Wood takes tight final practice
By Thomas Miles
Date posted: 13 September 2025
Practice for the AirTouch 500 at The Bend is complete with Ryan Wood edging clear of Brodie Kostecki.
In a late pre-qualifying dash, Wood nailed a 1:49.2867 to sneak 0.0272s clear of Kostecki, while Broc Feeney was also less than a tenth away.
The likes of Thomas Randle, David Reynolds and Cameron Hill also showed speed in a clean fifth and final practice of the weekend.
Being the last, most teams, aside from BRT, took the opportunity to perform driver-change practice in the early minutes.
The #19 Grove Racing Mustang was not on track, however, having suffered starter motor issues.
This kept Matt Payne and Garth Tander sidelined for the first half of the session, losing valuable track time.
Triple Eight was able to repair the #1 Camaro after the teammate tangle in the morning, but only one lap was possible before more work was needed in the garage.
Courtney was fast early on, shooting up to second, but speared off at Turn 5 and got away with it.
Youngster Gray was the first into the 1m50s threshold, posting a 1:50.8303, which proved to be a tough time to knock off.
It took another 11 minutes for Mostert to be the first to join him.
For Gray to be beaten, De Pasquale had to soar into the 1m49s window.
His 1:49.9992 stood for 10 minutes until Brown announced the #1 was back on song by going 0.0648s faster.
These times were no match for Randle, who went a further tenth clear.
Bates had enough pace to rise into the top 15, but did have a moment where he followed his family’s footsteps and experienced a wild spin through the Turn 11 gravel.
The never-ending right-hander was proving to be tricky, with Heimgartner also finding the grass.
The intensity lifted with five minutes to go when cars were released for a final crack at one-lap pace before qualifying.
De Pasquale made the first move to go 0.0803s clear, but the best was yet to come.
Wood found a further four tenths by flying to the session-topping 1:49.2867.
Kostecki and Feeney fired challenges, but fell just short.
Allen, Randle and Hill all recorded purple sectors on their final attempts, but could not string the full laps together.
The stage is now set for qualifying at 15.05 ACST.
Supercars Practice 5 results
Pos Driver Time
1 Ryan Wood 1:49.2867
2 Brodie Kostecki +0.0272
3 Broc Feeney +0.0584
4 Thomas Randle +0.1540
5 David Reynolds +0.3508
6 Cameron Hill +0.4289
7 Anton De Pasquale +0.4374
8 Cameron Waters +0.4995
9 Kai Allen +0.6210
10 Chaz Mostert +0.6357
11 Will Brown +0.6477
12 Nick Percat +0.6497
13 Jack Le Brocq +0.7276
14 Andre Heimgartner +0.7634
15 Richie Stanaway +0.7969
16 James Courtney +0.8223
17 Aaron Cameron +0.9372
18 Jaxon Evans +1.0173
19 Zach Bates +1.0665
20 Will Davison +1.0959
21 Cameron Crick +1.1032
22 Macauley Jones +1.1162
23 Cooper Murray +1.1680
24 Bryce Fullwood +1.2140
25 James Golding +1.3716
26 Lochie Dalton +1.5436
27 Matt Payne +1.5700
Image: Peter Norton Epic Sports Photography
Practice 1: 1: A. Cameron/Z. Best 1:50.0617 2: T. Randle/Z. Best +0.0283 3: B. Kostecki/T. Hazelwood +0.3358
Practice 2: 1: Jamie Whincup 1:50.5875 2: Todd Hazelwood +0.2082 3: Dale Wood +0.3248
Practice 3: 1: Will Brown 1:48.9957 2: Broc Feeney +0.3210 3: Thomas Randle +0.3837
Practice 4: 1 James Moffat 1:50.7387 2 Lee Holdsworth +0.1864 3 Rylan Gray +0.2128
Practice 5: Saturday 12.00-12.40
Qualifying: Saturday 15.05-15.25
Top 10 Shootout: Saturday 16.50-17.30
Warm Up: Sunday 9.30-9.50
Race 26: Sunday 13.45-17.18 102 laps
Read the new issue of Auto Action Digital HERE
Buy the new issue of Auto Action Premium HERE
Don’t forget the print edition of Auto Action available via subscription here or you can purchase a copy of the latest issue from one of our outlets here.
Recent Stories
array (
0 =>
WP_Term::__set_state(array(
'term_id' => 11,
'name' => 'Latest News',
'slug' => 'latest-news',
'term_group' => 0,
'term_taxonomy_id' => 11,
'taxonomy' => 'category',
'description' => '',
'parent' => 0,
'count' => 16730,
'filter' => 'raw',
'cat_ID' => 11,
'category_count' => 16730,
'category_description' => '',
'cat_name' => 'Latest News',
'category_nicename' => 'latest-news',
'category_parent' => 0,
)),
1 =>
WP_Term::__set_state(array(
'term_id' => 38,
'name' => 'Supercars',
'slug' => 'supercars',
'term_group' => 0,
'term_taxonomy_id' => 38,
'taxonomy' => 'category',
'description' => 'The Supercars Championship, currently known as the Repco Supercars Championship, is the premier motorsport category in Australasia and one of Australia\'s biggest sports. It originated from the Australian Touring Car Championship (ATCC), which held its first race in 1960 at Gnoo-Blas in Orange, New South Wales. The ATCC evolved over the years, and in 1997, it was rebranded as the V8 Supercars Championship, eventually becoming the Supercars Championship we know today.
Some of the leading drivers in the history of the Supercars Championship include Peter Brock, who is often referred to as the "King of the Mountain" for his nine victories at the Bathurst 1000, a race that is considered one of the biggest in the series. Other notable drivers include Dick Johnson, Marcos Ambrose, Craig Lowndes, Shane van Gisbergen, Jamie Whincup, who holds the record for the most championship titles, and Mark Skaife, who has also been a dominant force in the series.
The Bathurst 1000, held at Mount Panorama Circuit in Bathurst, New South Wales, is arguably the most famous race in the Supercars calendar. Other significant races include the Sandown 500 and the Adelaide 500, which are known for their challenging circuits and thrilling competitions.
The Supercars Championship has grown to become a globally recognized series, known for its competitive racing and passionate fan base. It continues to be a major part of Australia\'s motorsport culture, attracting top drivers and teams from around the world.',
'parent' => 0,
'count' => 5600,
'filter' => 'raw',
'cat_ID' => 38,
'category_count' => 5600,
'category_description' => 'The Supercars Championship, currently known as the Repco Supercars Championship, is the premier motorsport category in Australasia and one of Australia\'s biggest sports. It originated from the Australian Touring Car Championship (ATCC), which held its first race in 1960 at Gnoo-Blas in Orange, New South Wales. The ATCC evolved over the years, and in 1997, it was rebranded as the V8 Supercars Championship, eventually becoming the Supercars Championship we know today.
Some of the leading drivers in the history of the Supercars Championship include Peter Brock, who is often referred to as the "King of the Mountain" for his nine victories at the Bathurst 1000, a race that is considered one of the biggest in the series. Other notable drivers include Dick Johnson, Marcos Ambrose, Craig Lowndes, Shane van Gisbergen, Jamie Whincup, who holds the record for the most championship titles, and Mark Skaife, who has also been a dominant force in the series.
The Bathurst 1000, held at Mount Panorama Circuit in Bathurst, New South Wales, is arguably the most famous race in the Supercars calendar. Other significant races include the Sandown 500 and the Adelaide 500, which are known for their challenging circuits and thrilling competitions.
The Supercars Championship has grown to become a globally recognized series, known for its competitive racing and passionate fan base. It continues to be a major part of Australia\'s motorsport culture, attracting top drivers and teams from around the world.',
'cat_name' => 'Supercars',
'category_nicename' => 'supercars',
'category_parent' => 0,
)),
2 =>
WP_Term::__set_state(array(
'term_id' => 2029,
'name' => 'ZZZ-Email',
'slug' => 'email',
'term_group' => 0,
'term_taxonomy_id' => 2029,
'taxonomy' => 'category',
'description' => '',
'parent' => 2031,
'count' => 7287,
'filter' => 'raw',
'cat_ID' => 2029,
'category_count' => 7287,
'category_description' => '',
'cat_name' => 'ZZZ-Email',
'category_nicename' => 'email',
'category_parent' => 2031,
)),
3 =>
WP_Term::__set_state(array(
'term_id' => 2031,
'name' => 'ZZZ-RSSFeeds',
'slug' => 'zzz-rssfeeds',
'term_group' => 0,
'term_taxonomy_id' => 2031,
'taxonomy' => 'category',
'description' => '',
'parent' => 0,
'count' => 6642,
'filter' => 'raw',
'cat_ID' => 2031,
'category_count' => 6642,
'category_description' => '',
'cat_name' => 'ZZZ-RSSFeeds',
'category_nicename' => 'zzz-rssfeeds',
'category_parent' => 0,
)),
)
