Drivers still finding the limit with robust Supercars racing rules
Drivers still finding the limit with robust racing rules
2026 has only produced one more penalty that 2025 through two rounds
2026 season continues at ITM NZ Double Header next month
Supercars drivers are still finding where the limits are with a 'play-on' approach to racing rules, but aren't expecting the chaotic scenes of Melbourne to flow into New Zealand.
The first two rounds of the 2026 Supercars season have seen plenty of action, with the Albert Park round notably featuring several bumps, clashes, spins and crashes.
The 2025 season began in similarly furious fashion, headlined by a dramatic battle between Cam Waters, Broc Feeney and Will Brown in Sydney that saw questions raised over what was allowed, and what wasn't.
What has been universally agreed on, is that the unique Melbourne format — short sprint races with no pit stops, held on a wide, flowing circuit — lends itself to crazy action, headlined by the big crash that took out Broc Feeney, Zach Bates and Cooper Murray.
The debate raged on after Melbourne, and is set to roll into New Zealand. Supercars data analyst Scott Sinclair called for calm, though, writing in his Supercars.com column: "Was [the Race 7 crash] the culmination of a weekend of poor driving standards? I don't think so. More an unfortunate racing incident than anything reckless.
"Driving standards are always a talking point after Albert Park. To this point last year, there had been seven driving infringement penalties; this year, there have been eight. This is hardly the basis for an overreaction."
During and after the Melbourne event, Matt Payne teed off after his Race 6 clash with James Golding, Will Brown and David Reynolds were both unimpressed, as was Triple Eight Team Manager Mark Dutton, while Cam Waters took an alternate view behind the wheel, opting to play it safe.
Golding accepted the Grand Prix brings out chaos, telling Supercars.com: “That track usually brings out dramas. If you look back at the previous years, it's done the exact same thing.
"High grip, high speed surface, wide track. Cars run side-by-side for a lot longer, it allows cars to hang on the outside and a lot of people are trying to get rid of each other.
"So eventually there becomes contact at different points. Everyone's racing hard, everyone wants to do well. It’s just what it's been the last few years and didn't change this year, so it was no surprise to me.
"I don't think it's necessarily gonna carry over in the next round.”
A year on, Team 18 star Anton De Pasquale — who was taken out of third in the Sydney finale by Will Brown — suggested that some drivers are still battling to toe the line, often over-stepping it.
“At times, there’s been some average driving and questionable decision-making,” De Pasquale told Supercars.com.
“AGP's always the worst of it for sure. It has been for as long I can remember, it’s always been a little bit of an outlier. For whatever reason, lack of pit stops short races, it changes people's attitude.
“But some still aren't a 100% sure on what is allowed and what's not, and where the line exactly is. You can see that with some of the moves — some get away with it, some don't.
“Every circumstance is so different. Until you know the line, or until you flirt with it, you don't really know what's over or under, so you just keep pushing the limits. That’s what everyone does until Bairdo says you can’t.”
Golding was handed a post-race penalty for his clash with Payne in Race 6, something he still takes issue with given Payne was forced out of the race. The Blanchard Racing Team driver claimed penalties are outcome-based: "Well, that's all just based on the outcome now. That's been pretty clear from previous races and what's happened."
It's worth noting that, when explaining key penalties at last year's Repco Bathurst 1000, Baird told Supercars.com: "We said that at the beginning of the year, if you guys have contact and it results in damaging another car, then it changes the landscape."
Golding continued: “People have done way worse things and nothing happened. Not even a slap on the wrist. And then some people do very minor things, and just depends if there's a concrete wall there or the car's spun out or what have you.
"It doesn’t come off the incident, which I don't agree with. But that's what it is. You just drive to what you think the outcome's gonna be, and that’s where your penalties are decided.”
All told, De Pasquale sympathised with decorated racer turned veteran official Baird, concluding that racing is "one of the hardest sports to police."
"I don't think anyone could really answer what the limit is and when a bump's allowed and when it's not, and vice versa,” De Pasquale said.
“All the exciting races come when that all gets freed up, but sometimes you’ve got wrecked cars and drivers could have their championships ruined. You don’t want that.
“It’s a fine line between entertaining racing and fair racing. Motor racing probably has to be one of the hardest sports to police, because everyone's fighting for the same bit of road all the time. Very rarely it's a 100% someone's fault.”
Track action in New Zealand gets underway in Taupō on Friday April 10. Tickets are on sale now.
