How 'extremely lucky’ Waters predicted Turn 1 madness
"Extremely lucky" Cam Waters predicted Turn 1 chaos in Melbourne
Waters saw Ryan Wood and Kai Allen collide off the line, and chose a line
Waters ultimately positioned well to avoid later pile-up through Turn 1
Cam Waters’ fighting 2026 campaign nearly hit a snag on Sunday, if not for quick thinking by the Tickford Racing driver.
Waters has been a revelation in races this season, gaining 14 positions on first laps alone, and a total of 39 places through the seven races.
Starting 10th, Waters was right behind the dramatic clash between Kai Allen and Ryan Wood that sent the former’s #26 Penrite Ford into the air.
Waters quickly cleared Allen as the field arrived at Turn 1, and knowing the damaged Wood car would go straight on, decided to directly follow the #2 Mobil 1 Truck Assist Toyota.
Waters made the right call — Wood went straight on, and swiped Broc Feeney. Behind Waters, Macauley Jones hit Allen, who overcorrected into Feeney.
As chaos ensured behind him, Waters had clear passage through.
“Well, I've had an extremely lucky weekend to avoid all of those incidents,” Waters said on the broadcast.
"I was just in front of it all happening. I saw Kai and Woody’s wheels interlocked, and then I just knew obviously they're gonna go straight and then I see it all unfolded behind me.”
Starting eighth, 11th, eighth and 10th in Melbourne, Waters was at risk of being involved in incidents. In all four starts, he gained two positions, and marched forward.
Through poor qualifying performance, Waters heads to New Zealand just 28 points from the championship.
"You're trying to predict what's gonna happen 300 metres up the road, and it's kind of understanding the cars around you,” Waters continued.
“Who's going to be a little bit more aggressive than others and just trying to predict where to place your car. And this weekend I've got them all right, which has been amazing for us.
“Sometimes you just can't avoid that stuff. But yeah, it's been good for us."
The 2026 Repco Supercars Championship resumes across the Tasman, with the ITM NZ Doubleheader kicking off in Taupō on April 10-12. Tickets are on sale now.
