The Supercars Finals drivers of 2026. Image: Supplied
Supercars introduced a new championship format in 2025, splitting the season into three distinct parts – the Sprint Cup, the Enduro Cup, and the title-deciding Finals Series.
With the second edition of the Finals Series about to start, Speedcafe explains the championship format and what’s new in 2026.
REPCO SPRINT CUP
Colloquially known as the regular season, the Sprint Cup consists of the first nine rounds of the championship from Sydney to Ipswich.
At the end of nine rounds, the Sprint Cup is awarded to the driver who accumulates the most points.
They gain automatic entry into the Finals Series, regardless of how they perform in the Enduro Cup.
The Sprint Cup winner earns an additional 25 bonus points for the first round of the Finals Series, the Gold Coast 500.
The 2026 Repco Sprint Cup winner was Triple Eight driver Broc Feeney, who denied Grove Racing’s Matt Payne in a dramatic decider.
RYCO ENDURO CUP
The Enduro Cup takes place across The Bend 500 and Bathurst 1000. The highest points scorer across those two events wins the Enduro Cup and also punches a Finals Series ticket.
The Enduro Cup winner also earns an additional 25 bonus points for the first round of the Finals Series.
The 2026 Ryco Enduro Cup winner was Triple Eight’s Will Brown after finishes of fourth and second at The Bend and Bathurst respectively.
HOW TO QUALIFY FOR THE FINALS
A total of 10 drivers are to take part in the Finals Series. The only driver(s) guaranteed a Finals Series spot are the winner(s) of the Sprint Cup and Enduro Cup. The remaining spots are filled based on the highest overall points standings after the Bathurst 1000.
In the first instance, the top 10 drivers will qualify for the Finals Series. However, any driver outside the top 10 in points who wins the Enduro Cup can also book their place, eliminating the 10th-placed driver in points.
THE FINALS
The Finals consist of the Gold Coast, Sandown and Adelaide events, with drivers eliminated from Finals contention along the way.
Throughout the Finals, points will reset between each round, ensuring that every race is critical for the title contenders.
The 29026 Supercars Finals Series bracket.
WHAT’S NEW IN 2026?
For the second edition of the Finals Series, bonus points have been increased between Sandown and Adelaide.
The points leader at the end of Sandown will now enter Adelaide with 150 bonus points, with second receiving 120, third 96 and fourth 78.
That marks a modest increase in spread from the 50-30-15-0 weightings used in 2025 and brings the Adelaide structure in line with the bonuses used ahead of the Gold Coast and Sandown.
The only other change is that eliminated Finals Series drivers now revert to the points they finished on after the Bathurst 1000, plus whatever they accrued at subsequent rounds.
That means eliminated Finals drivers can subsequently be overtaken in the standings by drivers who did not make the finals cut.
Last year, anyone who missed out on the Finals could not finish any higher than 11th due to points being reset to 3000, 4000 and 5000 ahead of the respective finals rounds, plus additional seeding bonuses.
GOLD COAST 500 (10 DRIVERS)
The Finals Series starts with the Gold Coast 500, where all 10 finalists have their points reset to 3000.
Additional bonus points will be awarded based on regular season performance on a sliding scale (151–120–96–78–66–57–48–39–30–21) from first to 10th.
As previously mentioned, another 25 bonus points are awarded to the Sprint Cup and Enduro Cup winner(s).
Any driver from the 10 finalists who wins a race at the Gold Coast will be guaranteed a place at Sandown. Basically, it’s win-and-you’re-in.
At the end of the weekend, the three worst-placed drivers on points (8th, 9th, 10th) will be eliminated – unless they win either race on Saturday or Sunday, in which case the next worst-placed driver will be eliminated.
SUPERCARS FINAL SERIES POINTS ENTERING GOLD COAST 500
Pos
Num
Driver
Team
Wins
Poles
Points
Gap to cut
1
19
Matt Payne
Grove Racing
5
7
3150
102
2
88
Broc Feeney
Triple Eight Race Engineering
6
4
3145
97
3
888
Will Brown
Triple Eight Race Engineering
1
2
3103
55
4
17
Brodie Kostecki
Dick Johnson Racing
8
7
3096
48
5
26
Kai Allen
Grove Racing
2
0
3066
18
6
6
Cameron Waters
Tickford Racing
2
3
3057
9
7
18
Anton De Pasquale
Team 18
2
1
3048
0
8
1
Chaz Mostert
Walkinshaw TWG Racing
2
1
3039
-9
9
2
Ryan Wood
Walkinshaw TWG Racing
1
2
3030
-18
10
4
Jack Le Brocq
Matt Stone Racing
0
0
3021
-27
SANDOWN 500 (7 DRIVERS)
After the Gold Coast, 10 becomes seven for Sandown.
The points are reset to 4000 with bonus points applied to the finish order from the Gold Coast.
The highest-placed driver will receive 150 bonus points with bonuses descending from 120, 96, 78, 66, 57 down to 48 points for seventh.
The same win-and-you’re-in rules apply as the previous round.
Like the Gold Coast, the bottom three at the end of the Sandown weekend will be eliminated.
ADELAIDE 500 (FINAL FOUR)
After Sandown, just four drivers will be left for Adelaide.
Driver points will be reset to 5000, with descending bonus points (150, 120, 96, 78) based on the order at the end of the previous round.
The driver who ends the Adelaide Grand Final with the most points wins the championship.
HOW TO SPOT FINALISTS
Previously, only the championship leader wore an orange number. Now, the eligible Finals Series drivers will also sport orange numbers as an identifier for fans.
Non-Final Series drivers will wear yellow numbers.
WHAT ABOUT NON-FINALISTS?
As is currently the case, all drivers will continue to contest all races regardless of whether they are in championship contention or not.
Drivers who are not part of the Finals Series will still race for wins and podiums, which could throw a spanner in the works.
Supercars Gold Coast 500 – Schedule, free-to-air TV details, & more