I think it's possible if you take very long flights (e.g. US-DOH-Aus) and higher fare bucket (e.g. Business Comfort or Elite) or when there's double Qpoints promotion. I do enjoy OP's detailed review of his experience, and agree it's more difficult to find upgrades (and upgrade availability also depends on route, with those to/from US and Western Europe being more limited).

However, I do find gaining status on QRPC is easier compared to many other FFP. With QRPC it's even possible to obtain status with just 1-2 flights on higher fare bucket / during promotion, as illustrated above.