Kiwi Drivers Shine with Top-10 Qualifying Spots in Supercars Races 6 & 7

Qualifying 6 –

Grove Racing driver Matthew Payne was the top Kiwi in Qualifying 6, putting his car on the second row in 3rd for Race 6 later this afternoon.

“The heart rate goes up towards the end when you’re on the lap, so yeah we managed to stick one together there, which we’re pretty happy with. It’s a pretty good turnaround from our qualifying on Thursday. I’m pretty proud of the boys, but we got one more to go. It’s even a bit shorter, so one lap we will get, but I love it out here; the track’s awesome; it’s so good to drive, and these cold conditions really suit the cars, making them come alive.” said Payne.

Walkinshaw Andretti driver Ryan Wood continues to show great pace, qualifying in 9th place. The young Kiwi has had a great weekend so far.

Kiwi Richie Stanaway, now driving for PremiAir Racing, qualified 16th. Brad Jones Racing Andre Heimgartner was behind him in 17th, and Jaxon Evans was in 21st position.

Triple Eight Racing driver Broc Feeney was the top qualifier, with a flying lap of 1.46.136. Teammate Will Brown 0.103s was behind him, followed by Payne.

Yesterday’s race winner, Cameron Hill, qualified inside the Top 10, placing 8th. Matt Stone Racing teammate Nick Percat qualified in 4th after scoring a podium alongside Hill in Race 5 yesterday.

The current championship leader, Cam Waters, had a shocking qualifying session, qualifying 19th. The Tickford Racing drivers did not show the same pace as they did at the Sydney 500, with teammate Thomas Randle qualifying outside the Top 10 in 13th.

Full Results – Qualifying 6

Qualifying 7 –

Back-to-back qualifying sessions saw Qualifying 7 kick-off after a quick pit stop for teams. The session was shortened to only 8 minutes, with commentators describing it as more of a “one-lap style shootout.”

Brown opened proceedings with a 1.47.631s, with rookie Cooper Murray from Erebus Motorsport overtaking the 2024 Supercars Champion with a 1.47.440s lap time.

With 5 minutes to go, Percat continued to shine in the session with a 1.47.034s with teammate Cameron Hill 0.125s behind him.

It was another strong performance from the Kiwis. Richie Stanaway is putting his car on the second row, starting in 4th for tomorrow’s race.
Matthew Payne again qualified in the Top 10, this time in 6th place. Two top-10 starts in Races 6 and 7, increasing his chances of a podium finish this weekend.

Ryan Wood qualified 15th, struggling with the shorter qualifying time. Jaxon Evans is alongside him on the starting grid in 16th place. Andre Heimgartner also struggled in qualifying, so he will start tomorrow’s race 22nd.

Brown struggled in this session, qualifying last in 24th before a final attempt saw him qualify 17th. Brown also got in the way of Chaz Mostert, attempting a third final flying lap to improve his qualifying time. Due to Brown’s impediment, Chaz could not improve and started Race 7 24th, in last place.

In an interview after the session, Chaz didn’t blame Brown but rather the team’s lack of communication.

Supercars later announced that Will Brown had received a three-place grid penalty for the on-track impediment. Brown will now start Race 7 21st after initially qualifying 18th.

Broc Feeney claimed both pole positions for Race 6 and 7, the driver proving he’s the one to beat this weekend. Cameron Hill starts tomorrow’s race alongside Feeney in 2nd, and a shock second-row start from Cooper Murray, who qualified 3rd.

Feeney has achieved the qualifying grand slam, winning all four pole positions for this weekend.

If the last two races are anything to go by, it is anyone’s game.

In other news, Blanchard Racing Team driver James Courtney was disqualified from Race 7 after a post-session technical inspection revealed the car’s rear wing angle was 10.2 degrees, 0.2 degrees above the maximum permitted angle.

Race 6 starts at 7.40 pm NZT tonight, and the weekend’s final race, Race 7, starts tomorrow at 12.25 pm NZT.

Full Results – Qualifying 7