TRIPLE Eight’s first weekend at Taupō will prove the next litmus test amid the team’s switch from Chevrolet to Ford.
The team, through Broc Feeney, has taken race wins at both Supercars stops so far in 2026 at Sydney Motorsport Park and Albert Park.
However, their form swung wildly during the latter; while Feeney won a race and both he and teammate Will Brown claimed a pole position each, both also started races from outside the top 10.
Indeed, it was Feeney’s 11th-place start in the Sunday race that led him to be in the centre of carnage at turn 1 that forced him to retire and cost him his championship lead.
It also cost Triple Eight a chance to learn more about the different setup requirements of their new Mustangs compared to their old Camaros.
“We tried something pretty decent for that (Sunday) race hoping to learn something, which we learnt nothing,” Feeney told V8 Sleuth.
“I was sitting in the medical centre watching Will and Brodie (battle), and Will had all the same things going on that I had on (Saturday); getting loose into the corners and all that stuff while Brodie was just so fast in that middle sector.
“We’ve got a bit of work to do. Obviously, it’s just different and track dependent. We’re on a learning curve.
“It was fantastic to get a win, but it was just an up and down weekend where we sort of lacked a bit of pace.”
The tighter Taupō layout represents the next challenge for the Ford returnees.
It’s a track that has also delivered wildly swinging form in the team’s two visits to date.
Their Camaros were utterly peerless in dry conditions in 2024, with Brown besting his teammate in a head-to-head battle to win the Sunday race – one in which the third-placed car was almost 15 seconds adrift.
In contrast, neither Red Bull Ampol driver was a factor in last year’s event – the first to feature Dunlop’s new Supersoft tyre – with Feeney posting his worst qualifying result of the season on the Sunday with 20th.
“I’m looking forward to going to one of those tracks … a bit more slower, stop-start track, different to the first two, because even Sydney’s pretty flowy,” Feeney said.
“We struggled a bit in Taupō last year (although) we got a bit better towards the end of the weekend.
“I’m just keen to try and have a good weekend. Obviously two weekends back to back is going to be a lot of fun and hopefully everyone calms down a little bit and it’s a bit less chaotic.”