Fast Feeney first to finals with Sprint Cup triumph
Joanna Guelas |
Broc Feeney has punched his ticket to the Supercars finals after claiming the inaugural Sprint Cup in Ipswich with two races to spare.
Championship leader Feeney blitzed his rivals from pole position to take the chequered flag under a safety car in Saturday’s opening 120km sprint at Queensland Raceway.
Aside from a brief exchange of the top spot with Triple Eight teammate Will Brown in the opening laps, Feeney went largely unchallenged on the way to his 11th win of the season.
Grove Racing rookie Kai Allen was second, while sophomore driver Ryan Wood followed in third for the youngest-ever Supercars podium.
Defending champion Brown crossed the finish line in fourth.
The safety car had been brought out with three laps remaining when David Reynolds, in a bid to overtake James Golding, veered off track after locking up.
Triple Eight ace Feeney now boasts a 243-point lead – a gulf that second-placed Brown will be unable to cross given there are only 230 points up for grabs with two races left in Ipswich.
By winning the Sprint Cup, Feeney automatically qualifies for this year’s inaugural finals and nets 25 bonus points to take into the elimination series.
The 22-year-old’s race haul so far consists of 13 podium finishes and 11 race wins from 11 poles.
He is poised to add to his remarkable record after snaring pole for the second 120km lap on Saturday.
Wood’s experienced teammate Chaz Mostert finished second-last in 25th after a braking issue threatened to end his race early.
Walkinshaw Andretti United driver Mostert qualified in fourth but was forced to start from pit lane after reporting he had no brakes while on the warm-up lap.
Brad Jones Racing driver Macauley Jones was 26th after suffering a gearbox issue.
In his 600th race since his 2005 debut, James Courtney could only finish 14th.
Fellow milestone man Cam Waters, in his 300th race, finished 19th.
RACE 23 RESULTS:
1. Broc Feeney (Triple Eight Race Engineering)
2. Kai Allen (Grove Racing)
3. Ryan Wood (Walkinshaw Andretti United)
4. Will Brown (Triple Eight)
5. Brodie Kostecki (Dick Johnson Racing)
CHAMPIONSHIP STANDINGS:
1. Broc Feeney (Triple Eight) 1844 points
2. Will Brown (Triple Eight) +243pts
3. Matt Payne (Grove) +288pts
4. Cam Waters (Tickford Racing) +482pts
5. Chaz Mostert (WAU) +574pts
AAP
