Feeney's flying NASCAR visit ahead of Taupō

Broc Feeney has made the most of a four-week gap between Supercars events to catch up with former teammate Shane van Gisbergen.

Triple Eight Race Engineering star Feeney was the one to beat in Melbourne, taking all four Boost Mobile Pole Positions and winning Race 4.

The Queenslander finished second behind teammate Will Brown in Race 6 and ended up second overall for the weekend.

The field was packed up after the Melbourne event and shipped to New Zealand ahead of the upcoming ITM Taupō Super 440 on April 11-13.

Drivers had three full weeks off before setting sail for New Zealand, with Feeney dashing across to the United States in recent days.

Feeney was a keen onlooker at the weekend’s NASCAR event at Martinsville Speedway in Virginia.

In an image posted to Red Bull Ampol Racing's social channels, the 13-time Supercars race winner caught up with former Supercars teammate Shane van Gisbergen, who contested the Cup Series race on Monday (AEDT).

Feeney and van Gisbergen were Triple Eight teammates in 2022 and 2023, before the latter was replaced by Will Brown for 2024 as he pursued NASCAR.

Van Gisbergen's Martinsville hopes were undone by poor handling and, later, a pit stop blunder.

After dropping a lap early, van Gisbergen fought back, only for his Trackhouse Racing crew to fail to secure the right rear, the #88 Camaro spinning out and losing a wheel. Van Gisbergen was held in the pit lane for two laps, and ended up six laps down in 35th.

It comes after Brown and van Gisbergen linked up in New Zealand earlier this year, with the 2024 champion taking to Franklin Dirt Kart Club's Ebbetts Raceway to sample off-road karts in a day organised by van Gisbergen.

Feeney wasn’t the first Supercars star to get a close look at the Martinsville venue in recent years, with Tickford Racing Supercars star Cam Waters also taking in the 2023 race at the Virginia venue.

Tickets for the ITM Taupō Super 440, on April 11-13, are on sale now.