Chaz Mostert has dominated a rain-soaked opening race of the Supercars Gold Coast 500, taking a commanding victory on the streets of Surfers Paradise, while Kiwi championship leader Matt Payne secured a podium finish despite a late time penalty.
Fellow New Zealander Andre Heimgartner finished fifth after running towards the front throughout the 85-lap race, while Ryan Wood battled difficult conditions to finish 14th.
Mostert crossed the line 19.3 seconds clear of the field, securing his place in the next round of the Supercars Finals Series.
All three Kiwi drivers made the Top 10 Shootout, with Payne qualifying third, Heimgartner fourth and Wood sixth in a closely contested session.
Anton De Pasquale topped the initial qualifying session with a 1:09.077, ahead of Broc Feeney, with just 0.299 seconds separating the top ten. Feeney went on to secure pole position in the Shootout ahead of Mostert and De Pasquale, while Heimgartner was the highest-placed Kiwi in fourth.
Payne secured fifth on the grid, while Wood was left tenth after a kerb strike resulted in his Shootout lap time being deleted. Will Brown was also handed a two-place grid penalty for impeding during Friday’s qualifying session, dropping him from seventh to ninth.
Heavy rain greeted drivers ahead of the opening race of the 2026 Supercars Finals Series, with standing water across the Surfers Paradise street circuit making conditions extremely difficult.
The race began behind the Safety Car, with several drivers struggling with aquaplaning even at reduced speeds.
After three laps behind the Safety Car, Race Control decided to go racing on Lap 4, despite concerns from several drivers, including Will Brown, about the standing water on the circuit.
As racing got underway, Feeney held off Mostert, De Pasquale, Heimgartner and Payne, while Wood dropped to 11th.
It didn’t take long for Mostert to make his move, passing Feeney between Turns 13 and 14 towards the end of Lap 4 to take the lead. With visibility severely limited by spray, Mostert quickly pulled away, opening a 1.5-second advantage before extending it to 2.9 seconds by Lap 6.
De Pasquale also found a way past Feeney on Lap 6, moving into second as the pole-sitter continued to struggle in the wet conditions. By Lap 10, Mostert had built a 6.1-second lead, while Heimgartner pressured Feeney for third.
The Kiwi made a move down the inside and briefly got ahead, but ran wide on the slippery surface, allowing Feeney to reclaim the position. Behind them, Brodie Kostecki was making steady progress through the field, climbing from 11th to seventh.
Payne was also on the move, challenging Heimgartner for fourth on Lap 13 and making the pass stick. That left Heimgartner defending from Cam Waters, with the Kiwi holding on to fifth.
Two laps later, the battle intensified as Payne made slight contact with Feeney’s rear under braking into Turn 4, pushing the Triple Eight driver wide.
With Payne, Heimgartner and Waters running nose-to-tail, and Kostecki close behind, there was further contact as the group fought for position. Payne emerged in third, while Heimgartner also found a way past Feeney after a brief wheel-to-wheel battle to move into fourth.
Feeney dropped to fifth ahead of Waters and Kostecki, while Mostert continued to disappear up the road, his lead over De Pasquale now sitting at 11.3 seconds.
Pit strategy began to come into play on Lap 22, with Feeney among the first of the front-runners to stop, taking four fresh tyres as teams weighed up whether to change two or four tyres in the wet conditions. Wood followed into the pits on Lap 23.
Kostecki continued his charge through the field, passing Heimgartner for third on Lap 27, putting himself 4.7 seconds behind Payne.
Race leader Mostert made his first stop on Lap 28, taking on a significant amount of fuel to enable a shorter second stop later in the race. He rejoined ninth but stayed ahead of those who had already made their first stops.
Kostecki stayed out until Lap 37 before making his first stop, rejoining in sixth. Further back, Wood was having a particularly difficult afternoon in his Toyota Supra, struggling to keep the car under control through the slippery chicane.
The young Kiwi had several close calls as he battled the conditions, dropping as low as 20th.
By Lap 41, the first round of pit stops was complete, with Mostert back in front and holding a 9.1-second advantage over David Reynolds. Payne was running third, followed by De Pasquale, James Golding, Waters, Kostecki, Heimgartner, Cooper Bates and Feeney.
Brown and Kai Allen were just outside the top ten in 11th and 12th. As the second round of pit stops began, Mostert continued to extend his advantage at the front.
By Lap 54, Allen, Kostecki, Reynolds, Aaron Cameron, Wood and Jack Le Brocq had all completed their second stops, while Mostert held a commanding 21.4-second lead.
Payne had moved into second, sitting 2.2 seconds ahead of De Pasquale, with Waters fourth, followed by Golding, Heimgartner, Bates, Brown, Feeney and Cameron Murray.
With the race entering its final stages, Mostert looked untouchable, but there was still plenty happening behind him. With nine laps remaining, Payne was handed a five-second time penalty for exceeding track limits.
The Kiwi was running second at the time, with Reynolds 4.9 seconds behind in third, leaving Payne needing to extend the gap beyond five seconds to retain his position once the penalty was applied. Mostert, meanwhile, had stretched his lead to an impressive 26.9 seconds.
With three laps to go, Reynolds had closed to within 4.3 seconds of Payne, putting himself in position to inherit second place. De Pasquale was running fourth, followed by Heimgartner, Brown, Kostecki, Waters, Feeney and Jayden Ojeda.
Wood had also managed to recover some ground after his earlier struggles, climbing back to 14th. Out front, Mostert was unstoppable, crossing the line to win by 19.3 seconds and secure his place in the next round of the Finals Series.
Payne crossed the line second, but a five-second penalty dropped him to third, while Reynolds moved up to second after finishing just 4.1 seconds behind the Kiwi on the road.
Despite losing a position, Payne still walked away with a podium finish in the opening race of the Finals Series and his 18th podium of the season. Heimgartner had a strong afternoon in fifth, spending much of the race battling among the leading group.
Wood finished 14th after a challenging wet race, recovering several positions in the closing stages after running as low as 20th. De Pasquale finished fourth, while Brown, Kostecki, Waters, Feeney and Ojeda rounded out the top ten.
The result gives Mostert a guaranteed place in the next round of the Finals Series, while Payne, Heimgartner and Wood will turn their attention to Sunday’s second race on the Gold Coast.
In terms of Championship points, Payne still leads with a 55-point gap to Feeney in second place, followed by Brown (-75), Mostert (-88), Kostecki (-90), De Pasquale (-112), Waters (-136), Allen (-189), Wood (-196) and Le Brocq (-230).
Qualifying for Race 32 is scheduled for 2:20pm NZT on Sunday, followed by the Top 10 Shootout, with the race getting underway at 5:45pm NZT.
Header Image: Supplied
