Holdsworth claims pole for TCR opener

Lee Holdsworth has taken pole position at his first attempt in the Supercheap Auto TCR Australia Series, at Symmons Plains.

Having topped both practice sessions a day prior, the Ashley Seward Motorsport driver wheeled Car #10 to the fastest lap in both parts of qualifying for the hot hatch category at Boost Mobile Race Tasmania.

The latter, 10-minute stanza looked like being a battle for supremacy between Holdsworth and Chaz Mostert, although they were separated in the end by Jordan Cox and Jay Hanson, making for yet another all-Alfa Romeo top three.

Qualifying 2 was initially a stoush between Mostert and fellow Melbourne Performance Centre Audi driver Luke King for top spot.

The Bathurst 1000 winner finally wrested that from King with a 55.7829s on his fourth flyer, only for Holdsworth to better him two laps later with the 55.5456s that would ultimately be pole.

Hanson then temporarily made it an ASM front row lockout with a 55.7251s before they were split by Cox’s 55.6387s in his Garry Rogers Motorsport entry, just before the chequered flag.

Mostert therefore ended up fourth and Michael Caruso, in another GRM Giulietta, fifth.

King was shuffled back to sixth and Aaron Cameron seventh, the latter having raised eyebrows in both sessions when he drove his GRM Peugeot all the way through the gravel trap beyond the hairpin and onto the grass verge on driver’s right.

Rounding out the top 10 were the Hyundais of Brad Shiels and Josh Buchan respectively, and James Moffat.

The latter made it out of Qualifying 1 in relatively comfortable fashion, but his Renault lost power just as that session drew to a close and Moffat would take no further part in proceedings.

Tony D’Alberto was best of the quartet of Honda drivers in 11th position, missing the cut at the end of the initial, 15-minute hit-out by just under a tenth of a second.

The first race of the season starts at 16:58 local time/AEDT.

Results: Qualifying 2

Results: Qualifying 1