Feeney reveals JR Trophy panic amid radio blackout
Broc Feeney reveals Jason Richards Trophy panic amid radio blackout
Feeney benefited from Ryan Wood DNF, Brodie Kostecki off to win coveted trophy
Feeney topped Doubler Header point-score despite not winning a race
A malfunctioning radio had Broc Feeney was running blind in the Christchurch finale, to the extent that he questioned if he actually won the Jason Richards Trophy.
The Red Bull Ampol Racing star benefited from a Ryan Wood DNF and clash for Brodie Kostecki to win the coveted trophy, despite not winning a race in New Zealand.
Feeney and teammate Will Brown had radio issues throughout the 200km race, leading to tension over the radio as Feeney battled to communicate with his team.
In the closing laps, Feeney sat third, but Wood was in the box seat. When Wood dropped out, Feeney in third and Kostecki in fifth were tied on points for the trophy.
What’s more, is that there was no tie-breaker in the rules for the Jason Richards Trophy. Officials quickly determined that, consistent with other trophies, the highest finisher in the final race wins the tie-breaker.
Kostecki had to pass Chaz Mostert after the Safety Car restart to break the tie and win outright, only for controversy to ensue.
With Kostecki finishing 18th, Feeney beat race winner Matt Payne by 16 points.
However, Feeney didn’t have certainty over the outcome until he reached PIRTEK Victory Lane, after seeing a ‘Jason Richo’ sign on his team’s pit board.
"I had absolutely no idea about any of that, because I couldn't talk to anyone," Feeney said in the post-race press conference.
"I knew it was even when Woody was running back a bit, I was wondering if we got close. I didn't know what the points were.
"And then obviously when [Wood] was parked up, I knew I was probably in with a good shot, but I didn't know if Matty would be ahead or Brodie.
"I don't know if I should have looked at the points last night or not, but I came out of the last corner and saw the pit board and it said Jason Richards Trophy. So, I was pretty ecstatic.
"I was trying to talk on the radio on the in-lap like, 'did we actually win it?' Coming in and finding out that we did win, that's fantastic."
Feeney also claimed the championship lead from Kostecki, with the top three covered by 46 points heading to Tasmania on May 22-24.
