Triple Eight clawed back massive ground on Penrite Racing
Penrite Racing's lead slashed from 258 to 67 points in Ipswich
Matt Payne suffered first DNF since March's Grand Prix
Matt Payne’s DNF and Red Bull Ampol Racing’s monstrous return to form at Queensland Raceway has re-energised the 2026 Supercars teams’ championship battle.
Penrite Racing skipped away to a 258-point lead heading to Ipswich, with Payne also in the box seat to win the Repco Sprint Cup.
The tides completely turned on Sunday, when an electrical issue forced Payne out of Race 28. Broc Feeney won the race and, with it, wrested the Sprint Cup away from Payne.
Crucially, Feeney's teammate Will Brown came home third ahead of Payne's teammate Kai Allen, helping Triple Eight to its second consecutive double podium in Ipswich.
In a shocking twist to the title fight, Triple Eight slashed Grove Racing’s lead from 258 to 67 points on a single weekend, with the most damage done on Sunday.
Triple Eight out-scored its Ford rivals by 42 points across Saturday’s two sprints. It could have been completely different if not for late Safety Cars, with Penrite Racing robbed of a shot of a straightforward driver swap, and potential one-two finish. Instead, Brown won, with Feeney third.
The twists continued into Sunday. Before Payne’s issue, the live championship had Payne in a Sprint Cup winning position, with Penrite Racing’s teams’ lead at 156 points.
However, Payne lost 100 potential points for fifth, while Brown was passed for second by Brodie Kostecki.
On a single day, Triple Eight pulled back 149 points on the Grove squad, which despite claiming two poles, holding down a one-two position in one race and cruising to Sprint Cup glory in another, went winless on a weekend for the first time since Tasmania.
Feeney holds a 30-point lead over Payne heading to the Ryco Enduro Cup opener at Tailem Bend.
