Late stops for Camaros, Ryan Wood elimination sparks Finals tension
Triple Eight the only team with two cars remaining in Finals contention
Broc Feeney won Sunday's finale to secure second spot for Sandown
Triple Eight Team Manager Mark Dutton says he would have preferred Ryan Wood to reach Sandown over Anton De Pasquale, who made it in after late Gold Coast drama.
The Ford homologation team has both drivers through to the Semi Final, with Broc Feeney second and Will Brown fifth in the standings.
Red Bull Ampol Racing is the only team with two cars in the Semi Final, with single entries from Penrite Racing (Matt Payne), Walkinshaw TWG Racing (Chaz Mostert), Dick Johnson Racing (Brodie Kostecki), Tickford Racing (Cam Waters), and Team 18 (De Pasquale).
Payne, Mostert, Kostecki, Waters, and De Pasquale can call on their respective teammates to play rear-gunner, as Wood did successfully for Mostert at last year’s Sandown Semi Final.
Dutton knows that all too well, watching on as Wood caused headaches for Triple Eight at both Sandown and Adelaide. That was also in effect on Sunday, as Mostert and Wood picked off Brown in a two-for-one pass.
The closing stanza of Sunday’s Gold Coast 500 finale was headlined by late fuel stops for the Camaros of Jarrod Hughes and Cooper Murray, which pushed Chevrolet star De Pasquale back into a Semi Final position.
It pushed Wood out, ensuring Mostert could again have support to fall back on at Sandown.
Dutton is also wary of the performance of the Camaro at Sandown, suggesting the top end speed of the Chevrolet could also play into De Pasquale and GM’s hands as seven aims to become four.
When asked about the late drama on Supercars’ Equip Super Cool Down Lap podcast, Dutton took an alternate view.
"Yeah, it's interesting. I would have preferred, from a greedy standpoint, if Wood had have got through,” Dutton said.
“That would've been better than De Pasquale getting through. We're going to Sandown, and they could be super strong there, the Chevy. So yeah, it would've been good.
“If they had have had two cars through, then you don't have a tailgunner. You've got both vying for position.
"We don't control that side of it, so we just race with whoever's there.”
Track action at Sandown commences on Friday November 6.
