Brown’s tyre gamble backfires as Feeney struggles in Townsville qualifying

By Aroha Ngata — 11 July 2026 — 3 min read

Triple Eight’s Qualifying Challenges

Red Bull Ampol Racing faced significant setbacks during qualifying in Townsville, with a strategic gamble by Will Brown not yielding the desired outcome, and teammate Broc Feeney also experiencing difficulties. Brown, who had held provisional pole position in Race 21 qualifying, chose to exit his #888 Red Bull Ampol Ford Mustang before the final runs in Q2. This decision was based on a plan to conserve fresher tyres for Saturday’s 200km race.

However, as other drivers completed their laps, Brown’s provisional pole position slipped, ultimately placing him 12th, nearly 0.5s off the leading pace. Speaking after the session, Brown acknowledged the planned gamble, stating that running another set of tyres for the Shootout would leave no green tyres for the race. He expressed hope of getting through to a better position but accepted the outcome, noting they were only a few spots worse off than if they had used more tyres.

Meanwhile, Broc Feeney, who had lost the championship lead to Matt Payne on Friday, continued to struggle, finishing 18th in qualifying for Race 21. This followed a 16th place qualifying for Race 20. Feeney communicated his frustration to his engineer, Martin Short, remarking on the car’s lack of pace.

Previous Struggles and Tyre Strategy

The challenges faced by Red Bull Ampol Racing in Townsville qualifying are not isolated. The team had an underwhelming performance in Darwin, and their start to proceedings in north Queensland proved difficult. For the Friday race, Broc Feeney started 16th, and Will Brown 19th. Brown’s Friday qualifying was also impacted by a loose wheel incident that led to a red flag and required him to go off-road to return to pitlane.

The team’s strategy, particularly Brown’s decision to save tyres, highlights a focus on race performance over qualifying position. Brown indicated that the aim was to have green tyres available for the main race, believing they could still advance through the field, as they had done on a previous day.

The last time the team had no cars inside the top 15 on the grid was 88 races ago, during the Saturday of the 2023 Sydney SuperNight, where Feeney qualified 16th and Shane van Gisbergen 20th. These recent qualifying results have potentially opened the door for Matt Payne to further solidify his position in the drivers’ championship, with Payne’s #19 Penrite Ford set to start third for the 35-lap race.

Kostecki Claims Pole Position

In contrast to Red Bull Ampol Racing‘s struggles, Brodie Kostecki secured pole position for Race 2 of the NTI Townsville 500. The Dick Johnson Racing driver recorded a time of 1:12.6622s in the Top 10 Shootout. Matt Payne, who was fastest in the preceding qualifying session, finished second with a time of 1:12.7708s, 0.1086s behind Kostecki.

Kostecki admitted to a mistake at Turn 3 during his flying lap, where he went over the inside kerb, believing it might have cost him pole. Despite this, he managed to recover and complete a strong lap. Tickford Racing’s Thomas Randle was a notable performer in the shootout, moving from sixth to third. Walkinshaw TWG Racing driver Ryan Wood dropped one place to fourth, while Randle’s teammate Cameron Waters also fell one spot to fifth. The top 10 was rounded out by Aaron Cameron, Kai Allen, James Golding, Chaz Mostert, and Rylan Gray. Race 21 is scheduled to commence at 3:05pm AEST.

Source: supercars.com