‘Costs you everything’: title race takes dramatic turn
Joanna Guelas |
Broc Feeney has claimed a record 18th pole position to tighten his grip on a maiden Supercars championship as grand final rival Chaz Mostert endured a nightmare qualifying session.
Feeney was flawless on the famous Adelaide street circuit to clock a lap time of one minute and 19.971 seconds as the second-last man in Saturday’s shootout.
So cut-throat was the Triple Eight prodigy that he blitzed Aaron Cameron by 0.517 seconds for the top spot in the 78-lap, 250km race.
Feeney will start in pole again after eclipsing three-time champion Scott McLaughlin’s former record for most pole positions (16) in a season the day before.
He has a slim 13-point lead over Mostert, ahead of defending champion Will Brown in third.
Blanchard Racing Team rookie Cameron starts on the front row after reaching his career-first shootout, while provisional pole Ryan Wood had to settle for third.
Triple Eight driver Brown was the next best of the final four, qualifying in fifth ahead of Grove rookie Kai Allen in eighth.
Grand finalist Allen will be sweating on repairs after engine issues derailed his shoot-out lap.
But it was Mostert who suffered the biggest setback of the championship contenders.
Mostert will start on the grid in 12th after his Ford Mustang refused to start up during qualifying earlier on Saturday.
A desperate WAU crew were able to get the car running with five minutes remaining, but Mostert couldn’t salvage the session.
The fan-favourite veteran had cut his deficit to Feeney after finishing second in Friday’s opening sprint to Brodie Kostecki.
“It cost me a run to build into it and put it all on the line,” a frustrated Mostert told Fox Sports.
“It costs you everything … I’ve got nothing else to say.”
Kostecki was the first man out in the shootout and for the second time in the weekend, lost control of his Mustang due to an oil slick on the track.
Battling oil, left from a crash during support category Aussie Racing Car, Kostecki qualified in 10th after hitting the wall at turn five.
The Dick Johnson Racing driver had gone nose-first into the wall due to an oil leakage from Andre Heimgartner’s car during qualifying before winning the opening sprint.
Thomas Randle, eyeing redemption following a race-ending crash on Friday, qualified seventh.
His Tickford crew worked until midnight to repair Randle’s Ford Mustang after the racer had heavily slammed into the concrete barrier at turn eight.
Randle’s teammate Cam Waters qualified in a sub-par 21st, while NASCAR driver and Tickford wildcard Austin Cindric will start Saturday’s 78-lap, 250km race last in 25th.
RACE 33 TOP-10 SHOOTOUT RESULTS:
1. Broc Feeney (Triple Eight Race Engineering)
2. Aaron Cameron (Blanchard Racing Team)
3. Ryan Wood (Walkinshaw Andretti United)
4. Anton De Pasquale (Team 18)
5. Will Brown (Triple Eight)
6. Matt Payne (Grove Racing)
7. Thomas Randle (Tickford Racing)
8. Kai Allen (Grove)
9. Cooper Murray (Erebus Motorsport)
10. Brodie Kostecki (Dick Johnson Racing)
CHAMPIONSHIP STANDINGS:
1. Broc Feeney (Triple Eight) 5089
2. Chaz Mostert (WAU) -13pts
3. Will Brown (Triple Eight) -48pts
4. Kai Allen (Grove) -53pts
AAP
