SUPERCARS drivers get the chance to feel like celebrities during the Formula 1 Australian Grand Prix, says Triple Eight’s Broc Feeney.
While the Repco Bathurst 1000 is the crown jewel in the annual calendar, nothing compares to the sheer volume of people who come through the gates at Albert Park.
Last year’s event drew a record crowd of 444,631 as Formula 1 continues to ride a wave of popularity on the back of Netflix’s Drive to Survive series.
The Repco Supercars Championship is one of four categories supporting F1 this Thursday to Sunday, with its involvement headlined by four points-paying sprint races.
“The fans there are something that really stands out to me every year, when you race on Saturday afternoon or Sunday morning, you can just see the place is packed with fans,” said Feeney.
“For us, we feel like celebrities for the weekend with the amount of people who attend.
“My first win for 2023 was at Albert Park last year on the Sunday morning, it was pretty special to get the pole for the same race as well.
“Just getting to stand on the Formula 1 podium and have my dad up there with me was pretty cool. Hopefully, we can top it again this year.”
Although many are tipping the lack of compulsory pitstops to make qualifying even more decisive than usual, Feeney believes there’ll be plenty of opportunity for on-track overtakes.
“This year is even again more different than last year with no pitstops, which is going to make for some pretty interesting racing,” he noted.
“It very different from our normal Supercars tight, twisty tracks, it’s a very fast and flowing track with plenty of passing opportunities, which makes it pretty cool to race on.”
Feeney holds second in the standings, just behind teammate Will Brown, who has been eagerly soaking up predecessor Shane van Gisbergen’s tyre-saving secrets from engineer Andrew Edwards.
“It’s pretty cool leading into the weekend with orange numbers,” said Brown.
“It’s such a fast-flowing track, you’ve really got to make sure you don’t make a mistake because that could hinder the next corner. It’s just about hitting all your apexes and getting it right.”
