Qualifying: Chaos, Carnage and Close Calls
Qualifying across both sessions was nothing short of carnage. Boost Mobile Qualifying kicked off under icy conditions, catching many teams out as tyre strategies and traffic proved pivotal. The first session saw Erebus rookie Cooper Murray slide wildly off at Turn 7, destroying a styrofoam barrier. Soon after, Brodie Kostecki earned a penalty for spinning Ryan Wood at the hairpin.
James Golding and Bryce Fullwood set the early pace, with Golding recording a 50.7154s to top Q1. Payne spun and ended up last, while Mostert and Kostecki failed to progress. Feeney just scraped into Q2, qualifying eighth after Triple Eight gambled by holding him in the pits.
In Q2 for Race 11, Feeney responded with a 50.7057s lap, only to be narrowly edged out by Thomas Randle who took pole with a 50.6975s. Golding, Kostecki and Wood also featured near the top, though Kostecki’s contact with Wood earned him a four-spot grid penalty.
The second qualifying session, held shortly after on Soft tyres, continued the trend of tight margins and high drama. Golding initially topped the session, followed by Feeney, Randle, and Macauley Jones who put in a career-best effort to qualify fourth. Feeney would later claim pole with a 50.8368s lap, edging out Randle by 0.1299s. Golding slotted into third, with Jones, Fullwood, and Percat following.
Bryce Fullwood again qualified strongly, locking in P5 for both races. Jaxon Evans was a standout, qualifying P6 and P9 in what would become his best-ever Supercars weekend.
PremiAir Racing’s Jimmy Golding advanced to Q2 in both sessions, qualifying P10 for Race 11 and P3 for Race 12. Richie Stanaway qualified P14 for Race 11 but a valve issue thwarted his Race 12 run, relegating him to P23.
Race 11: Feeney Strikes First as Fullwood Grabs Podium
With Feeney and Randle locking out the front row, Race 11 began with immediate action. Randle got the jump, while Feeney and Will Brown jostled behind. Feeney bided his time before executing a textbook move at the hairpin on lap 11 to snatch the lead.
Behind them, Fullwood used a lightning-fast stop to leapfrog into P3. Golding ran a clean race from 10th, pitting early for two tyres and rejoining in P8. Stanaway, starting from P14, ran long and rejoined P13 after taking on four tyres. A strong final stint saw him recover to 11th, just missing out on a double top ten for PremiAir.
Broc Feeney pulled clear to win by more than seven seconds. Randle took second, while Fullwood celebrated his second Supercars podium.
Will Brown dropped to fifth following a pit delay. Jaxon Evans continued his standout day with a run to seventh, his best Supercars finish. Wood, Kostecki, Golding, and Courtney rounded out the top ten.
Race 12: Feeney Doubles Up, Jones and Golding Star
Feeney led the field away from pole in Race 12 but a mixed tyre strategy saw him drop places temporarily before reclaiming the lead following pit stops. He would go on to secure his second win of the day, solidifying his title charge.
Jimmy Golding started third and held position early. A slight delay during his two-tyre stop dropped him to P7, but he regained ground to finish sixth.
Macauley Jones shone, delivering a career-best fifth-place finish. The Pizza Hut Racing driver ran fourth early and engaged in a heated battle with Cam Waters before ultimately yielding the position.
Bryce Fullwood endured a rougher outing. After starting fifth, he was shuffled back on lap one and never recovered, finishing 14th.
Richie Stanaway’s race was over before it began. A first-lap incident left him with steering damage and he limped home in 22nd.
Evans, once again, showed his mettle by finishing eighth after starting from ninth. A consistent run marked one of his strongest weekends to date.
David Reynolds scored his first top ten of the season for Team 18, finishing ninth after qualifying seventh. De Pasquale finished 17th after starting from 20th.
Driver and Team Reactions
Jimmy Golding (#31): “There are definitely some positives. Qualifying was strong, especially getting P3 for Race 12. We’ll tweak a few things and aim higher.”
Richie Stanaway (#62): “Race one was solid, but race two was a challenge with the steering damage. We need to tidy up qualifying and put together a full weekend.”
Bryce Fullwood (#14): “Great to grab a podium in Race 11. Race 12 didn’t go to plan, but overall a good day.”
Macauley Jones (#96): “Massive turnaround from Race 11. The car felt great, and to bring it home in fifth is a huge boost.”
Jaxon Evans (#12): “My best day in Supercars so far. Two top tens, strong qualifying — proud of what we achieved.”
Andre Heimgartner (#8): “Struggled today, but the team had a great overall showing. We’ll reset for Sunday.”
David Reynolds (Team 18): “Finally into the top ten. Big turnaround from the morning, and hopefully the start of a better trend.”
Will Brown (#1): “Race one was promising until the pit stop. Race two was tough — we need to qualify better and stay out of the mid-pack.”
Broc Feeney (#88): “Two wins on my 100th start — unbelievable. The car was perfect. We’ll try and keep the momentum into Sunday.”
Championship Picture
Following his dominant double, Broc Feeney now trails Will Brown by 38 points. Waters is third, with Payne, Mostert and Kostecki all slipping further back after quiet Saturdays.
Sunday’s Race 13 will provide another critical opportunity for teams to consolidate their position or claw back ground in what is shaping up to be a classic championship battle.
Race 13 kicks off at 12:30pm AEST and with the track rubbered in and stakes rising, expect no shortage of drama as the Tasmania Super 440 continues.
