Ryan Wood “gutted” to miss out on maiden podium

Having made a Top 10 Shootout for the first time, the rookie spent the majority of the wet, 60-lap race running in the top four in the #2 Mobil 1 Truck Assist Mustang.

He might have got home in third spot if not for a moment on Lap 42 when he ceded position to Anton De Pasquale.

In the end, De Pasquale bagged the final podium place and Wood took the chequered flag just over a second behind.

“Probably like 20 [laps] to go and I was following Will [Davison] for second and I was running third and he went off and I aquaplaned off as well,” recalled the 20-year-old New Zealander.

“So, pretty gutted; one mistake the whole race and it cost us a trophy.

“So, sorry to the guys but pretty cool to be gutted with a fourth, but it would have been awesome to get a trophy at my home race.”

Wood’s mistake flew under the radar precisely because he was into an effective podium position when, seconds earlier, team-mate Chaz Mostert lost a wheel from his #25 Mobil 1 Optus Mustang.

“Obviously, pretty gutted for Car #25 as well,” said the Kiwi.

“[Mostert] Probably had the pace to, if not win the race, get a podium, for sure.

“[I’m] Pretty happy with P4; pretty action-packed race. There were some fast guys that got unlucky at the start, so a lot of positives to take out of today.”

Given his Repco Supercars Championship career is only seven races old, today was Wood’s first such encounter in wet conditions and he admitted he left a little bit on the table.

“I was pretty scared, you know, like [potentially] locking fronts and taking out the crew,” he said of the task of pitting on a wet surface.

“I took it pretty easy. That was probably where I lost a bit of time over the race to the other guys. I was pretty cautious on out laps and pit entries and stuff like that, but still, can’t really complain.”

Mostert, who threatened eventual winner Andre Heimgartner for much of the race, finished a lap down in 22nd position after crawling back to the pits for a new wheel.