![\"Supercars](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/10\/Supercars-GoldCoast-Sunday-211-copy.jpg\")
\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tJarrod Hughes on track in his Erebus Motorsport Chevrolet Camaro at the Gold Coast 500. Image: InSyde Media<\/p>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tJarrod Hughes on track in his Erebus Motorsport Chevrolet Camaro at the Gold Coast 500. Image: InSyde Media<\/p>\n
De Pasquale will head to Sandown as the sole Chevrolet driver still in contention for the title after escaping elimination in Sunday\u2019s Gold Coast race.<\/p>\n
He only did so by the skin of his teeth, a poor qualifying effort compounded by a first lap stop to replace a damaged tyre putting him on the back foot.<\/p>\n
He did manage to climb high enough in the field to force a tie-breaker with Ryan Wood<\/a> in the closing stages of the race, only for his path to Sandown to be cleared when fellow Camaro drivers Jarrod Hughes and Cooper Murray<\/a> \u2013 neither in Finals contention \u2013 made unscheduled late stops for fuel from top 10 positions.<\/p>\n That immediately prompted concerns that the stops were unnecessary and were instead a ploy from Chevrolet to ensure De Pasquale progressed to Sandown.<\/p>\n Team orders are legal in Supercars, but only from within a single team.<\/p>\n The Supercars operations manual includes a rule written specifically to avoid manufacturers getting involved in team orders.<\/p>\n It reads: \u201cIt is not permitted for any sponsor, supplier, entity or related entity, including an automobile manufacturer, importer or their representative to impose or seek to impose team orders, on any team\u201d.<\/p>\n Supercars prioritised fuel checks on the Hughes and Murray Camaros after the Gold Coast race and quickly established that the late stops were necessary rather than strategic.<\/p>\n \u201cI can tell you that we have pumped the fuel out of both of those cars, and had they not done the third pitstop they wouldn\u2019t have finished the race,\u201d Supercars motorsport boss Tim Edwards told Speedcafe.<\/p>\n \u201cI can tell you, if they had not put the 15 litres, roughly, that they put in their cars, they would not have finished the race.<\/p>\n \u201cWe always do pump-outs and clearly we see triggers like that and we go \u2018okay, why did they stop and how much was left in the car?\u2019.<\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s a bit like if somebody has gone long, and we\u2019ll be doing capacity checks on a couple of cars tonight because they appeared to be able to go longer than others.<\/p>\n \u201cYou are always looking for triggers as to why we\u2019ll go and scrutineer those cars.<\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s our job to be suspicious. We\u2019re always suspicious about lots of things on lots of occasions.<\/p>\n \u201cWas I any more suspicious of that than others? You will never know. Our job is to be suspicious.\u201d<\/p>\n When asked if he had come into the weekend suspecting gamesmanship would be an issue, Edwards said: \u201cNot the scenario you\u2019re talking about, but teams \u2013 you saw it with the Walkinshaw cars \u2013 working together to try and achieve an outcome.<\/p>\n \u201cTeams learnt a lot from the Finals last year about how to approach it and you saw evidence of that today.\u201d<\/p>\n The reference to the Walkinshaw cars relates to a case of blatant, and entirely legal, use of team orders by the factory Toyota squad as it looked to help Ryan Wood progress to Sandown.<\/p>\n At one point, third-placed Chaz Mostert<\/a> was asked to drop 10 seconds back to promote Wood to the podium, while Mostert played rear gunner to keep Andre Heimgartner<\/a> at bay.<\/p>\n That briefly put Wood ahead of De Pasquale above the cut line.<\/p>\n Once it became clear that it wouldn\u2019t be enough for Wood, he let Mostert back through to ensure the reigning champion would hold fourth seed heading to Sandown.<\/p>\n That gamesmanship is not something Edwards has any issue with.<\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s always happened,\u201d he added.<\/p>\n \u201cIt could be the last race of the season and someone is doing that to help a teammate win the championship. That\u2019s happened before.<\/p>\n \u201cDo we get more examples of that because of the Finals? Possibly, because you\u2019ve got a mini final at the end of all of these races. We\u2019re now seeing more evidence of that.\u201d<\/p>\n Matt Payne<\/a>, Broc Feeney<\/a>, Brodie Kostecki<\/a>, Mostert, Will Brown<\/a>, Cam Waters and De Pasquale will head to Sandown in contention for the title.<\/p>\n