De Pasquale prevails as Waters claims Triple crown

Anton De Pasquale delivered Team 18 a timely breakthrough victory at Hidden Valley Raceway on Sunday, holding off Grove Racing’s Matt Payne to win the final race of the 2026 Darwin Triple Crown, while Cam Waters claimed the prestigious Triple Crown trophy after a standout weekend in the Northern Territory.

The homologation team Chevrolet driver used a smart strategy call and strong race pace to convert a front-row challenge into victory, ending a frustrating run of near misses and giving Team 18 its second win of the season.

De Pasquale said the result was reward for a team willing to take a bigger setup gamble after struggling to convert qualifying speed into race results earlier in the weekend.

“We had some good speed and were just trying to put it all together,” De Pasquale said.

“Today we took a bigger swing than probably normal and had a really good race car. The boys did an awesome stop as well, which got us to clean air in front, and the car was fast enough to hold on.”

The victory was built during the opening pit-stop cycle, where Team 18 gained track position and allowed De Pasquale to control the race from the front. A late Safety Car ensured the race finished under caution, locking in the result.

Payne finished second after another strong performance for Grove Racing, while Waters completed the podium to secure enough points to claim the Triple Crown title.

Although disappointed not to challenge more strongly for victory, Payne was pleased with Grove Racing’s overall weekend.

“For us, it’s a good points haul,” Payne said.

“A little bit disappointed that we didn’t get the win today, but it’s still really good points for the team.”

The result moved Payne to within 15 points of championship leader Broc Feeney heading into next month’s Townsville 500.

The Darwin weekend had largely belonged to Ford before Sunday’s finale. Tickford’s Waters snapped a 46-race winless streak with victory on Friday, while rising star Kai Allen continued his impressive sophomore campaign by taking Grove Racing’s Mustang to victory on Saturday. The pair ensured Ford claimed the opening two races of the weekend and headed into Sunday’s 200km feature as the manufacturer to beat.

Allen’s Saturday success marked the second Supercars victory of his young career and highlighted the strength of the Ford contingent throughout the weekend. Mustang drivers secured pole position for all three races and collected the majority of the trophies on offer, while Grove Racing’s consistency saw the team emerge from Darwin at the top of the teams’ championship standings.

While De Pasquale took Sunday’s silverware, the biggest prize of the weekend belonged to Waters, who combined a win, two additional podium finishes and two pole positions to secure his first Darwin Triple Crown title.

“It’s a weight lifted off my shoulders. The hard work finally paid off,” Waters said.

“A massive thank you to my whole team for digging deep. Obviously it’s been a tough year. To get a win and a couple of poles is awesome; we really needed that.”

Waters said Tickford Racing’s turnaround had been built on persistence and continuous improvement.

“This year has been obviously very challenging for us at Tickford, but I’ve been grinding away,” Waters said.

“To have a weekend like this when we’ve had really good car speed every session on different tyres, and to get a win and two other podiums, it’s awesome.”

The weekend also featured late driver changes, with Brodie Kostecki sidelined through illness and Thomas Randle ruled unfit to race due to heat-related issues. Todd Hazelwood substituted for Kostecki and finished 12th, while former champion Mark Winterbottom stepped out of the television commentary box to drive Randle’s Tickford Mustang.

The Repco Supercars Championship now heads to the NTI Townsville 500 on July 10-12, where Payne will continue his pursuit of Feeney in the Sprint Cup standings and Waters will look to build on his Darwin momentum.