Darwin disaster for Brown as Feeney sweeps Saturday poles

Hidden Valley was full of shocks and surprises on Saturday morning, with Broc Feeney clinching both Boost Mobile Pole Positions as reigning champion Will Brown and Chaz Mostert encountered shockers.

Brown was only 14th and 17th in the two sessions, with Mostert a lowly 23rd in the second session, just minutes after qualifying 10th for the day's first race.

While Ford turned the tides after Friday practice, with Cam Waters second and third, Feeney remained the benchmark on both the Soft and Super Soft tyres.

The Triple Eight driver took his season tally to eight poles, and will share Saturday's front rows with Waters and Team 18's Anton De Pasquale.

Heading into the first race, Feeney leads Brown by 72 points, with Penrite Racing's Matt Payne and Tickford Racing's Waters 123 and 153 points behind respectively.

"I was so disappointed, I thought I was third. I was halfway down the lane, I was frustrated, and Marty goes, 'Oh that's pole again,' and I couldn't believe it," said Feeney after the second session.

"I'm stoked, to get a double pole here is awesome. That session was probably a little bit more challenging, I feel like all year in the last part on the reused tyres we're a little bit more competitive than the green tyre on the Super Softs."

Race 17 qualifying

The ambient temperature was just 22 degrees when cars rolled out on the Soft tyre. Feeney kicked off Q1 with a 1:06.8475s, which was lowered to a 1:06.7697s by Kostecki and De Pasquale (1:06.6673s).

Feeney (1:06.5102s) and Waters (1:06.4279s) both moved ahead on their second laps, with Allen (1:06.4864s) splitting the two championship contenders. Local hope Bryce Fullwood then laid down a 1:06.3870s to lead the field after the opening runs, with Waters, Allen, Feeney, Brown, Cameron Hill, Thomas Randle, Ryan Wood, Payne and Andre Heimgartner the 10. Kostecki was 12th, and Mostert 16th.

Jack Le Brocq laid down a 1:06.3597s to jump to the top, with Waters and Brown both jumping up. However, Brown made a mistake at the hairpin on the second push lap, and ended up 14th. Waters, meanwhile, survived running long at Turn 1 to end up sixth.

Feeney was fastest with a 1:06:0604s, ahead of Wood, Fullwood, Payne, Kostecki, Allen, Waters, James Courtney, Randle and Mostert, with Hill, Le Brocq and David Reynolds just missing out.

Feeney (1:06.4028s) and Waters (1:06.2388s) started Q2 with speed, with Kostecki moving ahead on a 1:06.1561s. Randle, Wood, Payne, Fullwood, Mostert, Allen and Courtney completed the provisional 10.

Kostecki opted to stay in the lane as the rest of the field rolled out, and Feeney fired to the top with a 1:05.9841s. Waters, Payne and Wood slotted in just behind, with Kostecki fifth. The top five were covered by just 0.172s, with Fullwood, Allen, Courtney, Randle and Mostert completing the 10.

Race 18 qualifying

Cars were fitted with Super Soft tyres and sent back out onto the track, with the ambient temperature rising to 25 degrees. Feeney opened up with a 1:06.9582s, with Wood, Le Brocq, Kostecki, Hill, Macauley Jones and Aaron Cameron moving ahead.

Through the first runs, a 1:06.5356s helped Fullwood lead, with Richie Stanaway, Waters, Randle, Le Brocq, Allen, Hill, Reynolds, Brown and Feeney filled the provisional 10. Kostecki was 13th, Payne 20th and Mostert 24th, with De Pasquale off sequence and coming into the lane before setting a representative time. Courtney, meanwhile, spun at Turn 5 and sat 18th.

Kostecki put breathing space on the field in a thrilling conclusion to Q1, topping the times with a 1:06.2129s ahead of Waters, Le Brocq, De Pasquale and Feeney. Fullwood, Allen, Stanaway, Cooper Murray and Heimgartner sailed into Q2, with Brown and Mostert a disastrous 17th and 23rd. Wood missed out in 11th, with Payne 13th.

Kostecki's run to provisional pole wasn't without incident, though, with the 2023 champion taking to the grass to avoid impeding others around the back of the circuit. Waters pieced together a 1:06.5558s before Feeney edged just ahead with a 1:06.5411s, with Allen an impressive third. Kostecki, Le Brocq, Stanaway and Heimgartner all opted for one run.

Waters marched on and took over with a 1:06.5222s, only for De Pasquale to jump ahead with a 1:06.4687s. De Pasquale remained in the lane as the rest of the field returned for one final crack at pole. Feeney immediately jumped ahead with a 1:06.4116s, and it proved the best of the lot.

De Pasquale held onto a front row start, with Waters to share the second row with impressive rookie Allen. Kostecki, Heimgartner, Le Brocq, Fullwood, Murray and Stanaway rounded out the top 10.

Supercars action resumes on Saturday with Race 17 at 11:45am local/12:15pm AEST, followed by Race 18 at 3:10pm local/3:40pm AEST.