Ryal Harris passed title rival Tom Alexander for victory in the opening race of Round 7 of the ECB SuperUtes Series at the Vodafone Gold Coast 600.

Harris (Mazda BT-50) put an early move on Alexander (Isuzu D-Max) in the eight-lap encounter to snap up the lead before cruising to the chequered flag with a one-second advantage at the line.

Ben Walsh (Toyota Hilux) finished the race third, with Cameron Crick (Mitsubishi Triton) and Craig Woods (Toyota Hilux) completing the top five.

At the start, Alexander slotted into the lead from Armor All Pole Position, while Harris held on to second despite a challenge from Walsh through the first chicane.

Harris dive-bombed Alexander for the top spot at Turn 4 on Lap 2 to move into the lead.

Toby Price (Mitsubishi Triton) and Ben Falk (Mazda BT-50) battled over sixth before Gerard Maggs (Toyota Hilux) latched on to make it a three-car train.

On Lap 7, Price took the short-cut through the first chicane, having lost pace, which allowed Maggs past.

At the head of the field, Harris held a comfortable cushion to the chequered flag to take his seventh victory of the season.

The second race of the weekend for the SuperUtes takes place on Sunday at 0815 local time/0915 AEDT.

Results: Race 1