Spin, kerb strike compounds Brown's Finals headaches
Will Brown to start 18th on Sunday after qualifying shocker
Brown spins at front chicane, picks up kerb strike on final flying lap
Reigning champion needs 10th place finish to clinch Semi spot
Reigning champion Will Brown is at major risk of being eliminated from The Finals at the first attempt after a Sunday qualifying shocker.
The Queenslander will start Sunday's 85-lap Boost Mobile Gold Coast 500 final from 18th, and sits 87 points above the cut-line.
After showing strong pace in Q1, Brown made a crucial error in Q2, tripping over the front chicane kerb.
Brown caught the #1 Red Bull Ampol Chevrolet as it slid through the front chicane, with the car making gentle contact with the outside wall.
Having triggered the red flag, Brown didn't have a time on the board, but picked up a kerb strike on his final flying lap. As a result, Brown didn't record a competitive time at all, and will start buried in the pack.
Triple Eight boss Jamie Whincup took a dim view of the incident, admitting the scale of the error should have delivered a weekend-ending amount of damage.
"Will Brown couldn't get into the zone from a sports performance point of view," Whincup said on the broadcast.
"That should've been a write-off, actually, we should've been on the trailer."
Thomas Randle is eighth, 16 points behind De Pasquale, with Kostecki and Wood 66 and 71 points below respectively.
Brown needs only a 10th place finish to reach the Semi Final, regardless of other results. However, a mid-pack start leaves the #1 Camaro vulnerable to early-race chaos.
The Boost Mobile Top Ten Shootout will commence at 11:35am local/12:35pm AEDT.
