Anton De Pasquale has returned to the top step of the podium, claiming an impressive victory in Sunday’s final race in Townsville.
 
With De Pasquale taking the race win in his Shell V-Power Racing Ford Mustang, the Championship battle also tightened with overnight leader Will Brown further down the field with a sixth-place finish to hold the narrowest of margins at the top of the Championship standings at the end of the 17th race of the season.
 
Sunday saw competitors enjoy another 250km around the tight street circuit as part of the popular NTI Townsville 500.
 
Fellow title contender and Brown’s Erebus teammate Brodie Kostecki enjoyed a much stronger Sunday after a trouble-plagued Saturday, finishing second behind De Pasquale allowing him to maintain second in the Championship and bridge the gap to Brown.


Rounding out the podium on a sunny Sunday afternoon was Brad Jones’ Racing’s Andre Heimgartner.
 
Both Red Bull Ampol Racing drivers Shane van Gisbergen and Broc Feeney enjoyed top 10 finishes of their own in the 88-lap race to ensure they remain well and truly in the hunt for the title behind the Coca Cola Racing pair of Brown and Kostecki. van Gisbergen’s fifth place finish an impressive result in his milestone 500th Supercars race, given he started from the rear of the grid after failing to set a representative time in qualifying earlier in the day.
 
Sunday’s win for De Pasquale was his first since July 2022 in Darwin, leaving him suitably impressed with his efforts after a difficult race on Saturday and a reversal in fortunes.
 
“It’s been an average year so far, so the guys worked all night fixing the problems from yesterday – I had an amazing car today and it was a dream to drive,” De Pasquale said.
 
“It’s good to get this one done and hopefully it’s a sign of things to come.”


 
Brown leads the Championship with 1357 points, seven points ahead of Kostecki on 1350 points. Feeney sits third on 1331, while reigning Champion van Gisbergen holds fourth place with 1285 points.
 
Supercars returns to action with the Beaurepaires Sydney SuperNight on 28-30 July, featuring racing under lights at Sydney Motorsport Park.