Craig Baird has lead home fellow Kiwi Jonny Reid in Race 1 of the City Index Carrera Cup at Mount Panorama today.
The defending champion welcomed onboard his new sponsor Arvo beer in the best possible fashion, leading from start to finish in the eight lap sprint race.
Reid worked hard to earn his second placing, having to defend attacks from Steven Richards and dutch import Jeroen Bleekemolen, who placed third and fourth.
Team Norton V8 Supercar co-driver Alex Davison finished in fifth position ahead of Daniel Gaunt in the Wilson Security-backed 911 GT3.
Gaunt had to take to the grass at The Chase on Lap 1 to avoid a spinning Troy Wilson, forcing him to fight his way back up the order.
Team BRM’s Nick Foster was running strongly in fifth place until he was spun by Hunter Sport Group’s Ant Pederson at Griffins Bend on Lap 7.
The contact dropped Foster to 12th while Pederson failed to finish in the second Hunter Sports Group entry.
Race 2 is due to start at 1730 AEST, with thunderstorms forecast to hit the area around the same time.