Huge crash for Brodie Kostecki, Matt Payne claims provisional Race 28 pole
Kostecki crashes heavily at front chicane as Fords sweep top three
Finals Drivers Kai Allen, Thomas Randle and Kostecki all miss a top 10 berth
Finals drama has hit the Boost Mobile Gold Coast 500 on Saturday, with Brodie Kostecki crashing heavily at Surfers Paradise.
Ford rival Matt Payne led the way in Boost Mobile Qualifying, the Penrite Racing driver leading Walkinshaw Andretti United teammates Chaz Mostert and Ryan Wood.
Finals Drivers Kai Allen (12th), Thomas Randle (14th) and Kostecki (16th) missed out on a Top Ten Shootout berth, with the latter now in doubt for Saturday's race.
It had been a torrid session for Kostecki, with damage to the front left corner of his #38 Shell V-Power Mustang caused by continuous clipping of the Turn 1 tyre bundle.
In Q2, Kostecki hit it again on his final flying lap, and as the left hand side of the front bar folded under the front left tyre, Kostecki careened into the barriers.
The #38 Ford is now off to PACE Innovations for chassis repairs as the race begins to get the car repaired for the remainder of the weekend, with the car set to miss Saturday's race.
Brown was first to lay a time down, a 1:10.5264s, as drivers fought for track position and tyre temperature. Broc Feeney returned serve on his second lap with the first 1:08s of the session, a 1:08.9655s.
Payne (1:08.9291s) and Allen (1:09.0716s) sandwiched the championship leader before Kostecki jumped to third with a 1:09.0315s, while Cam Waters was only 11th after running off at Turn 11.
As all cars came in, WAU sent their drivers out for their defining run. Wood jumped to ninth with a 1:09.3112s, before improving to third with a 1:08.9797s. After bailing out a second time, Mostert had just one chance to progress, and duly fired in a 1:08.5916s to jump to first, despite brushing the barriers at Turn 13.
Payne, though, went quickest of all with a record 1:08.4042s, with De Pasquale the only Finals Driver outside the top 10. Richie Stanaway, Jack Le Brocq, Jaxon Evans, Bryce Fullwood, Cameron Hill and Macauley Jones were eliminated.
There were frantic scenes up and down pit lane between Q1 and Q2; notably, Shell V-Power Racing Team and Erebus Motorsport hurried work on Kostecki and Cooper Murray's front splitters, while the Brown car was carrying radio issues.
Payne immediately put himself under pressure in Q2 with a kerb strike at the Beach Chicane, as Mostert, Feeney and David Reynolds jumped into the 1:08s. Through the first runs, the damaged Kostecki Ford was only 10th, while Payne and Randle hadn't fired a shot.
Brown went fastest with a 1:08.6367s as Golding dropped Kostecki out of the 10, before Wood clocked a 1:08.5090s to move ahead. Payne snuck in a 1:08.2861s before attention quickly turned to Kostecki, who crunched the barriers at the front chicane.
It delivered a top 10 of Payne, Mostert, Wood, Reynolds, Brown, Golding, Waters, James Courtney, Feeney and De Pasquale, with Nick Percat 11th.
The Boost Mobile Top Ten Shootout is scheduled to start at 12:35pm local time/1:35pm AEDT. Supercars will advise of any schedule updates should they come to hand.