Supercars Albert Park: Percat ends Triple Eight’s win streak in Race 4

In a 14-lap race that featured loads of hand-to-hand fight, Matt Stone Racing’s Percat held off a double dose of Purple Bull opposition, with Will Brown taking second place forward of Broc Feeney.

The telling second of the race got here on lap 4, when second-placed Chaz Mostert (WAU Ford Mustang) was trying to difficult Matt Payne for the lead. Mostert locked a brake at Flip 10 and nerfed the rear of the Grove Racing Ford, sending each automobiles off the street and gifting the result in a shocked Percat. Payne recovered in third place and for his sins, Mostert needed to keep it up with a five-second time penalty.

Then Payne was within the wars once more, despatched right into a spin at Flip 1 by Bryce Fullwood (Brad Jones Racing Chevrolet), dropping the Ford to twenty second place. He went on to complete 14th.

Feeney bided his time, closed onto the again of Percat and picked his well beyond on lap 8 – just for Percat to fend him off and, on the identical time, open the door for Brown. He was rapidly onto the rear of Percat however there have been no errors from the chief and he held on to win by 0.38sec.

“I’m form of speechless,” stated an emotional Percat, whose final win got here at Sydney Motorsport Park within the Covid-plagued 2020 season.

“Everybody backed me so exhausting. I needed to stop and now, Spherical 2, we’ve got gained a race. The final 18 months, I hated each second with that mob. As quickly as I walked into Matt Stone Racing, I knew this was the place I needed to be.”

Brown’s first spherical win with Triple Eight awards him the Larry Perkins Trophy, named after the legendary six-time Bathurst 1000 winner – and Brown’s common endurance co-driver has been Jack Perkins.

“It was so shut between me and Broc. I might have appreciated to have gotten Nick, I made a mistake out of Flip 1 and cooked them [the tyres].”

Stated Feeney, “[I am] pumped for Nick, he is a superb bloke and he deserves that. I’m gutted with the third, I had a crack however I didn’t execute it. Any children watching, ensure you hit the brakes in the course of a nook!”

Mostert completed fourth on the street however the time penalty dropped him to fifth behind Thomas Randle (Tickford Ford). Dick Johnson Racing’s Will Davison was sixth forward of Cam Waters (Tickford), Richie Stanaway (Grove) and David Reynolds (Team18 Chevrolet).

Second place signifies that Brown leads the championship pointscore on 575, from Feeney on 558 and Mostert on 478. Percat’s win lifts him to fourth on 405, forward of Reynolds (358).

The following spherical of the race might be at a venue new to Supercars, Taupō Motorsport Park in New Zealand, on 20-21 April.

Race outcomes: