Feeney's Friday misfire blows teams' battle open

A torrid Darwin Friday for Broc Feeney and bright day for Penrite Racing has re-energised the 2026 Supercars teams’ championship battle.

Heading into Saturday’s Hidden Valley Raceway action, leaders Red Bull Ampol Racing are just 25 points ahead of Ford rivals Penrite Racing.

The two Mustang teams have been joined at the hip for much of the season, and an imperious win in the Tasmania finale for Feeney kept Penrite Racing at bay.

Heading to Darwin, Triple Eight led by 68 points. However, a double podium for Penrite Racing, coupled with Feeney’s rotten run to 14th, has seen the margin slashed to just 25 points.

It's a stunning contrast to 2025, when Triple Eight was a staggering 776 points ahead of its nearest rival by the end of the Darwin weekend.

Penrite Racing took the lead from Tickford Racing in Melbourne, but a Sunday shocker for Payne and Feeney gifted the lead back to Tickford.

Triple Eight has been on top since New Zealand, with the margin ebbing and flowing to Penrite Racing. Penrite Racing has, though, lost 60 points to penalties, and would otherwise be leading.

The Grove squad outscored Triple Eight by 43 points on Friday, largely in part through the double podium, although Feeney’s wobbles certainly didn’t help the reigning teams’ champions.

Having qualified 13th, Feeney dropped a position on the first lap, before coming in for four tires. However, he threw it away immediately, locking up at Turn 1, running off and losing three seconds.

In contrast, Feeney’s teammate Will Brown finished a credible fifth, the first time Brown has finished ahead of Feeney since the second Christchurch race.

Behind them, a late incident for David Reynolds put Team 18 at risk to falling behind Shell V-Power Racing Team. The margin between Team 18 and Dick Johnson Racing heading to Saturday is just two points, down from 11.

Saturday Supercars action kicks off with Boost Mobile Qualifying at 10:45am local time/11:15am AEST.