Nick Percat ends four-year victory drought in Melbourne

Nick Percat ended both his own four-year victory drought and Triple Eight Race Engineering’s dominance in the fourth and final Supercars Championship race at Albert Park.

Walkinshaw Andretti United driver Chaz Mostert started from pole but was passed by Matthew Payne of Grove Racing before the first corner.

Payne held the lead until mid-point of the race when Mostert locked up and hit the rear of Payne’s Ford Mustang, sending them both off onto the grass.

This saw Percat, Broc Feeney and Cameron Waters slipping past, while Payne dropped to fourth and Mostert to sixth behind Will Brown.

The race went from bad to worse for Payne who was hit by Bruce Fullwood a lap later at Turn 1. Fullwood spun and dropped down to finish 14th.

The two incidents meant a pair of five-second penalties for Mostert and Fullwood.

Triple Eight driver Feeney pushed Percat hard for the lead, getting past at one point on lap eight, only for Percat to retake the position a corner later.

Feeney instead came under pressure from team-mate Brown who was able to snatch second place on the same lap.

Brown gained on Percat but could not get past, finishing just three tenths behind in second place while Percat took his first win in four years.

Feeney finished third while Tickford Racing driver Thomas Randle was a distant fourth, close to ten seconds adrift.

Mostert and Will Davison (Dick Johnson Racing) rounded off the top six.

Brown heads the standings on 575 points, with Feeney second on 558 and Mostert third on 478.

The next Supercars Championship round will take place in New Zealand at Taupō Motorsport Park on April 20-21.