Will Brown and Scott Pye led a dominant one-two consequence for the Triple Eight Chevrolet Camaros on the Sandown 500 in Melbourne.
Not even late-race contact between Brown and Broc Feeney or a dash to the flag after a late security automotive might derail the dominant consequence, although it did result in pink faces on the finish of 155 laps, the race shortened by six laps resulting from time constraints.
The 2 drivers clashed, luckily with out injury, when Feeney, who was sharing with Jamie Whincup, rejoined after his closing pitstop, permitting the championship factors chief to stretch his benefit and provides him his first win on the iconic circuit.
“I used to be a bit nervous in the beginning however I didn’t wish to put a foot fallacious, with Broc proper there,” Brown mentioned after the crew’s third 1-2 Sandown consequence.“I noticed him rejoin and he ran broad, I hoped there was no injury. I acquired some new tyres and I simply acquired out again in entrance of him.”
“I could not watch within the race,” admitted Brown’s co-driver, Pye. “Broc is so quick, [but] I’m so stoked for Will.
“I’ve discovered a lot, my tyre administration in the course of the race was so good.”
The 2 automobiles dominated the second half of the race, after Brown made a near-perfect begin from pole place and managed the opening laps. The pair swapped positions through the pit cycles, however Brown had a fraction an excessive amount of tempo over the ultimate 5 laps.
The one crew that regarded to have the tempo to really problem was PremiAir Racing, with James Golding vaulting into the highest 5 early within the race and aided by a wonderful stint from his first-time co-driver, veteran David Russell, who acquired the automotive right into a strong place mid-race to finish the rostrum.
Brown and Pye claimed victory in Chevrolet Camaro
Picture by: Supercars
“It is about bloody time!” mentioned Golding. “The crew did a extremely good job, Dave did a extremely superior job, I can not thank him sufficient.”
“We knew we would have liked to work on our race automotive, even when it was moist on Saturday, we knew it was going to be dry,” mentioned Russell.
The very best of the Ford Mustangs was that of Grove Racing’s Matt Payne, backed up by former Holden legend Garth Tander in fourth.
Fifth was an astonishing consequence for the pairing of Craig Lowndes and Cooper Murray. In Triple Eight’s wildcard Chevrolet entry, Lowndes made good early floor from 18th on the grid earlier than handing over to the 23-year-old Super2 common, who survived an off-road second within the closing laps to finish T8’s wonderful day.
Cameron Waters and James Moffat had a wrestle within the Tickford Ford, which completed sixth, whereas Chaz Mostert and Lee Holdsworth completed seventh within the Walkinshaw Andretti United Ford, Holdsworth spinning out of fourth place at one-quarter race distance.
The opposite fancied runners have been the Erebus Motorsport Chevrolets. Brodie Kostecki/Todd Hazelwood ran as excessive as second place, just for Hazelwood to fireplace off the highway at excessive pace when a tyre went down after contact whereas overtaking Whincup for second place.
Then Kostecki copped a 15-second penalty for spinning the wheels throughout a tyre change, and though they mounted a robust restoration, Kostecki stopped with 20 laps to go along with a blown engine.
Group-mate Jack Le Brocq and Jayden Ojeda have been in rivalry for a top-five end till the ultimate laps, Le Brocq making contact with a wall after being compelled broad as they dropped to twentieth.
With the win Brown stretches his factors to 2280, nicely away from Mostert on 2091 and Feeney on 2058.