Feeney sympathetic for Payne after shock twist

There's a twisted sense of irony in Broc Feeney's two biggest triumphs this season coming through engine mishaps for two of his biggest rivals.

First was his Jason Richards Memorial Trophy victory, after Ryan Wood was stricken in Christchurch, and then Payne's Sprint Cup-defining engine issue in Ipswich.

It was a cruel way for Payne's Sprint Cup to end, having been in position to comfortably claim the trophy, however Feeney was also in position to pounce, and duly did so.

Of course, it pales in comparison with Feeney being denied a maiden championship in Adelaide last year, as a misfire handed the title to Chaz Mostert.

Whilst Feeney's engine dramas in Adelaide last year had more consequence than Payne's, there's no question that in a championship that has been so closely fought, the 25 bonus points Feeney will take to the Gold Coast will be a massive boost.

But, with sportsmanship on full display, Feeney conceded that Penrite Racing and Payne had reset the standard throughout the Sprint Cup, and that for a large part of the season they hadn't been able to offer any resistance.

"My heart goes out to those boys, obviously I've had that on the biggest extreme with the championship last year," said Feeney on broadcast post-race.

"They've done a great job all year. Everyone's had their ups and downs this year, but they've done a fantastic job.

"Like I said in New Zealand, you have to be in it to win it, and you have to be able to perform when it looks like it's not going to happen."

Despite Payne not being a factor, Feeney was still faced with a nervous second half of Race 28, as he had to deal with lapped traffic, as well as a closing Brodie Kostecki as he began the final stint home.

Feeney's nerves were only escalated when engineer Martin Short told his young charge that Payne was out, though Feeney had caught the limping Payne in his peripheral vision as he charged towards an improbable win.

Even if Kostecki had overtaken Feeney, the Triple Eight driver would've been crowned Sprint Cup winner, needing only a podium finish after Payne dropped out of the running.

"I'm probably most proud of winning that race. Even if I didn't win the Sprint Cup, I would've been feeling really confident heading into the next few rounds," continued Feeney.

"To do it back to back, it's crazy. One lap I was coming out of [Turn] 5 and I looked across and I'm like, 'Is that Matt going a bit slow?'

"A few laps later they told me, I wish they didn't, because I started freaking out inside the car, but what a wild day."

Feeney will be joined by Nick Percat in the Ryco Enduro Cup, which begins at the AirTouch 500 at The Bend from September 11-13.