Townsville 500: Kostecki secures pole for Race 21 ...

By Oliver Bennett / 11.07.2026

By Oliver Bennett — 11 July 2026 — 3 min read

Kostecki claims pole position

Brodie Kostecki of the Shell V-Power Racing Team has secured pole position for Race 21 of the 2026 NTI Townsville 500. He outpaced championship leader Matt Payne by just 0.1s. Thomas Randle from Tickford Racing was a notable qualifier, taking third place, ahead of Toyota driver Ryan Wood.

The 68-lap Race 21 is scheduled to begin at 3:05pm AEST. Coverage will be available live through Fox, KAYO, Sky NZ, Seven, and SuperView.

Strategy gamble in previous race

In a prior race, Brodie Kostecki‘s bold strategy call nearly resulted in a victory, despite a poor start for his #17 Mustang. After starting on pole, a slow start saw Kostecki drop to fourth position. Matt Payne then overtook Chaz Mostert for second on lap 3, with Kostecki also moving past Mostert into third.

On the subsequent lap, Kostecki passed Payne at the same corner to claim second place and began to pursue Cam Waters. Payne and Waters made their pit stops on laps 17 and 18, respectively. Kostecki and his engineer, George Commins, opted to extend their run, keeping Kostecki out until lap 24, after which the #17 Ford rejoined the race in fourth.

Kostecki then passed Kai Allen before following Payne, eventually making a move with two laps remaining to secure second place. Commins explained that the team had a pre-planned strategy to run longer if a competitor pitted earlier than desired, aiming for a five or six-lap overlap to try and gain an advantage. He stated, “We had planned beforehand that if somebody went a bit earlier than what we were wanting to do, then we’d look for like a little five, six lap overlap and try and come back. And that’s what we did.”

Kostecki demonstrated sufficient pace to challenge his Ford rivals, marking a strong return after missing the Darwin finale due to illness. Commins noted that while leading from the start would have been preferable, the extended run was considered their best chance to fight back. Kostecki‘s performance reduced his deficit to the championship leader from 203 to 179 points, with Payne taking over the championship lead from Broc Feeney.

Grid positions for Race 21

The starting grid for Race 21 of the 2026 NTI Townsville 500 features a mix of contenders and those facing a challenge from further back. Will Brown and Broc Feeney, both driving Red Bull Ampol Mustangs, are set to start from 12th and 18th positions, respectively.

The full starting grid is as follows: