Crucial damage limitation for Triple Eight

While Penrite Racing officially seized both championship leads, Red Bull Ampol Racing managed to save face on a chastening Friday.

Broc Feeney and Will Brown qualified 16th and 19th for Friday’s NTI Townsville 500, adding another bruise to the powerhouse team following a podium-less Darwin.

After placing second in practice, Brown was undone by a loose wheel in Q2, which became a flat tyre. He lost his fastest time for causing the red flag, and didn't recover.

Feeney, meanwhile, was staring down the barrel of losing the drivers’ championship lead to Matt Payne, who did indeed take the lead with an 11th podium of the season.

However, Brown charged up 12 positions to finish seventh, with Feeney jumping six positions to 10th. While neither were headline results, it limited the damage on the scoreboard.

If all cars finished where they started, Penrite Racing would have scored 91 points to Triple Eight’s 30, extending its teams’ lead from 39 to 100 points.

Instead, Brown and Feeney clawed through to put 64 points on the board, versus Penrite’s 98. Where a loss of 61 — or worse — was on the board, Triple Eight only lost 34, and trails by 73.

It’s on these days where, time and again, Triple Eight demonstrates its championship muscle by fighting for the maximum points possible.

Key to the outcome was Brown’s brilliant charge, with the 2024 Supercars champion gaining a whopping nine positions in 12 laps, including six on the first lap alone.

Regardless, the form line still isn't trending where the team wants it to be, going four races without a podium. Per Supercars data analyst Scott Sinclair, Triple Eight haven’t gone five races without a podium since 2007.

Penrite Racing is still looking over its shoulder despite taking over at the top, Executive Chairman Stephen Grove telling Supercars.com: “To beat them, you need to be on your A-game all the time.”

Track action in Townsville resumes on Saturday at 11:25am AEST with Boost Mobile Qualifying.