Broc Feeney has denied Cam Waters in an incident-packed Race 17 at the betr Darwin Triple Crown, which was headlined by big hits for Jaxon Evans and Jack Le Brocq.
A bold four-tyre stop brought Waters to the back of Feeney in the closing laps, but the championship leader had enough time in reserve to bring home a fifth win in seven starts.
A rampant Waters claimed fastest lap points and a first podium since Tasmania, with Matt Payne rounding out the podium ahead of Darwin-born Bryce Fullwood, James Courtney, Chaz Mostert, Nick Percat, Will Brown, Brodie Kostecki and Andre Heimgartner.
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It was Feeney’s sixth win of the season, seeing his advantage at the head of the Repco Supercars Championship standings extend after a difficult race for teammate Will Brown, but Feeney didn’t have it all his own way.
“It was super hard there, it was a shame at the start. Doing the speeds we were doing the Safety Car couldn’t pull away so I couldn’t go to the straight and unfortunately crashes happen then,” said Feeney.
‘Chaos in Darwin!’ Wheel goes flying | 01:22
“We had a bit of adversity come over there, I had a clutch issue during that race, it was super stressful. I didn’t know how I was going to go, I was real slow coming into the lane.
“It’s awesome fun, Cam chasing me down, it was super hard out there. Hot, stressing, and I had lots of stuff going on in my head, but stoked to walk away with the first win here.”
The race was neutralised by the bp pulse Safety Car immediately after a big hit exiting Turn 1 for Evans, before Le Brocq’s race ended abruptly in a hairy restart stack-up triggered by an engine failure for Ryan Wood.
As the lights went out, Feeney defended from Waters, and held on around Turn 1. That was where Evans’ race ended, courtesy of a collision with Richie Stanaway. The contact sent Evans onto the grass, into the Armco barrier, and out on the spot. At Turn 4, Anton De Pasquale turned Macauley Jones into a spin.
After the first Safety Car restart, Waters challenged Feeney, while Wood pulled to the left with engine issues. The slowing Wood backed up the field, seeing Le Brocq sent into the wall by Cameron Hill. Brown also sustained damage, with Le Brocq and Wood stopping on the run to Turn 1.
Broc looks to continue Darwin dominance | 00:52
Le Brocq’s left front wheel was torn off, and bounced over the wall, fortunately missing officials, while Wood also came to a halt at the entry to Turn 1.
“There’s trouble! We’ve got a problem … errant wheel blazing down to Turn 1,” Supercars commentator Neil Crompton said.
“A lot anger on the radio in the background
“Chaos in Darwin.”
The failure was later diagnosed as a bearing failure in the pulley system, which spat the belt off the pulley and led to the loss of oil pressure, with the team undertaking an engine change before Race 18.
It’s Wood’s second retirement on the bounce, which has seen the Kiwi tumble out of the top 10 in points as he attempts to qualify for the Finals.
“I don’t know, it’s just one of those things,” said Wood.
“By the sounds of it the water pump has fallen off and then taken the oil. I don’t know, I don’t even know engines.
“All I know is it wouldn’t go on the Safety Car restart, and it is what it is.”
While Wood acknowledged that his engine failure was a trigger for the incident that unfolded behind him, the 21-year-old Kiwi said that the slow pace of leader Feeney also contributed.
“Obviously it wouldn’t have helped, but we changed the Safety Car restart to go out of the last corner, and we still didn’t go out of the last corner, so it was still a nightmare for everyone.
“There’s a car there that’s got a tyre missing out the front of it. That’s not good for them guys to see.
“If we keep doing the same sh*t on the restarts, the same result is going to happen.”
Feeney defended his actions at the restart, saying he would’ve caught the bp pulse Safety Car had he picked up speed at the final corner.
“It was a shame at the start. Doing the speeds we were doing the Safety Car couldn’t pull away so I couldn’t go to the straight and unfortunately crashes happen then,” said Feeney.
At Turn 5, David Reynolds was tipped into a spin by Percat, with Richie Stanaway climbing over the #10 Bendix Chevrolet. The Safety Car was deployed for a second time, with Stanaway forced into the garage.
— This story initially appeared on Supercars.com and was republished with permission.