On the 11 – 13 September 2026 was round 10 of the 2026 Supercars championship, The Air Touch 500 at the Bend.
It was held in South Australia at the Tailem Bend Circuit using the West Track.
The West Track is one of 8 circuit configurations and is 3.41km long with 12 corners. This 500km race was 147 laps. Each car has a main driver teamed up with a co-driver.
Starting on the Friday the pre-race sessions included 5 practices, Qualifying, Top 10 Shootout and finally a warm-up.
Brodie Kostecki and co-driver Todd Hazelwood earned pole position for Race 29. Alongside them was Matt Payne and Will Davison.
It had begun raining during the warm-up session and continued through most of the race. The track was thoroughly drenched.
As they took off, the pole sitter Todd Hazelwood’s car lurched backwards. The drivers behind had to navigate around him while Will Davison took the lead. By the time Hazelwood got the car going in the right direction he was last in the field, 26th.
At turn 1 Mark Winterbottom hit Will Davison in the lead. Davison spun around and dropped from 1st to 25th place.
A totally bizarre start to a race! The 2 cars that were at the front of the starting grid were now at the back.
The lead was now in the hands of Tim Slade.
Reuben Goodall passed Mark Winterbottom for second place.
Will Brown’s co-driver Scott Pye was the first to come into the pits on lap 2 with a puncture. By the time he returned to the track he was 1 lap down.
James Courtney also came into the garage due to steering damage.
Nick Percat, co-driver for Broc Feeney was turned around and dropped to 21st place.
As expected, the wet track was going to cause chaos. Throughout the race it seemed there were limitless incidents of cars connecting, sliding and spinning all over the track.
Meanwhile, leader Tim Slade had “clean air” and was unbothered by Reuben Goodall 10+ seconds behind battling to stay in 2nd place.
By lap 25 the rain had intensified. At turn 1 there was a commotion and cars started sliding off the track like a dominos effect. It was a complete mess and the safety car was deployed.
The restart was on lap 33 with Tim Slade still in control followed by Richie Stanaway and Fabian Coulthard. However, Tim Slade’s 10+ second lead was erased by the safety car conditions.
Within a few laps a 2nd safety car was deployed ruining the race flow.
It was after the second restart Tim Slade made a mistake and aquaplaned across the track. Jarrod Hughes had moved up into 2nd place and used the mistake to steal the lead from Slade.
By the middle of the race Jarrod Hughes increased his lead to 8.3 seconds over Chaz Mostert, who was followed by Kai Allen in 3rd.
Hughes was the co-driver for Jobe Stewart at Erebus Motorsport. They held that race lead for a long time.
As the race got close to reaching the 100 lap mark, the experienced Chaz Mostert picked the right moment to pass Hughes for the lead. It wasn’t due to any error from Jarrod Hughes, it’s just that Chaz Mostert is damn good!
As they worked their way through the last 1/3 of the race, final pit stops were made and in most cases the main drivers were back behind the wheel for the finish.
Chaz Mostert held his lead. It was after his final pit stop that he started to break away from the pack. The rain had eased and Mostert was on fire. His superb driving made him look impossible to catch. Kai Allen and Ryan Wood followed in 2nd and 3rd place.
The race was time certain due to a tight schedule with other categories. Due to the delays caused by safety conditions it looked like they were going to call time and finish the race several laps early. As the clock ticked away Mostert edged ahead and increased his lead. The front of the pack was very spread out.
Time ran out at lap 141. After 3hrs 36 minutes and almost 500 kms Chaz Mostert (and Fabian Coulthard) crossed the finish line to take the win. 18.487 seconds later Kai Allen / Tim Slade finished 2nd. Ryan Wood with Jaxon Evans took a further 14 + seconds to cross the line for 3rd.
It was a great finish.
Race 29 results:
1st Chaz Mostert and Fabian Coulthard – Walkinshaw TWG Racing 2nd Kai Allen and Tim Slade – Grove Racing 3rd Ryan Wood and Jaxson Evans – Walkinshaw TWG Racing
The next event is the second half of the Enduro Cup, The Bathurst 1000 on October 8 – 11 2026.
The Bathurst 1000 is the biggest race of the year. I hope you will join me for the fun. It will be great.
Round 9 of the 2026 Supercars Championship, The Century Batteries Ipswich Super 440 was held on the 21 – 23 August at Queensland Raceway, Ipswich.
This was the final round for the Sprint Cup.
Coming into this event Matt Payne had a 118 point lead over Broc Feeney, so this was primarily a showdown between the two drivers.
Broc Feeney was last year’s Sprint Cup winner and desperate to make up for his loss to Chaz Mostert in the ‘Finals’ at the end of last season. He would also be starting his 150th race in Supercars which is an unbelievable milestone. Congratulations!
The first two races of the event were a short mad sprint of 39 laps, worth 80 points each. The third race was longer, 62 laps and worth 140 points for the winner.
It was assumed that this would be close between the 2 contenders but how close and how tense was yet to be seen.
In Race 26 Matt Payne started on pole position with Brodie Kostecki alongside him.
As the lights went out Brodie Kostecki led into turn 1 for the first of 39 laps. Matt Payne sat in 2nd place, while Will Brown and Chaz Mostert traded 3rd and 4th several times.
Mostert was unable to break away from Will Brown’s attack so pitted on lap 9 for clear track.
On lap 19 Brodie Kostecki pitted from the race lead and rejoined in 12th place.
Once the drivers ahead took their mandatory stops Brodie Kostecki would assume the number 1 position.
In such a short race it’s difficult for any driver to make a great lead over the others. They tend to stay bunched up and always face risks while attacking or defending.
Over the last 5 or so laps the order didn’t change.
Brodie Kostecki crossed the finish line to take the win.
Matt Payne held 2nd place to earn 74 points.
Kai Allen came in 3rd, but an earlier time penalty applied after the race pushed him off the podium into 5th.
Will Brown took 3rd while his teammate Broc Feeny took 4th earning 67 points.
Payne’s point lead over Feeney was now 125. The Sprint Cup was still up for grabs.
Race 26 results:
1st Brodie Kostecki – Shell V-Power Racing Team 2nd Matt Payne – Grove Racing 3rd Will Brown – Red Bull Ampol Racing 4th Broc Feeney – Red Bull Ampol Racing 5th Kai Allen – Grove Racing
For Race 27 Matt Payne started in pole position again. Alongside him was Brodie Kostecki.
This time Matt Payne took the lead in the first of the 39 laps.
Will Brown overtook Chaz Mostert for third place.
Matt Payne lost the lead to Brodie Kostecki and shortly after lost another spot to Will Brown.
Broc Feeney rounded out the top 5 places.
In the middle of the race Will Brown, and Anton de Pasquale pitted on lap 19. Broc Feeney followed by James Golding were temporarily left in the lead as the pit cycle began.
Within a few laps Brodie Kostecki was once again in the lead. He ran wide at turn 3 dropping 2 spots to Kai Allen and Matt Payne.
On the following lap 24 Rylan Gray got stuck in the gravel trap and the safety car had to be deployed.
The restart was on lap 30. Kai Allen was in control followed by Matt Payne and Will Brown.
Will Brown was right on the back of Matt Payne for second place. Brodie Kostecki hit Will Brown from behind. This launched Brown forward, and in an effort to avoid hitting Matt Payne in front of him he steered to the outside and ended up taking over.
Zac Bates was spun into a sand trap by Ben Gomersall, and the safety car was deployed again.
Shortly after the race restarted and with only 6 laps remaining, Will Brown took the lead from Kai Allen. Brodie Kostecki took up 2nd place followed by Kai Allen and then Broc Feeney in 4th.
Over the remaining laps Feeney outmatched Kai Allen to take up 3rd place. Kai Allen who held the number 1 spot just a few laps ago was now off the podium.
In the end Will Brown crossed the finish line closely followed by Brodie Kostecki and then Broc Feeney in third place.
Matt Payne came in 6th to earn 53 points against Broc Feeney’s 68 points for 3rd place.
So far Broc Feeney had only gained 8pts on Matt Payne’s lead. There was 110 points difference with only one race left to decide.
Race 27 results:
1st Will Brown – Red Bull Ampol Racing 2nd Brodie Kostecki – Shell V-Power Racing Team 3rd Broc Feeney – Red Bull Ampol Racing
After taking his first win in about 12 months in the last race, Will Brown followed up by earning pole position in race 28. Alongside him on the front row of the grid was Broc Feeney.
As the race got underway Broc Feeney took the lead in the first of 62 laps.
On approach to turn 3 Will Brown was side by side with teammate Broc Feeney. As they got closer to the turn, Brown eased off and gave away his driver’s line to Feeney. This was to assist Feeney in his battle with Matt Payne for the Sprint Cup. Brown’s actions were a perfect example of good sportsmanship.
On lap 5 Jackson Walls must have made contact with a barrier or another car and was leaving a smoke trail behind. It was his front guard pushed in against the tyre causing the smoke. Weirdly it stopped over the next lap.
By the end of lap 6 Broc Feeney had a 1.7 second lead over Will Brown in second spot.
The first car to pit was Declan Fraser on lap 11.
The first of the front runners to pit was Kai Allen from 4th place on lap 17.
Broc Feeney pitted from the race lead on lap 21 and returned in 12th place. Once the cars ahead of him took their pit stops, he would resume as leader.
Not long after Chaz Mostert made his first compulsory pit stop, his car slowed down and had to return to the pits. The team soon declared he would not be returning to the track. They would get no points and receive an NC (Not Complete) for the race.
By the middle of the race Broc Feeney was still in the number 1 spot and had worked hard to create a 6.6 seconds lead over Will Brown. Kai Allen was sitting in 3rd place.
Matt Payne who was 5th, began to slow. There was something wrong with his car and he had to go into the pits. Hanging over the team was the big question, “Was he going to be able to complete the race and earn enough points to stay ahead of Feeney to win the Sprint Cup?”.
It seemed like a really long time before the team announce that Matt Payne was unable to return to the race! He earned no points and received an NC.
Now the question everybody was asking was “Could Feeney come 3rd or better to close the 110 point gap to Matt Payne’s total?”. If he did, he would win the Sprint Cup for the second year in a row.
With10 laps remaining Brodie Kostecki had already overtaken Will Brown and was now putting pressure on Broc Feeney. The rest of the pack were a long way behind, about 10 seconds.
Feeney didn’t crack under the pressure and kept his lead. All he needed was a podium finish to win the Sprint Cup but, of course taking the win would be the icing on the cake.
Broc Feeney raced across the finish line with a 1.453 second win over Brodie Kostecki. It was 12 + seconds later that Will Brown led the rest of the pack and take 3rd place.
What a fantastic result for Broc Feeney. He took the race win, which also gave him the Sprint Cup trophy for the second year in a row. In addition, he receives a bonus 25 points towards the finals.
Race 28 Results:
1st Broc Feeney – Red Bull Ampol Racing 2nd Brodie Kostecki – Shell V-Power Racing Team 3rd Will Brown – Red Bull Ampol Racing
The next event is the Air Touch 500 at the Bend September 11 – 13 2026. It’s the first of the season’s 2 Endurance races. I can’t wait and hope you’ll join me.
Round 8 of the 2026 Supercars Championship, the Bosch Power Tools Perth Super 440 was held on July 31 to August 2 at Barbagallo Raceway in Perth Western Australia.
Barbagallo Raceway originally known as Wanneroo Park first opened on March 2, 1969. Supercars known back then as the Australian Touring Car Championship first raced at the venue in 1973. The track was officially renamed Barbagallo Raceway in 1992.
This year the event marked a milestone for Chaz Mostert starting his 450th round and Cameron Waters starting his 150th round.
In the pre–race sessions:
Jayden Ojeda was fastest in Practice 1
Matt Payne was fastest in Practice 2
Matt Payne was fastest in Qualifying
A lot of time was lost in the qualifying session with 2 red flags for Zac Bates getting stuck in a sand trap and Jobe Stewart doing the same in a separate incident.
In Race 23 Matt Payne started on pole position with Cameron Waters alongside him.
As the race went green Cameron Waters led into turn 1 for the first of 50 laps. The pole sitter Matt Payne dropped back to 2nd place. Ryan Wood gained 1 spot up to third place.
Broc Feeney, Matt Payne’s main rival for the Sprint Cup was in 12th place.
The front runners Cameron Waters, Matt Payne and Ryan Wood were bunched up and put in challenges for the lead on that first lap. Matt Payne took the lead off Cameron Waters at turn 7 and at the start of lap 2 Ryan Wood also slipped past for 2nd place.
Kai Allen took 4th place after he got up the inside of Thomas Randle after he ran wide.
The first car to pit was Jack le Brocq on lap 15.
The first of the leaders to stop was Brodie Kostecki on lap 19. Cooper Murray also pitted on the same lap.
As they reached the middle of the race Matt Payne still held the number 1 spot with a 2.4 second lead over Ryan Wood. Cameron Waters was still holding on to 3rd place.
After they reached 30 of the 50 laps there were only 2 cars remaining to pit, Aaron Cameron and James Golding in positions 1 and 2.
Soon after Broc Feeney set the fastest lap of the race 55.418 seconds whilst in 19th position. That’s quite a feat considering he had the rest of the pack around him.
As they moved into the last 10 laps of the race Kai Allen made contact with Brodie Kostecki’s car that ended up in the sand trap. The safety car was deployed to rescue him.
The restart was on lap 44. Matt Payne was still in control followed by Ryan Wood and Chaz Mostert who had taken up 3rd place.
In the remaining laps Chaz Mostert ran wide and Anton de Pasquale took advantage of his error and passed him for 3rd place. It was bad luck for Mostert to lose a podium finish.
By lap 48 just 4 laps after the safety car, Matt Payne had created an incredible 3+ second lead over his closest rival.
He kept that lead and took the win 3.179 seconds ahead of Ryan Wood. Anton de Pasquale right on his tail, took 3rd place.
Race 23 results:
1st Matt Payne – Grove Racing 2nd Ryan Wood – Walkinshaw TWG Racing 3rd Anton de Pasquale – Team 18
In race 24 Matt Payne once again started on pole position. His rival for the Sprint Cup Broc Feeney was alongside him.
Matt Payne took the lead into turn 1 for the first of 50 laps. Behind him was Broc Feeney and Kai Allen.
Feeney really wanted the lead and for an exciting couple of laps raced line astern with Matt Payne.
On lap 6 Matt Payne set the fastest lap of the race so far, 55.385 seconds. He now had a 1 second lead over Broc Feeney in second place.
By lap 17 Chaz Mostert was in 4th place and was the first car to pit.
The other front runners stayed out because they had track position. Matt Payne soon increased his lead to 2.3 seconds over Broc Feeney. Payne’s teammate Kai Allen was right on Feeney’s tail.
There were still 17 cars yet to take their mandatory pit stop. Kai Allen pitted along with Thomas Randle on lap 22. Broc Feeney pitted on lap 23 to cover off the undercut from Kai Allen.
By the middle of the race Matt Payne and Will Brown pitted. There were still 12 cars remaining to take their stops before the track order was sorted.
Later on, Matt Payne was being held up by another car and Broc Feeney was able to pass him. There were still 2 cars yet to stop before Broc Feeney would assume the lead of the race.
As the race was reaching its final stages Broc Feeney’s lead was just 0.505 seconds over Matt Payne. Kai Allen was still in third place.
Will Brown was trying to reach the front and had gained 7 spots and now in 5th place.
Broc Feeney seemed inspired, not just by the possibility of the race win but also by the Sprint Cup. He drove like a demon to create a bigger lead over his rival. The front of the pack began to spread out. It was now just a matter of ensuring they made no errors to get a podium finish.
In the end Broc Feeney crossed the finish line with a 1.583 second win over Matt Payne. Kai Allen took 3rd place 4+ seconds later. It was a further 7+ seconds before Chaz Mostert took 4th place.
Race 24 results:
1st Broc Feeney – Red Bull Ampol Racing 2nd Matt Payne – Grove Racing 3rd Kai Allen – Grove Racing
For Race 25 Broc Feeney finally earned himself a pole position. Alongside him was Cameron Waters.
Ryan Wood who was supposed to start on the second row of the grid in 4th had to come into the pits on the formation lap due to an air box issue. He ended up missing the start.
As the race got underway Broc Feeney led into turn 1 for the 1st of the 80 laps.
Will Brown helped Rylan Gray into the sandtrap at turn 6 and was later issued a 15 second time penalty.
Rylan Gray had a front spoiler full of sand and a track full of cars in front of him. He was not going to make any headway so took his pit stop early on lap 5. It also avoided the possibility of a double stack later with his teammate Brodie Kostecki. Kostecki was up the front in 4th place.
Broc Feeney still had the lead with Cameron Waters and Matt Payne behind him.
Chaz Mostert who started 12th on the grid took 7th place off Aaron Cameron.
It took a while, but Matt Payne finally overtook Cameron Waters for 2nd position. He still had to make up 1.8+ seconds if he wanted to catch the leader, Broc Feeney.
The pit stop cycle started on lap 15 with Jack le Brocq.
Brodie Kostecki had kept his place behind the 3 front runners. He wanted a podium finish. On lap 37 he did the fastest lap of the race, 55.404 seconds.
After Broc Feeney took his pit stop Kai Allen was left in the number 1 spot followed by Matt Payne and Cameron Waters. Feeney rejoined in 2nd place but was 6.7 seconds behind the leader.
Once Kai Allen took his first mandatory pit stop, Broc Feeney was back in control of the race.
Ryan Wood who wasn’t able to start the race yet, had to concede and received an NC (Not Complete).
As they worked their way through the middle laps of the race the leaders began to spread out. Broc Feeney maintained a lead of roughly 3 seconds over Matt Payne. Brodie Kostecki was 1.5 seconds behind in third place.
Towards the end of the race the leaders were forced to take their 2nd mandatory pit stops. Afterwards, the gap had closed significantly between Broc Feeney and Matt Payne.
Matt Payne stayed on Feeney’s tail. He was running out of time if he wanted the lead. He took the first opportunity and managed to overtake Broc Feeney. Feeney was now doing the chasing as they flew around the track at top speed, bumper to bumper.
They were well ahead of the others, so it boiled down to a duel between the two drivers.
They drove perfectly but at no stage did Matt Payne give Broc Feeney an opportunity to pass.
In the last few laps Feeney seemed to recognise an attempt would put him at risk and lose a podium finish.
In the end Matt Payne crossed the finish line with a 1.280 second lead on Broc Feeney. It was 11+ seconds later before Anton de Pasquale took third place.
Race 25 results:
1st Matt Payne – Grove Racing 2nd Broc Feeney – Red Bull Ampol Racing 3rd Anton de Pasquale – Team 18
With 2 out of 3 race wins Matt Payne now leads the championship by 118 points over Broc Feeney.
The Century Batteries Ipswich Super 440 on 21 – 23 August 2026 will be the final and deciding event of the Sprint Cup. The points are relatively close so it will be exciting to see who comes out on top.
On the weekend of April 10-12 was the ITM Taupo Super 440, round 3 of the 2026 Supercars championship. It was held at Taupo on the North Island of New Zealand.
Brodie Kostecki headed into the weekend as the series leader by 28 points over Cameron Waters.
David Reynolds reached a milestone at this event, starting his 500th race in Supercars. What an Achievement! Congratulations David.
The Taupo Super 440 had 3 races scheduled but by Saturday afternoon the weather warning for cyclone Vaianu heading directly to the area was received. The 3rd race set to run on Sunday was cancelled. A sensible thing to do but disappointing for the fans, nonetheless. Mind you, if they had to, most supercars fans would stand trackside through a cyclone in their undies if it wasn’t cancelled.
In the pre-race sessions:
Jack le Brocq was fastest in Practice 1
Ryan Wood was fastest in Practice 2
Brodie Kostecki was fastest in Qualifying
In Race 8 Brodie Kostecki started on pole position with Broc Feeney alongside him.
As they took off Brodie Kostecki got the jump and led into turn 1 for the first of 37 laps. Broc Feeney tried to go around him at the first turn but realised it would ruin his approach to turn 2. It was a good attempt, but he had to pull back in the last second.
Kai Allen made contact with Rayan Wood just after turn 1. Allen lost 5 places and was down to 11th. Wood only dropped a single spot to 7th.
At turn 11 Kai Allen was getting into more trouble. He made contact with Aaraon Cameron causing him to spin and drop from 11th to 16th. His car was looking pretty shabby with the rear bumper hanging off.
Although still early in the race Kai Allen had to head to the pits to deal with the damage sustained.
By the middle of the race there were only 7 cars that were still yet to pit. Once they did Brodie Kostecki assumed the number 1 spot.
On lap 23 Broc Feeney recorded the fastest lap of the race, 129.330 seconds.
His teammate Will Brown had moved ahead of him to 2nd place while Chaz Mostert held 3rd. Feeney desperately wanted his spot back.
Broc Feeney battled with Chaz Mostert and eventually got past. Mostert then lost another spot to his own teammate, Ryan Wood. There were only 8 laps to go.
It wasn’t long before Ryan Wood took over Broc Feeney.
With 5 laps to go the leaders were spread out. Brodie Kostecki had a 4.1 second lead over Will Brown. Ryan Wood was another 5.1 seconds behind.
Somehow, Brodie Kostecki increased his lead and crossed the finish line with a 16.185 second win over Will Brown. Ryan Wood was only 0.347 seconds behind in third. Broc Feeney had fallen 6.914 seconds back into 4th place.
Race 8 results:
1st Brodie Kostecki – Shell V-Power Racing Team 2nd Will Brown – Red Bull Ampol Racing 3rd Ryan Wood – Truck Assist Racing
In Race 9 Ryan Wood started on pole position, alongside him was Will Brown.
Ryan Wood took the lead from the start line for the 1st of 60 laps.
At the front of the pack and still on the first lap James Golding was forced out wide by Chaz Mostert.
Leader Ryan Wood was followed by Will Brown, Broc Feeney, James Golding and then Chaz Mostert. Before the end of the lap Matt Payne overtook Chaz Mostert for 5th place.
The first car to pit was David Reynolds on lap 15.
Will Brown closed in on Ryan Wood for the race lead and was only 0.618 seconds behind.
Around lap 23 Broc Feeney pitted from second place. He rejoined in 8th place right behind Chaz Mostert in 7th. There were only 2 cars yet to pit, Brodie Kostecki and James Golding
When Brodie Kostecki finally pitted Ryan Wood assumed position number 1.
By the middle of the race Ryan Wood still had the lead with Will Brown trailing by 2.6 seconds.
Ryan Wood had to pit on lap 43 and Matt Payne followed him in for the second round of stops. Ryan Wood came back out in 8th place.
Towards the end of the end of the race Chaz Mostert had the lead and was followed by teammate Ryan Wood. Chaz Mostert is a fast and experienced driver. He could have easily defended his lead but instead chose to let Ryan Wood through and act as his guard.
With 9 laps left there was only 0.396 seconds between Chaz Mostert and Ryan Wood. Broc Feeney was a further 4.292 seconds behind in third place but closing in fast.
Jackson Walls was in the garage with a broken right front suspension. The repair took too long and he never made it back out to the track. He was the only one to receive an NC (Not Complete).
Broc Feeney kept closing in on the leaders. Pretty soon he made a surprising pass on Mostert in 2nd place.
There were only a few laps remaining. I was wondering of Broc Feeney was going to catch the lead from Wood or was Chaz Mostert going to reclaim 2nd position from Feeney.
Ryan Wood had a few seconds lead and didn’t let it slip.
In the end Ryan Wood crossed the finish line with a 3.036 second win over Broc Feeney in second place. Chaz Mostert came in 3rd 2.476 seconds later.
Race 9 results:
1st Ryan Wood – TWG Racing 2nd Broc Feeney – Red Bull Ampol Racing 3rd Chaz Mostert – TWG Racing
Ryan Wood will go down in history as the first one to take a win for Toyota in Supercars.
The next event is the ITM Christchurch Super 440 on Apr 17 – 19 2026.
Well, it has finally arrived! The 2026 Supercars Championship has started.
The new season kicked off with round 1, The Dunlop Sydney 500 at the Sydney Motorsport Park (aka Eastern Creek) on the weekend Feb 20-22.
It was an exciting 3 race event that became a showcase for all the hard work that happened in the off season.
Red Bull Ampol Racing have ditched GMH (Holden) and returned to Ford for the first time since 2009.
In addition, Red Bull Ampol Racing now have 3 cars on the track for the first time since Craig Lowndes retired in 2018. The new driver behind the wheel of car 11 is rookie Jackson Walls, a young and upcoming graduate from the Super 2’s.
Toyota also made its debut in Supercars. The very handsome Toyota GR Supra is being used by Walkinshaw TWG Racing and Brad Jones Racing. In its first event it has proved as extremely competitive. It will be interesting to see how they do through the year.
The other news of interest is that Walkinshaw Andretti United partially changed hands and now operates under the name Walkinshaw TWG Racing.
It was a typically beaut Sydney summer weekend for this years’ Sydney 500. Somewhere near to 30 degrees and humid.
In the first race, James Golding had earned pole position and teammate Aaron Cameron was right alongside him.
Blanchard racing couldn’t be more pleased with themselves having their drivers at the front of the grid. The smiles on their faces didn’t last long.
The start was signalled. James Golding’s car lurched forward but then didn’t move. In his excitement he stalled it on the start line. As Golding lost critical seconds restarting the engine, Aaron Cameron stole away with the lead and the cars behind weaved past. By the time he got going he was in 5th place.
One would normally lose all hope of regaining position in a short 26 lap race but the team and his own “embarrassment force factor” pushed him forward with his mission.
By the middle of the race, Aaron Cameron still had the lead and amazingly Golding worked his way into second place.
Broc Feeney was in 3rd place with little opportunity to make an attack on the two leaders. In a strategy requiring extreme precision and speed, Feeney went into the pits. The crew filled his tank and changed tyres in 7.2 seconds. The speed of his crew was enough to give him a hidden gain.
Once Cameron and Golding took their mandatory pit stops, Feeney had secured the lead.
With 5 laps to go Broc Feeney was 1.287 seconds ahead of Aaron Cameron. Cameron Waters dropped from 3rd to 5th place. Golding moved into 3rd.
The 2 Blanchard Racing drivers chased Broc Feeney for all their worth. Broc Feeney at the front had ‘clean air’ advantage and kept edging away from his rivals without fault.
Feeney showed he was in as good form as he was in his last record breaking season.
He crossed the finish line to take the win 2.934 seconds ahead of Aaron Cameron. James Golding came in 3rd place 1.215 seconds later.
For such a short race it was very exciting and had an unexpected outcome.
Race 1 Results:
1st Broc Feeney – Red Bull Ampol Racing 2nd Aaron Cameron – Blanchard Racing Team 3rd James Golding – Blanchard Racing Team
In Race 2 Anton de Pasquale started on pole position. Alongside him was Brodie Kostecki.
Among other drivers, Broc Feeney and Will Brown were slowed down by heavy rain during the qualification session. Feeney qualified 9th on the grid and Brown 11th.
As the race went green Anton de Pasquale had the line heading into turn 1 on the first of 52 laps.
Jackson Walls ran wide at turn 2 which dropped him down to 24th place. Declan Fraser and Macauley Jones did the same so also joined Jackson Walls at the back.
For a while Anton de Pasquale had smoke coming from the right rear corner of his Camaro. He must have been hit on the rear quarter panel, and the guard was rubbing the tyre. Lucky for the leader the problem self-corrected after a while.
On lap 10 Anton de Pasquale was still holding the lead. Brodie Kostecki was in 2nd place.
Further back in the pack Andre Heimgartner came to a rolling stop on the track due to no oil pressure. The first safety car of the weekend was deployed.
While the race was under yellow flag, most drivers took the opportunity to head to the pits.
As Feeney was released from his pit stop, he tried beating James Golding to the exit, but they made contact. No real damage was suffered but Feeney did receive a 5 second penalty.
Feeney’s teammate, Will Brown was next in line at the pits. He also received a 5 second penalty for wheels spinning whilst still hoisted on the jacks.
The race restarted on lap 15 with Anton de Pasquale out the front.
By the middle of the race Anton de Pasquale still maintained his lead. Matt Payne took up 2nd place and pushed Brodie Kostecki back to third.
Cameron Waters closed in on Aaron Cameron in 5th place.
Anton de Pasquale continued to hold the number 1 spot while Kostecki earned back 2nd place from Payne.
Brodie Kostecki wanted the win and never gave up challenging the leader. Pasquale simply could not shake him and get some distance between them.
The attacks from Kostecki continued all the way to the finish line. There was only 0.363 seconds between them. It was incredibly tense.
Race 2 Results:
1st Anton de Pasquale – Team 18 2nd Brodie Kostecki – Shell V-Power Racing Team 3rd Matt Payne – Grove Racing
For Race 3 Broc Feeney earned his first pole for the season. Last year he broke the record earning 19 pole positions out of 34 races. Quite incredible.
Kai Allen was in P2 on the grid next to Feeney. They were ready to go in what I call “The Failing Cool Suit Race”.
In only his second year of Supercars, Kai Allen launched off the start line ahead of the more experienced Feeney. His exceptional start only gave him the lead to turn 2 where Broc Feeney took over.
On lap 2 Broc Feeney called in to the engineer over the radio, “Is my cool suit not working or what?”. The temperature outside was about 30 degrees so it would have been over 50 inside the car. Feeney would be feeling the heat almost from the start. The team couldn’t fix it.
At turn 6 Rylan Gray pushed Cameron Hill forward to hit David Reynolds from behind and they both spun. Right behind them, Rylan Gray had to swerve to avoid a collision and went off the track. They were mid pack so were lucky the second half of the drivers didn’t pile up on top of them. Once all three drivers got going again, they were at the back of the field. Later the officials issued Rylan Gray a 15 second penalty for what they thought was an avoidable incident.
Almost immediately David Reynolds also called in with a cool suit failure.
By lap 6 Broc Feeney had worked up a 1.5 second lead over Kai Allen still in second place.
Somehow there was a plastic bag in the front grill of car 88 driven by Feeney. Blocking the airflow caused the engine temperature to rise. With a failed cool suit, Feeney could feel the extra heat in the cabin and was called in for his first pit stop.
Over the next few laps all but 2 drivers had taken their pit stops. After a dozen or so torturous laps they finally pitted and Feeney reassumed the lead. I was frustrated just watching.
The front runners began to spread out by the middle of the race. Kai Allen trailed Broc Feeney’s lead by 3.7 seconds. James Golding was another 3.9 seconds back.
It was around lap 15 that Will Brown’s cool suit failed. Now there were 2 hot drivers from Red Bull Ampol Racing.
Lap 29 turned into a moment of fireworks! Golding’s car lost the left rear wheel and a spectacular fountain of sparks shot up from the car dragging its undercarriage along the track. The wheel rolled across the infield and nearly hit cars on the other side of the track.
The safety car came out to limit speeds while Golding’s car limped back to the pits.
The restart was on lap 34 and that’s when the tropical storm arrived. Still wearing their slick tyres Kai Allen and Broc Feeney took off side by side. Feeney had the driver’s line as they reached the first turn but Kai Allen swooped around the outside of the bend in a superbly executed challenge. At the next turn it was Allen who had the advantage, but Feeney returned the challenge. They duelled on the wet track in a spectacular showcase of driving for a while longer. It was incredible.
Broc Feeney wrestled the lead from Kai Allen.
Soon after the scars of battle showed up and Kai Allen reported steering problems. He began to slow and dropped from 2nd to 23rd place.
On the final lap Brodie Kostecki and Aaron Cameron came together at turn 2. Cameron was stuck on the track. There was no time for the safety car to be deployed as Broc Feeney reached the finish line to take his second win for the weekend.
Matt Payne followed in second place after 2.898 seconds. 1.886 seconds later Cameron Waters was 3rd.
The fact that Feeney had driven to a win without a functioning cool suit is a testament to his spirit.
After the race, Brown and Reynolds both needed medical attention due to 50+ degree heat and dehydration. The 3 drivers all looked seriously unwell.
Race 3 Results:
1st Broc Feeney – Red Bull Ampol Racing 2nd Matt Payne – Grove Racing 3rd Cameron Waters – Tickford Racing
The next event is the Melbourne Supersprint 5 – 8 March.
The weekend of October 10th–13th hosted the Repco Bathurst 1000, which was Round 10 of the 2024 Supercars Championship and the 64th running of the legendary Bathurst endurance race.
The Bathurst race circuit, known as Mount Panorama, first opened on March 17, 1938. The race itself originated in 1960 as the Armstrong 500, a 500 mile race held at the Phillip Island Grand Prix Circuit. In 1963, the event moved to Bathurst, where it retained the 500 mile distance until 1973 when it went metric and was extended to a 1000 kilometre race.
1000 is the most iconic race of the year in Australia and is internationally recognised as a tough and gruelling race on an extremely difficult track.
Over the years, the Bathurst 1000 has been the stage for many remarkable moments in motorsport history. Some of the most notable include:
Peter Brock (Brocky) was also nicknamed “King of the Mountain”. Between 1972 and 1987 (a period of 15 years) he won the Bathurst 1000 nine times. His win in 1979 was by a phenomenal 6 laps ahead of other competitors. On the final lap anyone would think he would play it safe. Instead, he broke the fastest recorded time in history.
Peter Brock – Wins 1979 Bathurst 100 by 6 laps. Who would have thought being quick would make you popular with the girls. Sign of the times.
2003: Greg Murphy astounded everyone in the top 10 shootout before the race. He clocked such a phenomenal lap time it has gone down in history as the “Lap of the Gods”.
Lap of the Gods 2003. You don’t have to be a motor sports fan to enjoy this.
2005: Marcos Ambrose was the season champion for 2003 and 2004. He was well on his way to making it three in a row. On lap 145, he and Greg Murphy were in the top 10 at the front of the pack. They made contact at The Cutting and Ambrose was taken out of the race. He earned no points for the championship. It not only ruined his chances of a Bathurst win (after 145 of 161 laps) but took him of the season running.
2006: Paul Radisich crashed coming out of The Chase. His car was demolished, and he suffered injuries so bad he was unable to compete for the rest of the season.
2008: Paul Radisich as co-driver to Rick Kelly locked up the front wheels at maximum speed smashing into a barrier of the upcoming turn. The impact was so intense, just watching it will give you whiplash. The car was out of the race.
2010: On the first lap, competition was so fierce Fabian Coulthard left the track at max speed on Conrod Straight. He hit the sand trap, slid sideways and the car went into a 6 barrel roll. Needless to say, he missed the next 160 laps.
Honestly, there are dozens more examples of moments in the Bathurst 1000 that have gone down in history.
This year’s Bathurst 1000 was also a special milestone for several drivers. Craig Lowndes marked his 31st appearance, Warren Luff his 24th, Will Davison his 21st, James Courtney and Jack Perkins both celebrated their 19th Bathurst 1000.
The hype around “The Big Race” starts well before the actual Sunday of the race itself. They even have a dedicated “Bathurst channel” starting a week in advance. The preliminary sessions started on the Thursday and went until the race on Sunday.
Pre-Race Session fastest times:
Practice 1: Matt Payne.
Practice 2: Jamie Whincup in the co-driver session.
Practice 3: Broc Feeney.
Practice 4: Brodie Kostecki.
Qualifying: Matt Payne.
Practice 5: Cooper Murray in the co-driver session.
Practice 6: Broc Feeney.
Top Ten Shootout: Brodie Kostecki earning him Pole Position on the grid.
Warmup: Will Brown and co-driver Scott Pye shared the fastest lap.
Race 20
The 2023 champion Brodie Kostecki positioned himself in the number 1 grid spot. After last year’s brilliant performance, he has had a woeful time this season, so it was great to see him up front and ready to take on “The Big Race”.
Cameron Waters pulled up alongside him on the front row. Just behind them was Broc Feeney in Position 3 (P3) and Richie Stanaway in P4.
The moment finally came, and they were off for the gruelling 161 laps. Kostecki was out front from the moment they waved the green flag but it was Broc Feeney who had a blistering start and was close behind.
Richie Stanaway passed Feeney and by the time they reached “The Chase” was putting in a challenge to Kostecki for the lead.
Even with 160 laps and hours to go, all drivers were putting in 100%.
By Lap 2, the young Broc Feeney in his 3rd Bathurst 1000 attempt as a main driver had passed Stanaway to take second place, 1.2 seconds behind leader Kostecki.
The front group were beginning to spread out. Stanaway was just 1.1 seconds behind in third, followed by Cameron Waters 2.7 seconds adrift, and Will Brown 3.4 seconds back.
A few laps later at the rear of the group Matt Chada went off track with an impressive half-spin and ended up in the sand trap. He was able to recover without a safety car intervening.
Will Davison was the first car to pit on Lap 17 and handed over to co-driver Kai Allen for his first stint at Bathurst. Kai Allen along with Cooper Murray will be moving up from the Super-2s category to become full time V8-Supercars drivers in 2025. It must have been a moment for both of them to achieve this goal.
As Cameron Waters started lap 23 he made a mistake at Turn 1, going straight ahead off the track and losing the number 3 spot to Will Brown. He rejoined the race in 10th place.
Kostecki continued to show fine form like that of his 2023 championship win. On lap 25 he did the fastest lap of the race recorded so far.
A few laps later Chaz Mostert attempted an inside pass on Brad Vaughn at Forest Elbow (turn 18). They made contact causing significant damage to the front end of Vaughn’s car. His spoiler was left abandoned on the track with other car debris. I was surprised he was able to continue without pitting. Even so, there had been no safety car deployment so far.
Brodie Kostecki and Broc Feeney both pitted on lap 28 from their 1st and 2nd spots. Will Brown briefly minded the lead as the pit stops cycled through.
While Feeney handed over the wheel to co-driver Jamie Whincup, a fuel hose issue in the Red Bull Ampol Racing pit stall cost them valuable time (around 3 seconds).
Todd Hazelwood took the wheel from Kostecki, emerging from the pits with a 6.6 second lead over Jamie Whincup.
Meanwhile, Lee Holdsworth and Dale Wood were engaged in a fierce battle for 4th and 5th. Holdsworth’s poor positioning coming up to a turn and his own driving error had him go straight ahead and leave the track. Surprisingly it worked to his advantage as he cut the corners and re-entered the track in 3rd place. He wasn’t penalised for his short cut but normally it’s a “no no”.
Garth Tander experienced a massive lockup at the final corner of the lap and dropped back to 14th place.
Todd Hazelwood continued to lead but Jamie Whincup had closed the gap to 3.8 seconds. Due to pit stop cycling Scott Pye in 3rd was a further 11.028 seconds behind.
There was also plenty of action in the main pack. Cooper Murray was having an impressive drive climbing six places into 12th. Declan Fraser moved up to 5th after passing Lee Holdsworth.
Unfortunately, a Brad Jones Racing crewman had a fumble with the garage fuel pump hose connection whilst filling car 8 for driver Declan Fraser. They were only able to take on 20 litres of fuel and were forced into an unscheduled pitstop shortly after. 20litres instead roughly 120 litres put them at a major disadvantage while in a competitive position.
By the middle stages of the race Brodie Kostecki was on fire, extending his lead to a commanding 14.175 seconds over Jamie Whincup.
When it came time for Jamie Whincup to give back the driving seat to Broc Feeney, Feeeny looked like he might have enough pace to challenge for the lead, but the gap was too big to close.
Much loved legend Craig Lowndes was in 5th, having gained an astonishing 13 positions.
On lap 132 of 161Matt Payne had a gear downshift issue as he zig zagged up “The Mountain” through The Cutting. At such high speed he was unable to make the upcoming turn and went straight ahead into the concrete barrier wall.
After being on the track for more than 5 hours and coming close to the end of the race, it must have been a huge disappointment to Matt Payne and co-driver Garth Tander to see their car demolished and out of the race.
The race went to “Yellow” and the first safety car of the day was deployed while the car wreck was removed.
I must say it is so unusual for them to get this far into the race without a safety car deployment. It might have had to do with the good weather instead of the usual wet weather and sudden storms the Bathurst area can be prone to.
While under “Yellow” drivers have to stay in formation behind the safety car, limited to 80Kmph. All the gaps are closed up. Brodie Kostecki’s 10 + second lead up the front was lost. It was going to make the last laps extremely exciting.
The Big Race got back underway. Broc Feeney was now in a much better position to challenge the lead. Brodie Kostecki who had the number 1 spot almost the entire race was having none of that and defended with exceptional driving. There was simply no room at any stage for Feeney to get past him.
They were both driving like demons. The rest of the pack were falling further behind. Pretty soon the two leaders had created 10 + second gap over them.
In the final laps Brodie Kostecki held strong. Broc Feeney was no slouch either and kept on his tail, but still had no opportunity to pass. Not a single mistake was made by either driver as they charged to the end.
The crowd went absolutely insane, cheering Kostecki on as he crossed the finish line 1.3 seconds ahead of Broc Feeney. It is only the 4th time in the history of the Bathurst 1000 that the pole sitter finished first.
Will Brown was leading the rest of the pack, finishing 13.640 seconds behind in third.
What a spectacular finish to the biggest race of the year.
Race 20 Final Results:
1st Brodie Kostecki and Todd Hazelwood – Erebus Motorsport
2nd Broc Feeney and Jamie Whincup – Red Bull Ampol Racing
3rd Will Brown and Scott Pye – Red Bull Ampol Racing
With their 2nd and 3rd place finishes, Red Bull Ampol Racing secured the 2024 Teams Championship even with 2 events remaining. Broc Feeney moved back to 2nd place in the Drivers Championship, 204 points behind teammate Will Brown who remains the series leader. Chaz Mostert is in 3rd place, 222 points off the lead.
With just two events remaining in the 2024 Supercars Championship – the Boost Mobile Gold Coast 500 on October 25–27 and the final round on November 14–17
The Valo Adelaide 500, the battle for the title is heating up. I hope you can join me for the final two rounds of an incredible season!
On the weekend of the 5th – 7th July 2024 was round 6 of the 2024 Supercars championship, the NTI Townsville 500.
The event was held in Townsville, North Queensland.
Supercars have been racing in Townsville for 16, years since the street circuit was first opened in 2009. The circuit is 2.8km long with 13 turns.
In that very first event of 2009, Lee Holdsworth and Garth Tander shared the pole positions and Jamie Whincup and Jamess Courtney shared the race wins.
Townsville displayed its typical weather pattern on the Saturday of this year’s event, bloody hot with an afternoon storm but on the Sunday it managed to stay dry.
In the pre-race sessions
Cameron Waters was fastest in Practice 1
Cameron Waters was fastest in Practice 2
Will Davison was fastest in Qualifying
Cameron Waters was fastest in the Top Ten Shootout
In Race 13 Cameron Waters started on pole position with Chaz Mostert alongside him.
Cameron Waters got the jump off the start line and led into turn 1 for the first of 88 laps, a total of 250kms.
Thomas Randle got up the inside of Will Davison at turn 3 for 3rd place but back in the pack there was chaos. As the rest of the cars got to turn 3 Nick Percat, Brodie Kostecki and Anton de Pasquale made contact heavily. As they bounced around the track there was a big risk of other cars hitting them from behind. As Jaxon Evans came through, he joined the chaos and was also turned around. Will Brown who started 13th on the grid was in the danger zone of being caught up but somehow, he managed to stay out of trouble.
The first 3 cars in the incident, Percat, Kostecki and Pasquale had to all head into the pits due to damage. Race officials investigated the incident but found no-one to at fault, so no penalties were issued.
By lap 2 the positions had changed significantly. James Courtney had gained 6 places moving up to 11th. Will Brown gained 1 place up to 12th and David Reynolds was up 8 spots in 13th place.
The leading 5 cars were reasonably close to each other. Chaz Mostert was right behind his former teammate Cameron Waters by only 0.682 seconds.
The first car to pit by choice was Aaron Love on lap 19. He came back on the circuit in 21st place.
A few laps later Chaz Mostert was the first of the leaders to pit. There were 9 cars still yet to take their stops. Once they did, they would be out of the way and Chaz Mostert would be able to resume his face-to-face battle for the lead with Cameron Waters.
When Cameron Waters pitted on lap 28 he had a 7.7 second lead over Will Davison in 2nd place.
By the middle of the race Chaz Mostert was given the space by Cameron Waters to pass and now had the number 1 spot with 1.8 seconds lead.
Chaz Mostert kept the lead and with 15 laps to go was followed by Thomas Randle and then Cameron Waters.
Further back in the pack Will Brown had gained an amazing 7 spots into 6th place and now behind Jack Le Brocq in 5th.
With 11 laps remaining the rain started to bucket down and drivers were struggling to keep the cars on the track. As suddenly as it had started, the rain passed. Although the track was still wet, I am sure the drivers were thankful.
Cameron Waters wasted no time. Soon enough he passed his teammate Thomas Randle to be in 2nd place.
Thomas Randle lost his momentum and dropped back a few places. Will Brown made contact with him on the approach to turn 3 but somehow both cars stayed away from the wall.
Cameron Waters was now challenging Chaz Mostert. Waters wouldn’t let up. Chaz Mostert must have felt he wasn’t able to defend the number 1 spot without high risk. Instead of possibly endangering his car and losing a podium finish he seemed to let Cameron Waters pass easily.
Cameron Waters edged ahead in the last laps and finally crossed the line with a 1.8 second lead over Chaz Mostert. Then there was another 4.6 seconds back to Will Brown who managed to move up into 3rd place for the finish. It was a spectacular result.
Results for Race 13
1st Cameron Waters – Tickford Racing 2nd Chaz Mostert – Walkinshaw Andretti United 3rd Will Brown – Red Bull Ampol Racing
On the Sunday of the 3 day event Jack le Brocq started on pole position for Race 14. Alongside him was Cameron Waters.
As they took off Cameron Waters once again led into turn 1 for the first of 88 laps.
The polesitter, Jack le Brocq did not get an ideal start and dropped back to 4th.
Thomas Randle was now in 2nd place and James Courtney was in 3rd.
This year’s championship leader Will Brown missed the Top 10 Shootouts in both races of the event. He qualified 17th on the grid. To add to his woes, David Reynolds hit him from behind in lap 1 sending him into the concrete barrier wall and seriously damaged his car. Will Brown now had to head straight to the pits and returned to the race in 24th, last place. It scrapped all his hopes of protecting his championship lead.
Will Brown’s teammate Broc Feeney (who happens to be 2nd on the championship ladder) was having problems of his own. On this first lap he had dropped from 6th place on the grid back to 13th.
Chaz Mostert who had started 8th on the grid managed to get by Matt Payne for 6th place. He wasted no time and went on the charge. Soon he was in 4th place just behind the leaders. By the end of the 1st lap he was in 3rd.
Within the next few laps Chaz Mostert passed Thomas Randle for second place.
The first car to pit aside from Will Brown at the race start, was Matt Payne on lap 20. He was in 3rd place but unable to challenge the 2 cars ahead. The team strategised to come in now and be better able to make ground with fresh tyres.
By the middle of the race Jack le Brocq who had a terrible start from his pole position was now out the front and leading. Cameron Waters and Chaz Mostert were right behind him.
Matt Payne’s pitting strategy paid off. In the second half of the race he managed to squeeze passed and take the lead. With 7 laps to go he had a 9.2 second lead over Cameron Waters in 2nd place with Chaz Mostert not far behind.
Waters and Mostert chased Matt Payne for all their experience was worth. The cars began to spread out. However, Matt Payne was just too fast and crossed the finish line 6.057 seconds ahead of Cameron Waters.
Mostert had slipped a little but came in 3rd place 7.6 seconds later.
It was an unexpected finish especially after this year’s dominance of Will Brown and Broc Feeney up until now.
Results for Race 14
1st Matt Payne – Grove Racing 2nd Cameron Waters – Tickford Racing 3rd Chaz Mostert – Walkinshaw Andretti United
Regardless of a bad weekend for the Red Bull Ampol Racing team, Will Brown still leads the championship but only by 78 points over Broc Feeney.
The next event is the Panasonic Sydney Supernight July 19 – 21.
I hope you will join me. Until then keep those engines revving!
On the weekend of the June 14 to 16 2024 was the Betr Darwin Triple Crown.
It was round 5 of the Supercars Championship and held at Hidden Valley Raceway in Darwin, Northern Territory.
Hidden Valley Raceway was first opened in 1986 and is part of a larger motorsport complex. It has a 1 km drag strip alongside the racetrack itself. Originally it was first used as a dirt track, motorcross track and go kart circuit.
Since 1998 it has held an annual round of the Supercars championship.
Mark Skaife won the first ever Supercars race at the venue.
The second race went down in history. Both Holden Racing Team cars were on P1 and P2 on the starting grid but were non-starters and sitting in the garage with the same engine issue. So in a highly unusual situation the race started with the front row of the grid vacant! I don’t recall this ever happening before or since.
This year’s event saw both Will Davison and James Courtney celebrate their 250th round in Supercars.
The weekend started with typical NT winter day, 32 degrees, hot and sunny.
In the pre-race sessions:
Will Brown was fastest in Practice 1
James Golding was fastest in Qualifying
Will Brown was fastest in Practice 2
James Golding was fastest in the Top Ten Shootout
As they cars undertook their formation lap for Race 11 Brodie Kostecki who was going to start 11th on the grid had to drive back to the pit lane with engine issues that the team couldn’t resolve. So the defending champ was out of the race even before it started.
James Golding started on pole position, a first in his Supercars career. Alongside him was Broc Feeney.
James Golding got the jump on Feeney off the start line and led into turn 1 for the first of 48 laps.
Between turns 2 and 3 Broc Feeney had a slide and it looked like he was going to turn himself around but somehow, he managed to regain control stay in position.
The gap between the two leaders was 0.186 seconds.
At turn 6 of lap 4 Broc Feeney took the race lead off James Golding. Mark Winterbottom also went through in one swift motion. As a result the polesitter went from 1st to 3rd in a heartbeat.
Will Brown moved up a spot to 5th place and Chaz Mostert who started 22nd on the grid had gained 6 places and now in 16th position.
Soon after Cooper Murray went off the track at turn 1 after getting a helping hand from Jaxson Evans. Evans received a 15 second time penalty for his helping hand.
A lap later Anton de Pasquale also ran off the track at turn 1 and dropped out of the top 10 down to 11th place.
The first car to pit was Ryan Wood on lap 16. A few laps later Matt Payne and Macauley Jones also pitted.
Broc Feeney had a 2.6 second lead over Mark Winterbottom.
The pole sitter, James Golding had slipped back to 7th place.
On lap 24 while Mark Winterbottom and Will Brown were in the pits Broc Feeney was left out on track to do the fastest lap of the race, 108.219 seconds. He had a lead of 8.4 seconds over Cameron Waters with 8 cars still to take their pit stop.
With 9 laps to go Broc Feeney still had the lead over Mark Winterbottom. Meanwhile Chaz Mostert who started 22nd on the grid was up to 7th place after passing 16 cars on track.
As they counted down the final laps the top 3 places were unchanged with Broc Feeney still in command with cars spread out.
There was no way they could catch Broc Feeney and he never let them gain on him all the way to the finish line. He took the win 8.6 seconds clear of Mark Winterbottom in second place, then it was 1 second back to Will Brown in third. It was an amazing finish.
Results for Race 11
1st Broc Feeney – Red Bull Ampol Racing 2nd Mark Winterbottom – Team 18 3rd Will Brown – Red Bull Ampol Racing
In Race 12 Broc Feeney started on pole position with Brodie Kostecki alongside him.
Matt Payne had electrical problems and didn’t manage to make it out on track in time for the formation lap. The Grove Racing team managed to resolve the issue but had to start the final race of the weekend from the pit lane.
As they took off Broc Feeney got jump and led into turn 1 for the first of 48 laps. Brodie Kostecki had a bad start and Will Brown moved past him to take 2nd position.
As they made their way through lap 1 Andre Heimgartner hit the back of Cooper Murray’s car and bounced up and over the top of him. Bits of cars flew everywhere, both had extensive damage but were able to make their way back to the pits for repairs. The safety car was deployed so the debris could be cleared off the track.
The restart was on lap 4 but back in the pack there was chaos. The green ‘restart flag’ was waved at one only spot instead of the multiple locations around the track. The front runners could see it but the cars further back couldn’t. As engineers started communicating to their drivers that the race was green some drivers started to speed up but others were still uninformed and sticking to the safety speed limit of 80kmph. It was a mess and looked like there were going to be collisions in the confusion. Luckily, there were no incidents.
The leaders had a good lead on the rest of the pack. Will Brown was putting a lot of pressure on Broc Feeney, but he didn’t want to relinquish the lead.
Broc Feeney soon extended his lead out to 1.3 seconds. On lap 12 he had clear track and clocked the fastest lap of the race, 107.679 seconds.
The first 2 cars to pit were David Reynolds and Nick Percat on lap 18. They returned to the race in 23rd and 24th place.
At this stage Andre Heimgartner received a pit lane penalty for not maintaining the safety speed of 80kph after the incident during lap 1.
In the middle of the race Brodie Kostecki came into the pits from 3rd place and returned to the track in 11th place.
Broc Feeney came in on lap 26 which temporarily handed the lead to his teammate Will Brown. At this stage there were 10 cars yet to pit including Will Brown. Once those cars took their stops, Broc Feeney would assume the lead again.
Broc Feeney and Will Brown kept edging ahead of the pack. When the final car to pit peeled off the track the 2 Red Bull Ampol Racing cars assumed 1st and 2nd place with a gap of 2.4 second between Broc Feeney and Will Brown. Meanwhile Brodie Kostecki in 3rd position was 8.8 seconds behind.
Broc Feeney and Will Brown were not satisfied and with clear track increased their lead over the rest of the pack.
In the end they crossed the finish line 1.2 seconds apart but a phenomenal 17+ seconds ahead of Brodie Kostecki in 3rd place. It was a great finish to the weekend for the Red Bull Ampol Racing team.
Results for Race 12
1st Broc Feeney – Red Bull Ampol Racing
2nd Will Brown – Red Bull Ampol Racing
3rd Brodie Kostecki – Erebus Motorsport
Congratulations to Red Bull Ampol Racing. Their drivers Broc Feeney taking a win in both races for the event and Will Brown taking a 3rd and 2nd place.
Will Brown still leads the championship, but Broc Feeney’s double win closed the score gap to only 108 points.
The next event is the NTI Townsville 500 on 5th – 7th July 2024.
I hope you can join me. Until then, Live it, Breathe it, Dream it, Drive it!
On the weekend of May 17 – 19 was the Bosch Power Tools Perth Supersprint.
It was round 4 of the 2024 Supercars Championship and held at Carco.com.au Raceway.
The raceway was first opened on the 2 of March 1969 and originally known as Wanneroo Raceway. In 1992 it was renamed to Barbagallo Raceway. Then in 2020 it took back the original name of Wanneroo. Two years later in 2022 it changed to the sponsors name Carco.com.au.
ATCC (Australian Touring Cars Championship)/Supercars Championship have raced at the venue every year since opening except 1978, 2010 and 2020 (The COVID year).
The track is 2.411km with 7 turns. It is lined with sandtraps everywhere and is considered quite a challenge.
Legend Craig Lowndes seems to love this challenge and holds the record of 16 race wins at the venue.
This year’s event will mark Tim Slade’s 200th round start in Supercars. That is quite a number of years out on the track.
The weekend kicked off with fine weather and results in the pre-race sessions were:
Chaz Mostert was fastest in Practice 1
Will Brown was fastest in Practice 2
Chaz Mostert was fastest in Qualifying.
In Race 9 Chaz Mostert started on pole position alongside him was his teammate, Ryan Wood.
At the start of the race Ryan Wood got jump and led into turn 1 for the first of 55 laps.
Brodie Kostecki who started 14th on the grid ran wide at turn 1 and went off the track. He was able to recover and return to the track but it him to the back of the field. Not a great start for defending champ.
As the pack tried to stay in touch with the leaders, on lap 3 Aaron Love made contact with Richie Stanaway at turn 7 and put into the fence. Aaron Love was able to continue but Richie Stanaway had a lot of damage front and back of car 26. He also lost power due to a fuel pump issue and had to drive slowly back to the pits. The repairs took a lot of time but he was able to return to the race.
Ryan Wood still had the lead of about half a second over his more experienced teammate Chaz Mostert.
It took about a dozen laps before Chaz Mostert found the opportunity to take the race lead off Ryan Wood.
The first car to pit in this race was Thomas Randle on lap 22 from 23rd position.
In the middle of the race Ryan Wood went in for his pit stop allowing Cameron Waters to move into 2nd place on the track.
On lap 31 Chaz Mostert pitted leaving 9 cars on track yet to take theirs.
As the laps clicked by the 9 cars peeled off one by one to take their mandatory stops. Once they did Chaz Mostert was back in the lead.
At this stage Chaz Mostert was 3.2 seconds ahead of Ryan Wood. Will Brown in 3rd was close behind.
With 13 laps remaining Will Brown took the risk and got up the inside of Ryan Wood at turn 6. Ryan Wood was pushed to the outside and had two wheels in the dirt coming out of the turn. Not only did it slow him down but it allowed Cameron Waters to follow through into 3rd place.
Chaz Mostert now had a 5.2 second lead.
Will Brown’s performance so far this year has put him at the top of the championship ladder. Even so, Chaz Mostert’s speed and experience kept him from any mistakes and crossed the finish line with a with a huge 4.9 second over Will Brown. Cameron Waters also an experienced driver followed in 3rd place.
It was an exciting finish.
Results for Race 9
1st Chaz Mostert – Walkinshaw Andretti United 2nd Will Brown – Red Bull Ampol Racing 3rd Cameron Waters – Tickford Racing
In Race 10 Cameron Waters started on pole position with Chaz Mostert alongside him.
As they took off Cameron Waters got the jump and led into turn 1 for the first of 55 laps. Chaz Mostert tried to go around the outside of him but wasn’t able to make the move stick.
On the next lap at turn 1 Cameron Waters ran wide at the last turn of the lap (turn 7) which allowed Chaz Mostert to take the race lead at turn 1.
Thomas Randle in 3rd place immediately put his teammate Cameron Waters under pressure for 2nd.
On lap 5 Chaz Mostert did the fastest lap of the race so far, 56.173 seconds.
On the next lap the leader went .2 seconds faster. With track position Mostert is one of the fastest drivers in the field. He now extended his lead out to 1.2 seconds over his ex-teammate Cam Waters.
On lap 7 Nick Percat made contact with Jack le Brocq who came to a stop in the middle of the track. Luckily, he was able to get going again which meant there was no need for a safety car and the race was able to stay green.
Later Nick Percat was issued a 15 second time penalty for his part in the incident.
Soon after Broc Feeney got up the inside of Ryan Wood at turn 7 which moved him up to 7th place. He was desperate to catch up to his teammate Will Brown a few spots ahead.
The first car to pit was Mark Winterbottom on lap 16 from 22nd position.
On lap 21 Brodie Kostecki went into the Erebus garage with an overheating engine. The problem was too for the team to repair quickly and Brodie Kostecki was unable to finish the race. He was the only NC (Not Complete).
In the middle of the race Chaz Mostert was looking very strong and ready to make this 2 wins from 2 races on the weekend.
As Chaz Mostert headed into the pits Cameron Waters now had the lead.
Soon after Chaz Mostert returned to the track it was revealed he was being investigated for an unsafe pit release and making contact with Thomas Randle in the pit lane. It wasn’t a big incident, but he was still issued a 5 second time penalty. He had already taken his mandatory pit stop to the 5 seconds would be applied to his race finish time.
Towards the end of the race Chaz Mostert had resumed the lead.
Will Brown gave Thomas Randle a bump and took 3rd place from him. Thomas Randle dropped from 3rd to 5th place.
With 4 laps remaining Thomas Randle was put under further pressure from Anton de Pasquale trying to take another place from him. Randle held strong against the challenge.
Chaz Mostert was out in front. His speed made him uncatchable. The top 3 drivers were well spread out. Mostert crossed the line just over 2.5 seconds ahead of Cameron Waters.
Unfortunately for Chaz Mostert who dominated the track this weekend, the 5 second time penalty applied post finish meant Cameron Waters was awarded the win.
Chaz Mostert officially came in 2nd place.
The gap between Cam Waters and Will Brown in 3rd was over 11 seconds.
It was great watching but must have been devastating for Mostert. Regardless, congratulations to all the drivers especially the podium finishers.
Results for Race 10
1st Cameron Waters – Tickford Racing 2nd Chaz Mostert – Walkinshaw Andretti united 3rd Will Brown – Red Bull Ampol Racing
After all the points were tallied Will Brown still leads the championship by 136 points over Broc Feeney.
The next event is the Betr Darwin Triple Crown on 17 – 19 June 2024.
On the weekend of the 23 – 26 November 2023 was the Valo Adelaide 500.
The Adelaide street circuit was first opened in 1985 and hosted the F1 Australian Grand Prix until 1995. The street circuit came back into use in 1999 when Supercars moved their events from the Mallala Motorsport Park.
Jason Bright took the very first pole position at this venue. Craig Lowndes started the leg 1 from 3rd on the grid and won the opening race. The next day he was sent to the back of the field and still came through to win leg 2. It was the stuff that legends are made of.
This year’s Adelaide 500 was the 12th and final round of the 2023 Supercars Championship.
As one of the longer events on the calendar made up of 2 races of 250km each, it was always going to be a tough event. To add to the tension it was also the decider for the Driver’s Championship.
The defending champion Shane Van Gisbergen was trailing Brodie Kostecki in the number 1 spot by 131 points. A win in both races would total 300 points so the championship was still up for grabs. Shane Van Gisbergen is heading to the U.S. at the end of the season to try his hand at NASCAR so it could very well also be his final farewell to Supercars.
The points gap from 3rd place onwards was too great to contend for 1st or 2nd place. However, the points were close enough between 3rd, 4th and 5th for there to be a change on the final scoreboard for Will Brown, Broc Feeney and Chaz Mostert.
The Final Event and the Final Decider! A setting for nail biting stuff!
The event started on Thursday with a wet Practice 1.
The pre-race sessions results are as follows:
Chaz Mostert was fastest in Practice 1
Thomas Randle was Fastest in Practice 2
Brodie Kostecki was fastest in Qualifying
Brodie Kostecki was also fastest in the top 10 Shootout.
For Race 27 Brodie Kostecki started on pole position which was his 9th pole for the year. David Reynolds was alongside him on the front row of the starting grid.
At the start of the race Brodie Kostecki got the jump and led into turns 1 and 2 for first of 78 laps.
As the pack rounded turn 4 Will Brown tried passing Anton de Pasquale. Shane Van Gisbergen also tried following Will Brown to jump up in position. However, Anton de Pasquale made contact with Will Brown and then from behind Shane Van Gisbergen made contact with Will Brown. Brown’s car came to stop almost immediately. Shane Van Gisbergen was able to get back to the pits but it was soon evident that he wouldn’t be returning to the track. Not only was it all over for this race but also his ability to contend for the championship title. Such bad luck.
The safety car was deployed. It was only the opening lap and things were very messed up for Will Brown and Shane Van Gisbergen.
Later, after reviewing the incident the officials took no further action and no penalty was issued to any of the three cars involved.
Matt Payne and Cameron Hill were in the pits because of damage they received after the start.
The restart was on lap 6 and Brodie Kostecki was still in control of the race, followed by David Reynolds and Thomas Randle in 3rd place.
Broc Feeney passed James Courtney for 8th place.
On lap 15 David Reynolds took the lead off Brodie Kostecki with some incredible manoeuvring through turns 8 and 9.
The first car to pit in this race was Anton de Pasquale on lap 16.
Broc Feeney was next to pit on lap 19. When he re-joined the race he was in 20th place with clear track ahead.
Up front it started getting busy. Thomas Randle moved up to 2nd place dropping Brodie Kostecki back to 3rd place.
Cameron Waters in 4th place was 3 + seconds behind. The front of the pack were beginning to spread out.
Soon after, Thomas Randle pitted from second place handing over the spot to Cameron Waters.
Thomas Randle came out of the pits and was like a rocket. Within a few laps he managed to move up through the pack and regain 2nd place.
Cameron Waters wasn’t happy to give back the second spot to Thomas Randle and found the opportunity to pass him. Once again, the order of the top 3 cars changed.
In the middle of the race Cameron Waters was still holding second place right on the rear bumper of David Reynolds in the lead. He found his opportunity and with precision driving made the pass to get the number one spot.
Further back in the pack, Todd Hazelwood received a 5 second time penalty for contact with another car.
David Reynolds never gave up the fight to regain 1st place. With 17 laps to go he did the fastest lap of the race, 119.957 seconds. Unfortunately, it didn’t give him what he wanted. He was also under pressure from Thomas Randle in 3rd place. The front 3 cars were once again tight and left no room for error.
Cameron Waters stayed strong and held the lead using his experience to fend off the two drivers right on his tail.
Soon Cameron Water and David Reynolds edged away from Thomas Randle still holding 3rd place.
They were both on fire screaming ahead of the pack.
They crossed the finish line 0.67 seconds apart and way ahead of the others. Thomas Randle came in 14.353 seconds later to earn 3rd place. It was an incredible finish for an intense race.
Results for Race 27
1st Cameron Waters – Tickford Racing.
2nd David Reynolds – Grove Racing.
3rd Thomas Randle – Castrol Racing & Tradie Racing.
In Race 28 Brodie Kostecki started on pole position for the 10th time this season. This is an incredible feat and he was given the Armor All Pole Award for year along with $10,000. Next to him on the front row of the grid was Matt Payne.
As they took off Matt Payne got the jump and led into turns 1 and 2 for the first of 78 laps. As much as Brodie Kostecki tried he was not able to pass Matt Payne.
Further back Shane Van Gisbergen was trying to pass Anton de Pasquale but also wasn’t able to execute a pass. It wasn’t until a few laps later that he got into his stride.
On lap 2 Broc Feeney was able to get up the inside of Cameron Waters for 4th place.
David Reynolds made his move on lap 3 to pass Todd Hazelwood for 9th place.
Shane Van Gisbergen was now moving through the pack and had now passed Anton de Pasquale, Will Davison and Will Brown for 11th place.
On lap 6 Nick Percat made contact with Jack le Brocq who went off the track and into the tyre-wall at the final turn. Surprisingly, he managed to get himself out and the safety car did not have to be deployed.
After investigation the incident the officials took no further action against either driver.
By lap 10 Matt Payne had a 1.2 second lead over Brodie Kostecki.
Broc Feeney was putting pressure on Chaz Mostert for 3rd place. He managed to get by at turn 6.
Shane Van Gisbergen showed how eager he was to make up for the NC (Not Complete) he received in the first race at this event. He did the fastest lap of the race, 120.735 seconds.
On lap 11 Chaz Mostert was desperately trying to get 3rd place back from Broc Feeney. In his attempt Chaz Mostert made contact with him and did manage to pass. It was a messy attack and Chaz Mostert was later issued a 5 second time penalty.
Shane Van Gisbergen was the first of the Red Bull cars to take a pit-stop.
In the pit area Macauley Jones was spun around by Tim Slade who was coming out of his garage.
In the middle of the race Matt Payne was still in control with a 4.8 second lead over Broc Feeney flowed by David Reynolds in 3rd.
As the race continued Matt Payne kept edging ahead. Towards the end of the race, he had a 7.5 second lead over Broc Feeney and was on target to claim his maiden win with Penrite Racing.
Noone seemed able to make ground on the rookie Matt Payne. In fact he managed to edge further ahead of the competitors.
He crossed the line with a 8.548 second lead over Broc Feeney. David Reynolds come in 3rd a few seconds later.
It was a spectacular and solid win for Matt Payne. Congratulations!
Results for Race 28:
1st Matt Payne – Grove Racing.
2nd Broc Feeney – Red Bull Ampol Racing.
3rd David Reynolds – Grove Racing.
A massive congratulations to Erebus Motorsport and Brodie Kostecki. Well done!
This was the final race for the 2023 season. The next event will be the Bathurst Superfest on the 16th to the 25th of February 2024.
It’s with a sense of sadness that we say farewell to Shane Van Gisbergen. Well done on everything you have achieved in Supercars and best of luck for your new adventures in Nascar. Go get em!
