Andre Heimgartner led the Kiwi charge during a busy opening day at Symmons Plains Raceway, finishing the day in the best possible way with victory in Race 15 of the 2026 Supercars Championship.
The New Zealand drivers were competitive throughout Saturday’s action, with Heimgartner, Matthew Payne and Ryan Wood all spending time near the front across qualifying and racing in Tasmania.
Race 14 saw Heimgartner emerge as the leading Kiwi after qualifying fourth and remaining inside the top five throughout the race. The Brad Jones Racing driver showed strong pace across the longer run to finish fifth and continue his consistent form.
Payne also recovered well after a difficult qualifying session left him further down the grid than expected. The Grove Racing driver worked his way through the field to finish eighth by the chequered flag.
Wood looked on track for a strong result of his own before a cross-threaded wheel nut during his pit stop cost him significant time and dropped him down the order. Despite the setback, he managed to salvage 14th place.
The Kiwi drivers stepped things up again in qualifying for Race 15, locking out the front row. Heimgartner claimed pole position ahead of Payne, while Wood qualified fourth to give New Zealand three drivers inside the top four.
Heimgartner converted pole into victory later in the day, controlling the race from the front and pulling clear in the closing stages to secure his first Supercars win since Taupo in 2024.
Payne completed a double Kiwi podium after finishing third following a tense battle with Broc Feeney late in the race, while Wood came home seventh after an entertaining fight with Brodie Kostecki.
Attention then turned to qualifying for Race 16, with the Kiwis again featuring strongly throughout the session.
Q1 began with Brodie Kostecki setting the early pace before Payne quickly established himself near the front of the field. The Grove Racing driver traded fastest laps with teammate Kai Allen before becoming the first driver to break into the 50-second bracket with a 50.938s lap.
While Payne looked comfortable at the top of the timesheets, both Wood and Heimgartner initially found themselves outside the top 20 in an incredibly tight field.
Heimgartner improved midway through the session to climb into the top 18 and out of the elimination zone, before Wood also found speed late in the session to jump from 24th to third with a 51.100s lap.
Payne finished Q1 fastest ahead of Anton De Pasquale, Chaz Mostert and Wood, while Heimgartner progressed in 12th.
Q2 continued the close fight at the front. Payne again showed strong pace early in the session, while Wood moved into third on his opening run. As drivers switched to fresh tyres for the final runs, the order changed rapidly.
Kostecki eventually secured provisional pole with a 50.698s lap, but Payne responded with another strong effort to finish second, just half a tenth away from the fastest time.
Wood also improved late in the session to secure a place in the Top 10 Shootout, finishing tenth overall. Heimgartner was unable to improve on his final run and slipped to 17th, narrowly missing the shootout in one of the tightest qualifying sessions of the season.
The Top 10 Shootout saw Wood become the first driver to set a flying lap, producing a tidy 51.821s effort that briefly placed him at the top of the order.
As conditions improved, several drivers edged ahead before Broc Feeney produced the lap that secured pole position.
Payne was the second-last driver to run and looked quick immediately, setting the fastest first sector before finishing with a 51.447s lap to secure second place and another front-row start for the Kiwis.
Feeney will start Race 16 from pole position alongside Payne, with Jayden Ojeda and De Pasquale on the second row. Kostecki and Will Brown line up fifth and sixth, while Allen and Wood will start seventh and eighth, with Cameron and Randle lining up ninth and tenth on the grid.
After a strong opening day highlighted by Heimgartner’s win and multiple Kiwi podium and front-row results, the New Zealand drivers head into Sunday with plenty of momentum.
Header Image: Penrite Racing/Supercars
