Cam Waters takes pole in rain-affected Taupo shootout

The Tickford Racing driver will share the front row with Triple Eight Race Engineering’s Will Brown, representing a gain of seven and five positions relative to where they had provisionally qualified, respectively.

Both were in fact fortunate to be among the early runners in the one-lap dash due to the influence of the weather at Taupo International Motorsport Park.

Whereas the morning’s qualifying session was mostly dry in the end, the track was genuinely wet for the one-lap dash, although the rain was light initially.

Waters (#6 Monster Energy Mustang) was third onto the race track and set a new benchmark of 1:34.7415s, after which championship leader Brown (#87 Red Bull Ampol Camaro) moved into second with a 1:35.2426s.

Rookie Ryan Wood was next for his very first Top 10 Shootout and, despite qualifying a provisional sixth, his 1:36.2890s in the #2 Mobil 1 Truck Assist Mustang was the slowest time of the session at that point.

That was when it became apparent, though, that the rain was getting heavier.

The trend of generally faster times began to reverse, with Cameron Hill (#4 Supaglass Camaro) sixth out and taking up sixth with a 1:36.9886s.

Proving just how challenging the conditions had become, Will Davison then nearly chucked the #17 Shell V-Power Mustang off the road at Turn 9 and would only set a 1:39.8783s.

Just Chaz Mostert, Anton De Pasquale, and Matt Payne were left in the shootout, and none were able to make a serious impact.

Waters and Brown thus stayed on the front row, with Andre Heimgartner vaulting from a provisional ninth to third on the grid in the #8 R&J Batteries Camaro.

Heimgartner, who set a 1:35.2789s, will share Row 2 with Tim Slade (#23 Nulon Camaro), whose opening lap of the shootout was a 1:35.5591s.

Wood ended up fifth and Hill remained sixth, from Mostert (#25 Mobil 1 Optus Mustang) on a 1:37.5455s, provisional pole-sitter Payne (#19 Penrite Mustang) on a 1:38.5470s, De Pasquale (#11 Shell V-Power Mustang) on a 1:39.4817s, and Davison.

Race 7 of the 2024 Repco Supercars Championship at the ITM Taupo Super400, to be run over 60 laps, is officially due to start at 15:05 local time/13:05 AEST.

Results: Top 10 Shootout for Race 7, ITM Taupo Super400