecki – Shell V-Power Racing Team
3rd Ryan Wood – Walkinshaw TWG Racing
In Race 11 Brodie Kostecki started on pole position with Matt Payne alongside him.
Brodie Kostecki took the lead in the first of 37 laps. Kai Allen who was 4th on the start grid had a fantastic launch and jumped into 2nd place.
By the end of the first lap Ryan Wood who started 6th on the grid was up to 3rd place. Broc Feeney was up 1 spot and in 4th.
A few laps in Matt Payne was fighting his way back and took 4th place from Broc Feeney.
On lap 5 Cameron Hill was called into the pits after being hit by David Reynolds. David Reynolds was issued a 15 second time penalty. Andre Heimgartner also pitted for damage repairs.
The front runners were tightly packed with Brodie Kostecki still in the lead and Kai Allen right behind him. Matt Payne gained another spot into 3rd place.
On lap 11 Anton de Pasquale was the first to take an unforced pit stop.
In the middle of the race Matt Payne became the leader while Kostecki and Allen were pitting. Payne and 9 other cars were yet to pit. The pit lane started getting busy.
James Golding spun on his pit entry. Macauley Jones came in and had to go around him.
Once all the pit stops were taken Brodie Kostecki was once again in the lead. Kai Allen was challenging him for the lead, but Brodie Kostecki fought him off.
EOS 10
The leaders were still tightly packed as they reached the last laps of the race.
Matt Payne who had managed to stay in 3rd place had a loose wheel nut. Sure enough the wheel came off and went rolling down the track on its own. His podium finish was decimated. He hobbled on the remaining 3 wheels back to the pits for a replacement. He returned on track in 22nd place.
Matt Payne’s exit from 3rd left a gap in the field easing the pressure on front runners. Brodie Kostecki was flying and Kai Allen could only just keep up. There was no time left to put in a challenge.
Kostecki crossed the finish line a mere 0.598 seconds ahead of Kai Allen. 8+ seconds later Ryan Wood took 3rd.
Race 11 Results:
1st Brodie Kostecki – Shell V-Power Racing Team
2nd Kai Allen – Grove Racing
3rd Ryan Wood – Walkinshaw TWG Racing
In Race 12 Ryan Wood started on pole position with Matt Payne alongside him on the front row of the grid.
Matt Payne took the lead off the start line. Ryan Wood was right on his bumper.
By the end of the 1st lap Broc Feeney moved up from 6th to 3rd. Brodie Kostecki was in 4th place.
Cars started pitting on lap 13. The first 2 were Anton de Pasquale and Cameron Hill.
Aaron Cameron received a time penalty for spinning Cooper Murray. Murray dropped from 10th to 16th.
By the middle of the race Matt Payne had a 12+ second lead.
Inside the top 10, Declan Fraser received a 5 second penalty for ramming Macauley Jones.
After all cars had pitted and reaching the end of the race, Matt Payne lead by 4.5 seconds. Ryan Wood was 2nd. Broc Feeney was right behind him.
With patience, Broc Feeney eventually managed to get by Ryan Wood for second place.
Matt Payne had a clear track and used it well to build a bigger lead. Broc Feeney was desperately chasing him but the gap kept growing wider.
Matt Payne was in “The Zone” and crossed the finish line with an amazing 11.643 second win over Broc Feeney. 2.5+ seconds later James Golding took 3rd place.
Race 12 Results:
1st Matt Payne – Grove Racing
2nd Broc Feeney – Red Bull Ampol Racing
3rd James Golding – Blanchard Racing Team
In Race 13 Matt Payne started on pole position for the 2nd time this weekend. On the front row next to him was Anton de Pasquale.
As the green flag waved Matt Payne got the jump and led into turns 1 and 2 for the first of 61 laps. Will Brown went up to second place. Kai Allen went up 3 places to third.
Jackson Walls and Rylan Gray made contact and both spun off the track. In the process Aaron Cameron also made contact with them. Rylan Gray struggled to get his car refired and was stuck on the grass. Aaron Cameron had smoke coming from the left rear corner of car 3.
Seconds later and just before the safety car was deployed, Ryan Wood made contact with Anton de Pasquale, pushing him off the track. Pasquale was in 4th and dropped to 9th place.
The safety car was deployed to clean up the track and move Rylan Gray’s car.
The officials investigated the Rylan Gray and Jackson Walls incident but no penalties were issued.
On lap 8 both Red Bull Ampol Racing drivers, Will Brown and Broc Feeney had radio communication issues. The team had to resort to the old fashioned pit board to message the drivers.
The first car to pit was Jayden Ojeda on lap 8.
The first of the leaders to pit was Anton de Pasquale on lap 9. The gap between Matt Payne and Will Brown (now in second place) was 5.066 seconds.
Rylan Gray and Aaron Cameron were still in the garage getting repairs done and had not returned to the track yet.
Matt Pa yne pitted from the race lead with 4 other cars yet to stop.
With 11 laps to go everybody had completed their second mandatory pit stops. Matt Payne still had the lead and was 7.1 seconds ahead of Kai Allen.
With 7 laps remaining Ryan Wood stopped on the pit straight. The safety car was deployed and Wood’s chance at claiming the Jason Richards Memorial Trophy for the event was crushed.
Matt Payne’s lead was also negated by the safety car requiring drivers to stay behind in formation at 80km p/h.
On the restart Kai Allen followed Matt Payne. Kai Allen was instructed not to attack his teammate and let him ride out the last laps.
Brodie Kostecki and Broc Feeney were tied on points for the event’s Jason Richards Memorial Trophy. Chaz Mostert made contact with Brodie Kostecki and others had to take evasive action to avoid a collision. With only 2 laps remaining Kostecki would finish after Feeney. Feeney would get the trophy. Chaz Mostert received a 30 second penalty for causing the incident.
EOS 17
The leaders held their places and Matt Payne crossed the finish line 1.126 seconds ahead of teammate Kai Allen. 0.938 seconds later Broc Feeney came in to take third place.
Not only did Broc Feeney win the Jason Richards Memorial Trophy, he also regained the series lead by 23 points and leads the ‘spint’ cup.
The Red Bull Ampol Racing Team lead the Teams Championship.
Race 13 Results:
1st Matt Payne – Grove Racing
2nd Kai Allen – Grove Racing
3rd Broc Feeney – Red Bull Ampol Racing
The next event is the Tyrepower Tasmania Super 440 on May 22 – 24.