Best on Bathurst Super2 pole despite hitting wall

Tickford Racing’s Zak Best has qualified on pole position for the Bathurst Dunlop Super2 Series opener in a session which he finished by hitting the wall exiting The Chase.

The Benalla driver was living dangerously in the 15-minute hit-out for the Super2 class which finalised the starting grid for Race 1 of Round 5, bumping the concrete on the way into McPhillamy Park on his first run.

It was with pole already wrapped up, however, that he stepped wide in the #78 FGX Falcon and slapped the wall on his way out of The Chase complex before crabbing back to the pits.

That saved a red flag and means Best will share the front row with MW Motorsport’s Tyler Everingham, ahead of a second row of Triple Eight Race Engineering’s Cameron Hill and Grove Racing’s Matt Payne.

Series leader Declan Fraser qualified fifth in the #777 Triple Eight VF Commodore and will be joined on Row 3 by Eggleston Motorsport’s Matt McLean.

Under cloudy skies but on a dry track, Hill (#111 VF Commodore) set the fastest initial flyer in the Super2 half of the session, a 2:06.8585s.

Only he was faster then than Kai Allen had gone in the Super3 segment before Best clocked a 2:05.5633s next time through on a green set of tyres.

Everingham took up second place with a 2:06.4640s and then a 2:05.7751s despite big splitter flap from the #27 Nissan Altima, as Hill returned to the pits.

When he came back out, he improved, but only to third position on a 2:06.3507s after a big understeer moment into The Dipper, while Fraser was only 10th when the chequered flag came out.

The series leader then jumped to fourth on a 2:06.6951s before Payne (#10 Nissan Altima) pushed him off Row 2 with a 2:06.6542s, while practice fast man McLean (#54 VF Commodore) ended up sixth on a 2:06.8315s.

Jay Hanson (#49 Image Racing VF Commodore) claimed seventh, from Angelo Mouzouris (#6 MWM Nissan Altima) and Aaron Seton (#30 Matt Stone Racing VF Commodore).

Earlier, in the Super3 half of the session, Eggleston’s Allen dominated proceedings as he lapped as quickly as 2:07.4534s in the #26 VE Commodore.

That left him 1.5453s up on title rival Brad Vaughan (#5 Anderson Motorsport FG Falcon), with those two set to start 10th and 16th outright, among the 16 Super2 class entries.

Race 1, an 18-lapper, is set to get underway this afternoon at 15:10 local time/AEDT.

Results: Qualifying for Race 1

Classes: S2 Super2, CH Super3 Championship, SC3 Super3 Cup, HC Super3 Heritage Class