Why James Courtney cried after Supercars podium finish
James Courtney has already won a Supercars championship, but it was his third-place finish in Perth that brought him to tears.
The 2010 champion finally ended his two-year podium drought with a spirited drive in the final sprint race at Wanneroo Raceway on Sunday.
After qualifying 13th, the 44-year-old had found himself in a position to vie for the podium when Erebus rookie Cooper Murray brought out the yellow flag in the final 20 laps of the 200km race.
Murray's Chevrolet Camaro had come to a sudden halt after a mechanical failure.
Courtney showed his experience in the Blanchard Racing Team car and overtook in-form drivers Cam Waters and Ryan Wood to follow second-placed Matt Payne to the podium.
Championship leader Broc Feeney took back-to-back victories, but his feat was largely overshadowed by fan favourite Courtney's first podium since 2023 - claimed at the same racetrack.
Courtney was driving for Tickford when he last finished in the top three. His last race win was in 2016.
Well aware it's been a long time between drinks, Courtney says his podium finish is made even more special after "head-scratching and soul-searching" following dismal bottom-five results in New Zealand.
He gifted Blanchard Racing their first podium result since the team's entry in 2021.
Courtney wasn't the only driver to break through for a milestone, with second-year racer Wood claiming his first career win earlier in the weekend.
"I couldn't have been prouder of everyone. I got so emotional," Courtney said.
"I felt like I probably looked like Woody with his first win, but it was me crying for a third.
"It's been pretty dark without the lights on for a while, but we've managed to get the headlights back up and heading in the right direction.
"It's like being an alcoholic. You have to admit that, yeah, you've got a problem before you can fix it."
Team principal Tim Blanchard was just as relieved.
"The last 12 months since going to two cars has been a real struggle," Blanchard said.
"We've had some really challenging times. At times, we question why we're doing this.
"James kept making me come back."
Confident his best hasn't left him yet, Courtney is bent on finishing his final full-time season on a high.
The western Sydney product is set for life as a real estate agent after calling time on his career last year.
He made his debut in 2005 for Holden Racing Team as a co-driver before joining full-time the following season for Stone Brothers Racing
Courtney hasn't ruled out returning to co-driving.
"Might just mic drop it and never be seen again," Courtney joked.
"To be able to hopefully finish on a high and walk away from it when you're competitive, I don't want to be that guy where everyone's quietly saying, 'You need to pack it in'.
"I can pretty comfortably take off my hat at the end of this, happy with what I've done, and don't feel that I haven't achieved or need to do anything more."
Supercars heads to Darwin next from June 20 to 22, with Feeney holding a 72-point lead over reigning champion Will Brown.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
The Advertiser
23 minutes ago
- The Advertiser
Feeney snags double Darwin pole as teammate struggles
Championship leader Broc Feeney's dominance of Hidden Valley Raceway has continued, claiming pole position for the first two Supercars races of the weekend. The 22-year-old will lead the grid for both 120km races in Darwin on Saturday. But the biggest implication for the make-up of the leaderboard is the absence of Feeney's Triple Eight teammate Will Brown from the top 10 in both races. The reigning champion finished with the 14th fastest time in opening qualifying after botching the turn-six hairpin, but Brown couldn't identify what was causing his lack of pace on super soft tyres in the second session. "That lap I didn't really make any mistakes anywhere. I just sort of lost time throughout the lap," he told Fox Sports after securing 17th position. "It's just a bit of a difficult one when it's like that, it's better when you can really put your finger on exactly what it is and then there's not too much debriefing. But a session like that is a little bit hard." If anyone can recover from deep in the field to win it's Brown, but Feeney will be hard to catch at Hidden Valley as he looks to extend his 72-point championship lead over his teammate. Feeney has dominated at the venue in recent years, winning both races there in 2024 and another the year before. His one minute 5.984 second lap in the first session was the fastest of the weekend so far and nine-hundredths of a second faster than Cam Waters in second. Grove Racing's Matt Payne will start race 17 in third, ahead of Ryan Wood and Brodie Kostecki. Hometown hero Bryce Fullwood was the only other Camaro, other than Feeney, in the top 10 in opening qualifying. After Wood expressed concerns Ford engines were underspeed in the Darwin heat, there were no parity issues for the Blue Oval in the cooler conditions on Saturday morning. Mustangs will make up eight out of the top 10 to start Saturday's first race. But as the temperature rose throughout the morning, the resurgent Chevrolets reasserted their dominance, claiming seven of the top 10 spots in the second race. Times were slower with the super soft compounds underfoot in the second qualifying session, with Feeney securing the best time of one minute and 6.411. "I'm stoked. Double pole here was awesome," he said. "That session was probably a little bit more challenging. I feel like all year in the last part on the re-used tyre we're more competitive than the green (new) tyre on the super soft." Anton de Pasquale was five-hundredths behind in second, with Waters coming in third. Grove Racing rookie Kai Allen will start in the second row after snaring his best-ever qualifying result in fourth Chaz Mostert scraped into the top 10 for the first race but his championship hopes took a blow after hobbling to 23rd place in the second session. His struggles so far this weekend have contrasted with the fortunes of Walkinshaw Andretti United teammate Wood, who excelled in practice on Friday. "I'll have to put my hand up on this one. Probably steered the car down the wrong path this weekend so far," Mostert said. "Woody's been doing a fantastic job. There's a bit of data there for us. Probably both cars weren't quick enough on the supersoft." The first 120km race in Darwin gets underway at 12.15pm (AEST) before race 18 kicks off at 3.40pm (AEST). RACE 17 QUALIFYING RESULTS: 1. Broc Feeney (Triple Eight Race Engineering) 2. Cam Waters (Tickford Racing) 3. Matt Payne (Grove Racing) 4. Ryan Wood (Walkinshaw Andretti United) 5. Brodie Kostecki (Dick Johnson Racing) RACE 18 QUALIFYING RESULTS: 1. Broc Feeney (Triple Eight Race Engineering) 2. Anton De Pasquale (Team 18) 3. Cam Waters (Tickford Racing) 4. Kai Allen (Grove Racing) 5. Brodie Kostecki (Dick Johnson Racing) Championship leader Broc Feeney's dominance of Hidden Valley Raceway has continued, claiming pole position for the first two Supercars races of the weekend. The 22-year-old will lead the grid for both 120km races in Darwin on Saturday. But the biggest implication for the make-up of the leaderboard is the absence of Feeney's Triple Eight teammate Will Brown from the top 10 in both races. The reigning champion finished with the 14th fastest time in opening qualifying after botching the turn-six hairpin, but Brown couldn't identify what was causing his lack of pace on super soft tyres in the second session. "That lap I didn't really make any mistakes anywhere. I just sort of lost time throughout the lap," he told Fox Sports after securing 17th position. "It's just a bit of a difficult one when it's like that, it's better when you can really put your finger on exactly what it is and then there's not too much debriefing. But a session like that is a little bit hard." If anyone can recover from deep in the field to win it's Brown, but Feeney will be hard to catch at Hidden Valley as he looks to extend his 72-point championship lead over his teammate. Feeney has dominated at the venue in recent years, winning both races there in 2024 and another the year before. His one minute 5.984 second lap in the first session was the fastest of the weekend so far and nine-hundredths of a second faster than Cam Waters in second. Grove Racing's Matt Payne will start race 17 in third, ahead of Ryan Wood and Brodie Kostecki. Hometown hero Bryce Fullwood was the only other Camaro, other than Feeney, in the top 10 in opening qualifying. After Wood expressed concerns Ford engines were underspeed in the Darwin heat, there were no parity issues for the Blue Oval in the cooler conditions on Saturday morning. Mustangs will make up eight out of the top 10 to start Saturday's first race. But as the temperature rose throughout the morning, the resurgent Chevrolets reasserted their dominance, claiming seven of the top 10 spots in the second race. Times were slower with the super soft compounds underfoot in the second qualifying session, with Feeney securing the best time of one minute and 6.411. "I'm stoked. Double pole here was awesome," he said. "That session was probably a little bit more challenging. I feel like all year in the last part on the re-used tyre we're more competitive than the green (new) tyre on the super soft." Anton de Pasquale was five-hundredths behind in second, with Waters coming in third. Grove Racing rookie Kai Allen will start in the second row after snaring his best-ever qualifying result in fourth Chaz Mostert scraped into the top 10 for the first race but his championship hopes took a blow after hobbling to 23rd place in the second session. His struggles so far this weekend have contrasted with the fortunes of Walkinshaw Andretti United teammate Wood, who excelled in practice on Friday. "I'll have to put my hand up on this one. Probably steered the car down the wrong path this weekend so far," Mostert said. "Woody's been doing a fantastic job. There's a bit of data there for us. Probably both cars weren't quick enough on the supersoft." The first 120km race in Darwin gets underway at 12.15pm (AEST) before race 18 kicks off at 3.40pm (AEST). RACE 17 QUALIFYING RESULTS: 1. Broc Feeney (Triple Eight Race Engineering) 2. Cam Waters (Tickford Racing) 3. Matt Payne (Grove Racing) 4. Ryan Wood (Walkinshaw Andretti United) 5. Brodie Kostecki (Dick Johnson Racing) RACE 18 QUALIFYING RESULTS: 1. Broc Feeney (Triple Eight Race Engineering) 2. Anton De Pasquale (Team 18) 3. Cam Waters (Tickford Racing) 4. Kai Allen (Grove Racing) 5. Brodie Kostecki (Dick Johnson Racing) Championship leader Broc Feeney's dominance of Hidden Valley Raceway has continued, claiming pole position for the first two Supercars races of the weekend. The 22-year-old will lead the grid for both 120km races in Darwin on Saturday. But the biggest implication for the make-up of the leaderboard is the absence of Feeney's Triple Eight teammate Will Brown from the top 10 in both races. The reigning champion finished with the 14th fastest time in opening qualifying after botching the turn-six hairpin, but Brown couldn't identify what was causing his lack of pace on super soft tyres in the second session. "That lap I didn't really make any mistakes anywhere. I just sort of lost time throughout the lap," he told Fox Sports after securing 17th position. "It's just a bit of a difficult one when it's like that, it's better when you can really put your finger on exactly what it is and then there's not too much debriefing. But a session like that is a little bit hard." If anyone can recover from deep in the field to win it's Brown, but Feeney will be hard to catch at Hidden Valley as he looks to extend his 72-point championship lead over his teammate. Feeney has dominated at the venue in recent years, winning both races there in 2024 and another the year before. His one minute 5.984 second lap in the first session was the fastest of the weekend so far and nine-hundredths of a second faster than Cam Waters in second. Grove Racing's Matt Payne will start race 17 in third, ahead of Ryan Wood and Brodie Kostecki. Hometown hero Bryce Fullwood was the only other Camaro, other than Feeney, in the top 10 in opening qualifying. After Wood expressed concerns Ford engines were underspeed in the Darwin heat, there were no parity issues for the Blue Oval in the cooler conditions on Saturday morning. Mustangs will make up eight out of the top 10 to start Saturday's first race. But as the temperature rose throughout the morning, the resurgent Chevrolets reasserted their dominance, claiming seven of the top 10 spots in the second race. Times were slower with the super soft compounds underfoot in the second qualifying session, with Feeney securing the best time of one minute and 6.411. "I'm stoked. Double pole here was awesome," he said. "That session was probably a little bit more challenging. I feel like all year in the last part on the re-used tyre we're more competitive than the green (new) tyre on the super soft." Anton de Pasquale was five-hundredths behind in second, with Waters coming in third. Grove Racing rookie Kai Allen will start in the second row after snaring his best-ever qualifying result in fourth Chaz Mostert scraped into the top 10 for the first race but his championship hopes took a blow after hobbling to 23rd place in the second session. His struggles so far this weekend have contrasted with the fortunes of Walkinshaw Andretti United teammate Wood, who excelled in practice on Friday. "I'll have to put my hand up on this one. Probably steered the car down the wrong path this weekend so far," Mostert said. "Woody's been doing a fantastic job. There's a bit of data there for us. Probably both cars weren't quick enough on the supersoft." The first 120km race in Darwin gets underway at 12.15pm (AEST) before race 18 kicks off at 3.40pm (AEST). RACE 17 QUALIFYING RESULTS: 1. Broc Feeney (Triple Eight Race Engineering) 2. Cam Waters (Tickford Racing) 3. Matt Payne (Grove Racing) 4. Ryan Wood (Walkinshaw Andretti United) 5. Brodie Kostecki (Dick Johnson Racing) RACE 18 QUALIFYING RESULTS: 1. Broc Feeney (Triple Eight Race Engineering) 2. Anton De Pasquale (Team 18) 3. Cam Waters (Tickford Racing) 4. Kai Allen (Grove Racing) 5. Brodie Kostecki (Dick Johnson Racing)
7NEWS
2 hours ago
- 7NEWS
Broc Feeney snags double Darwin pole as Triple Eight teammate Will Brown struggles
Championship leader Broc Feeney's dominance of Hidden Valley Raceway has continued, claiming pole position for the first two Supercars races of the weekend. The 22-year-old will lead the grid for both 120km races in Darwin on Saturday. But the biggest implication for the make-up of the leaderboard is the absence of Feeney's Triple Eight teammate Will Brown from the top 10 in both races. The reigning champion finished with the 14th fastest time in opening qualifying after botching the turn-six hairpin, but Brown couldn't identify what was causing his lack of pace on super soft tyres in the second session. 'That lap I didn't really make any mistakes anywhere. I just sort of lost time throughout the lap,' he said after securing 17th position. 'It's just a bit of a difficult one when it's like that, it's better when you can really put your finger on exactly what it is and then there's not too much debriefing. But a session like that is a little bit hard.' If anyone can recover from deep in the field to win it's Brown, but Feeney will be hard to catch at Hidden Valley as he looks to extend his 72-point championship lead over his teammate. Feeney has dominated at the venue in recent years, winning both races there in 2024 and another the year before. His one minute 5.984 second lap in the first session was the fastest of the weekend so far and nine-hundredths of a second faster than Cam Waters in second. Grove Racing's Matt Payne will start race 17 in third, ahead of Ryan Wood and Brodie Kostecki. Hometown hero Bryce Fullwood was the only other Camaro, other than Feeney, in the top 10 in opening qualifying. After Wood expressed concerns Ford engines were underspeed in the Darwin heat, there were no parity issues for the Blue Oval in the cooler conditions on Saturday morning. Mustangs will make up eight out of the top 10 to start Saturday's first race. But as the temperature rose throughout the morning, the resurgent Chevrolets reasserted their dominance, claiming seven of the top 10 spots in the second race. Times were slower with the super soft compounds underfoot in the second qualifying session, with Feeney securing the best time of one minute and 6.411. 'I'm stoked. Double pole here was awesome,' he said. 'That session was probably a little bit more challenging. I feel like all year in the last part on the re-used tyre we're more competitive than the green (new) tyre on the super soft.' Anton de Pasquale was five-hundredths behind in second, with Waters coming in third. Grove Racing rookie Kai Allen will start in the second row after snaring his best-ever qualifying result in fourth Chaz Mostert scraped into the top 10 for the first race but his championship hopes took a blow after hobbling to 23rd place in the second session. His struggles so far this weekend have contrasted with the fortunes of Walkinshaw Andretti United teammate Wood, who excelled in practice on Friday. 'I'll have to put my hand up on this one. Probably steered the car down the wrong path this weekend so far,' Mostert said. 'Woody's been doing a fantastic job. There's a bit of data there for us. Probably both cars weren't quick enough on the supersoft.' The first 120km race in Darwin gets underway at 12.15pm (AEST) before race 18 kicks off at 3.40pm (AEST). RACE 17 QUALIFYING RESULTS 1. Broc Feeney (Triple Eight Race Engineering) 2. Cam Waters (Tickford Racing) 3. Matt Payne (Grove Racing) 4. Ryan Wood (Walkinshaw Andretti United) 5. Brodie Kostecki (Dick Johnson Racing) RACE 18 QUALIFYING RESULTS 1. Broc Feeney (Triple Eight Race Engineering) 2. Anton De Pasquale (Team 18) 3. Cam Waters (Tickford Racing) 4. Kai Allen (Grove Racing) 5. Brodie Kostecki (Dick Johnson Racing) How to watch Supercars on Seven Darwin Triple Crown Saturday from 12pm AEST live and free on Seven, 7mate and 7plus sport Sunday from 12pm AEST live and free on Seven, 7mate and 7plus sport
Perth Now
3 hours ago
- Perth Now
Feeney snags double Darwin pole as teammate struggles
Championship leader Broc Feeney's dominance of Hidden Valley Raceway has continued, claiming pole position for the first two Supercars races of the weekend. The 22-year-old will lead the grid for both 120km races in Darwin on Saturday. But the biggest implication for the make-up of the leaderboard is the absence of Feeney's Triple Eight teammate Will Brown from the top 10 in both races. The reigning champion finished with the 14th fastest time in opening qualifying after botching the turn-six hairpin, but Brown couldn't identify what was causing his lack of pace on super soft tyres in the second session. "That lap I didn't really make any mistakes anywhere. I just sort of lost time throughout the lap," he told Fox Sports after securing 17th position. "It's just a bit of a difficult one when it's like that, it's better when you can really put your finger on exactly what it is and then there's not too much debriefing. But a session like that is a little bit hard." If anyone can recover from deep in the field to win it's Brown, but Feeney will be hard to catch at Hidden Valley as he looks to extend his 72-point championship lead over his teammate. Feeney has dominated at the venue in recent years, winning both races there in 2024 and another the year before. His one minute 5.984 second lap in the first session was the fastest of the weekend so far and nine-hundredths of a second faster than Cam Waters in second. Grove Racing's Matt Payne will start race 17 in third, ahead of Ryan Wood and Brodie Kostecki. Hometown hero Bryce Fullwood was the only other Camaro, other than Feeney, in the top 10 in opening qualifying. After Wood expressed concerns Ford engines were underspeed in the Darwin heat, there were no parity issues for the Blue Oval in the cooler conditions on Saturday morning. Mustangs will make up eight out of the top 10 to start Saturday's first race. But as the temperature rose throughout the morning, the resurgent Chevrolets reasserted their dominance, claiming seven of the top 10 spots in the second race. Times were slower with the super soft compounds underfoot in the second qualifying session, with Feeney securing the best time of one minute and 6.411. "I'm stoked. Double pole here was awesome," he said. "That session was probably a little bit more challenging. I feel like all year in the last part on the re-used tyre we're more competitive than the green (new) tyre on the super soft." Anton de Pasquale was five-hundredths behind in second, with Waters coming in third. Grove Racing rookie Kai Allen will start in the second row after snaring his best-ever qualifying result in fourth Chaz Mostert scraped into the top 10 for the first race but his championship hopes took a blow after hobbling to 23rd place in the second session. His struggles so far this weekend have contrasted with the fortunes of Walkinshaw Andretti United teammate Wood, who excelled in practice on Friday. "I'll have to put my hand up on this one. Probably steered the car down the wrong path this weekend so far," Mostert said. "Woody's been doing a fantastic job. There's a bit of data there for us. Probably both cars weren't quick enough on the supersoft." The first 120km race in Darwin gets underway at 12.15pm (AEST) before race 18 kicks off at 3.40pm (AEST). RACE 17 QUALIFYING RESULTS: 1. Broc Feeney (Triple Eight Race Engineering) 2. Cam Waters (Tickford Racing) 3. Matt Payne (Grove Racing) 4. Ryan Wood (Walkinshaw Andretti United) 5. Brodie Kostecki (Dick Johnson Racing) RACE 18 QUALIFYING RESULTS: 1. Broc Feeney (Triple Eight Race Engineering) 2. Anton De Pasquale (Team 18) 3. Cam Waters (Tickford Racing) 4. Kai Allen (Grove Racing) 5. Brodie Kostecki (Dick Johnson Racing)
