V8 Supercars: Ryan Wood, Broc Feeney earn wins at Perth Super 440

A mechanical failure was all that stood between Supercars sophomore Ryan Wood and a day of perfection after the youngster earned his maiden pole position and race win in Perth on Saturday.

The 21-year-old’s day was the definition of the sporting rollercoaster, sparking emotional celebrations after claiming victory in race 14 before giving a devastating interview just hours later after the rear of his car gave out just after taking the lead in race 15.

It was also a frustrating, albeit better day, for hometown star Brodie Kostecki, who couldn’t make the most of qualifying third fastest for race 14, losing two spots while also coming home seventh as the sun set over Wanneroo in the day’s second 50-lap sprint.

Red Bull’s championship-leading form continued as Broc Feeney claimed victory in race 15 from teammate Will Brown.

After a near-perfect start in race 14, Wood didn’t handle the occasion in race 15 on pole, swamped after a slow jump and falling to third into the first corner.

Cam Waters, who took the lead, Wood and Matt Payne traded fastest laps as the trio vied for the podium places through the opening laps.

Wood had the lead back for the length of the start-finish straight on lap 19 but grabbed the position in earnest around the back of the hill on the entry to turn five the next lap.

It didn’t last long, despite pulling half a second up the road, as a suspension failure in the rear of his car at more than 200km/h speared him off the circuit.

Red Bull were quick to take advantage, pulling Brown and Broc Feeney into pit lane to dispose of the Super Softs and undercut the chasing pack.

Brown made a big lunge at Feeney after reentering the track, but his chances were few and far between as the championship leader stretched his lead to more than a second over the reigning champion.

Australia’s premier motorsport championship made a well-behaved start to the Perth Super 440 at Carco.com.au Raceway, with not a single flag flown or safety car deployed in the first race on Saturday.

Wood barely put a foot wrong after starting second on the grid, capturing the lead 10 laps in before fending off a roaring finish from Brown in the final five laps to salute in front of the West Australian faithful.

“My parents have sacrificed a lot for me to get here, and to achieve my life-long dream doesn’t feel real,” he told Fox Sports while holding back tears.

Kostecki left too much room for championship leader Broc Feeney on the inside to slip out of the podium places off the line.

It forced the Perth boy to settle in behind him, and he steadily lost time in the dirty air while also fending off Brown and Payne as they battled behind him.

A poor pitstop for Chaz Mostert saw he and the hometown hero renew hostilities, going bumper-to-bumper and crisscrossing into and out of turns seven and one before Kostecki lost out and settled for fifth.