Will Brown believes he could have fought for victory at The Bend
Scott Pye was in the wars in opening stints amid wild weather
Brown/Pye raced from 13th to fourth, Brown also surviving an off
Will Brown has vowed to "have a crack" at the Mountain, having claimed an unlikely top five after penalties delayed the #888 Red Bull Ampol Ford Mustang.
Brown and Scott Pye finished fifth in Sunday's AirTouch 500 at The Bend, which became fourth after a post-race penalty was applied to Penrite Racing rival Matt Payne — one of nine different driving penalties on the day.
Pye himself attracted two 15-second penalties before he handed over to Brown, who had it all to do. Pye was forced into the lane for repairs after colliding with James Courtney, before clashing with Reuben Goodall later on.
The #888 Mustang came alive for Brown, who recovered to the top 10 after serving the penalties. Remarkably, Brown served the 30 seconds of penalties after the third Safety Car, after which the race ran green.
Brown finished 44.4s from the win, but only 25.9s behind the second-placed Kai Allen car. Given the #888 was mired in traffic, and the cards fell the way of the winning Chaz Mostert car, it was a case of what could have been.
Brown was surprised by the end result, saying: "For us [#888], obviously to get two 15-second penalties, all up 30 seconds of penalties then damage, a flat tyre, and everything that went on for our car today...
"I was actually near last going into the second last stint. To then come out and get fourth place — awesome.
"You know, I feel like we could have actually raced for a win today if a few things went our way, but that's all good, we'll come back stronger.
"Promising for Bathurst, we'll be having a crack — bring it on.”
Brown could only watch on as his co-driver fought the elements, with the latter's collision with Goodall a hammer blow after Pye fought back from the earlier collision.
The experienced Pye kept it on the island, and as the conditions improved, Brown surged back into contention — but not without a scare.
On lap 100, Brown caught the damp pit exit line while trying to overtake Jack Le Brocq. He locked up, went across the wet grass and gravel, and caught a wild slide after hitting a puddle.
“Those conditions were crazy — we really didn't expect it,” Brown said.
“We thought there'd be a little bit of rain around, you know, 9/10 o'clock it was due but then the rain that came today was crazy.
"The co-drivers, to be honest, they all did a great job. The aquaplaning and how tough those conditions are was definitely another level out there.”
Brown clinched his Finals position at The Bend.
