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Supercars Championship: Wood Wins Maiden Toyota Victory, Kostecki Leads Standings After Taupo; Payne Tops Practice in Christchurch

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Historic first victory for Toyota at a weather-affected event in Taupo, New Zealand, followed by the opening practice session for the subsequent round in Christchurch.

Taupo Super440: Toyota's First Win and Championship Update

The Supercars championship event at Taupo Motorsport Park in New Zealand was modified to a single-day program on Saturday due to the forecast arrival of Cyclone Vaianu. Two races were held. Sunday's scheduled program was canceled. The championship's Race 10 will now be held at Ruapuna Motorsport Park near Christchurch.

Qualifying for Race 2

Ryan Wood of Walkinshaw TWG Racing set the fastest time in qualifying for Race 2 of the ITM Taupo Super440.

Qualifying Results (Top 10)

  1. Ryan Wood (Walkinshaw TWG Racing) - 1:25.8734s
  2. Will Brown (Triple Eight Race Engineering) - +0.0169s
  3. Broc Feeney (Triple Eight Race Engineering)
  4. Brodie Kostecki
  5. James Golding (Blanchard Racing Team)
  6. Chaz Mostert (Walkinshaw TWG Racing)
  7. Anton De Pasquale (Team 18)
  8. Matt Payne (Grove Racing)
  9. Kai Allen (Grove Racing)
  10. Cameron Waters (Tickford Racing)

Brodie Kostecki set the fastest time in the first segment of qualifying. Anton De Pasquale was the only Chevrolet Camaro driver to qualify in the top 10 for Race 2.

Race Results

Race 1

  1. Brodie Kostecki
  2. Will Brown
  3. Ryan Wood
  4. Matt Payne
  5. James Golding

Broc Feeney finished sixth after his car lost engine power during the race.

Race 2

  1. Ryan Wood (Walkinshaw TWG Racing)
  2. Chaz Mostert (Walkinshaw TWG Racing)
  3. Broc Feeney (Triple Eight Race Engineering)
  4. Will Brown
  5. Matt Payne
  6. Brodie Kostecki

Ryan Wood's victory was the first race win for Toyota in the Supercars series, ending a period of 2,884 days without a win by a manufacturer other than Ford or General Motors. Chaz Mostert initially led Race 2 but allowed Wood to pass after a team radio communication. Broc Feeney was delayed during a pit stop in Race 2 when he had to wait for another car to enter its pit bay.

Updated Championship Standings

Following the event, the championship standings are:

  1. Brodie Kostecki - 657 points
  2. Broc Feeney - 638 points
  3. Matt Payne - 569 points
  4. Cameron Waters - 544 points
  5. Ryan Wood - 523 points
  6. Anton De Pasquale - 465 points

Christchurch Super440: Practice Session

Matt Payne of Penrite Racing recorded the fastest time in the first practice session for the ITM Christchurch Super440, a 45-minute session. Payne's time was 1:21.3016 seconds.

Session Results (Top 10)

  1. Matt Payne (Penrite Racing) - 1:21.3016
  2. Richie Stanaway (Penrite Racing) - +0.0402s
  3. Ryan Wood (Walkinshaw TWG Racing) - +0.2414s
  4. James Golding (Blanchard Racing Team)
  5. Brodie Kostecki (Dick Johnson Racing)
  6. Jayden Ojeda (PremiAir Racing) - Highest-placed Chevrolet driver
  7. Thomas Randle (Tickford Racing)
  8. Anton De Pasquale (Team 18)
  9. Rylan Gray (Dick Johnson Racing)
  10. Broc Feeney (Triple Eight Race Engineering)

Other Notable Performances

  • Will Brown (Triple Eight Race Engineering) finished 17th, approximately one second slower than the fastest time.
  • Chaz Mostert (Walkinshaw TWG Racing) finished 11th.
  • Cameron Waters (Tickford Racing) finished 15th.

Session Incident

A red flag was shown when Cameron Hill's Brad Jones Racing car stopped on track due to an electrical issue. Hill did not participate for the remainder of the session. The team reported replacing the car's wiring loom.

Qualifying for the Friday afternoon race is scheduled for 12:15 PM AEST.