Supercars Championship leader Will Brown causes chaos on the Gold Coast in multi-car crash

Supercars Championship leader Will Brown will start from 11th spot on the grid at the Gold Coast 500 after triggering a spectacular multi-car crash on Saturday.

While Richie Stanaway clocked the fastest time. Brown spun out at turn 11, which left Nick Percat and Tim Slade with no room to avoid the collision. 

Stanaway secured the top spot before the incident with a lap time of 1:10.4448s, while key championship rivals Chaz Mostert, Cam Waters, and Broc Feeney earned their spots in the Top-10 Shootout.

After causing the red flag, Brown’s fastest lap was invalidated, demoting him to 11th place and promoting reigning champion Brodie Kostecki into the shootout. 

‘I’ve been locking rears in there the last two sessions and just thought I’d get it turned but didn’t… These things happen, it’s the Gold Coast,’ Brown said.

Under bright conditions, the early laps saw drivers like Cameron Hill, Feeney, and Waters setting competitive times, with Mostert briefly leading the board with a 1:10.5148s.

As the final laps approached, Thomas Randle improved to fourth place, knocking Matt Payne out of the top 10. 

All drivers re-entered the track for the final push, and in a thrilling close to the session, Waters and Mostert challenged the lead before Stanaway clinched the best time. 

Brown crashed into the barriers on turn 11 during qualifying to set him back for the main race

Brown’s crash had a knock-on effect, with several other drivers colliding with his car

Unfortunately for Brown, his crash impacted Percat and Slade, who will start in 19th and 21st, respectively.

Cam Waters later delivered a standout performance in the Top-10 Shootout, securing pole position for the first 250km race with a 1:11.058s lap despite side contact with the wall. 

Waters, who won in Surfers Paradise last year, will start at the front of the grid, with Richie Stanaway close behind in second by 0.117 seconds. 

Championship contenders Mostert and Feeney will begin the race from the second row in third and fourth positions.

Tickford’s Thomas Randle finished fifth in the shootout, while reigning series champion Kostecki faced challenges, including a kerb strike that relegated him to 10th place. 

Payne also struggled after an off-track excursion at Turn 11, putting him ninth on the grid. 

The first race of the weekend kicks off at 4:15 pm.

Race 21 Top-10 Shootout Results:

Cam Waters (Tickford Racing)

Richie Stanaway (Grove Racing)

Chaz Mostert (Walkinshaw Andretti United)

Broc Feeney (Triple Eight Race Engineering)

Thomas Randle (Tickford Racing)

James Golding (PremiAir Nulon Racing)

James Courtney (Blanchard Team Racing)

David Reynolds (Team 18)

Matt Payne (Grove Racing)

Brodie Kostecki (Erebus Motorsport)