

Christopher Mies produced an impressive display to secure pole position for the opening round of the Australian GT Championship.
The reigning champion once again showed his class in what was an incident packed session at the Adelaide Parklands circuit.
Mies, driving the #1 Jamec Pem Audi R8, steadily improved throughout the hit-out before lowering his best time to 1:20.2s.
The new lap record proved to be 0.6s quicker than the next best belonging to the new Scott Taylor Motorsport Mercedes AMG GT3 of Craig Baird.
Tekno Autosports’ Nathan Antunes will share the second row alongside the squad’s sister McLaren 650S piloted by Nathan Morcom.
Marcus Marshall was lucky to avoid damage when he spun the Supabarn Supermarkets Audi R8 at Turn 1 before ending the session in fifth.
The Lamborghini Extenso of Roger Lago was sixth while Klark Quinn (McLaren 650S), Dominic Storey (Mercedes AMG GT3), John Martin (Porshce 911 GT3-R) and Matt Solomon (Mercedes AMG GT3) rounded out the top 10.
Meanwhile, former full-time V8 Supercars driver Jonathon Webb was 11th fastest ahead of the Andrew Taplin/Dean Canto Lamborghini. The BMW Team SRM M6 GT3 driven by Steven Richards was 14th fastest.
Mark Griffith endured a difficult qualifying session after clouting the wall twice in his brand new Mercedes AMG GT3.
It proved to be an eventful day for AMAC Motorsport after a heavy crash in opening practice rendered its Porsche out of action.
Luckily the team was able to deploy its spare 911 GT3-R for qualifying which resulted in 25th spot on the 26 car grid.
The opening race of the Australian GT Championship is scheduled to begin at 12:25 local time on Friday.
Result: Australian GT Combined Qualifying
1 | JAMEC PEM Racing | C.Mies/G.Emery | Audi R8 LMS | 1:20.2039R | |
2 | Scott Taylor Motorsport | S.Taylor/C.Baird | Mercedes Benz AMG GT | 1:20.6530r | 00.4491 |
3 | Tekno | N.Antunes/E.Barbour | McLaren 650S GT3 | 1:20.8621 | 00.6582 |
4 | Tekno | Nathan Morcom | McLaren 650S GT3 | 1:21.0813 | 00.8774 |
5 | Supabarn Supermarkets | J.Koundouris/M.Marshall | Audi R8 LMS | 1:21.3064 | 01.1025 |
6 | JBS Australia | Roger Lago (QLD) | Lamborghini R-EX | 1:21.3496 | 01.1457 |
7 | Darrell Lea | K.Quinn/T.Quinn | McLaren 650S GT3 | 1:21.5231 | 01.3192 |
8 | Eggleston Motorsport | P.Hackett/D.Storey | Mercedes Benz AMG GT | 1:21.5632 | 01.3593 |
9 | Waltec Motorsport | John Martin | Porsche 997 GT3-R | 1:21.5703 | 01.3664 |
10 | Eggleston Motorsport | Matthew Solomon | Mercedes Benz AMG GT | 1:21.6853 | 01.4814 |
11 | McLaren Melbourne | J.Webb/G.Denyer | McLaren 650S GT3 | 1:21.7215 | 01.5176 |
12 | Taplin Real Estate | A.Taplin/D.Canto | Lamborghini Gallardo | 1:21.7219 | 01.5180 |
13 | Interlloy M Motorsport | J.McMillan/G.Wood | Lamborghini R-EX | 1:22.6065 | 02.4026 |
14 | SR Motorsport | S.Richards/M.Twigg | BMW M6 GT3 | 1:22.6806 | 02.4767 |
15 | Objective Racing | Tony Walls (QLD) | McLaren 650S GT3 | 1:22.9321 | 02.7282 |
16 | Adina Apartment Hotels | Greg Taylor (NSW) | Audi R8 LMS | 1:23.4407 | 03.2368 |
17 | JAMEC PEM Racing | Steven McLaughlan (VIC) | Audi R8 LMS | 1:23.5369 | 03.3330 |
18 | M Motorsport | J.Magro/H.Cooper | Lamborghini Gallardo | 1:23.6145 | 03.4106 |
19 | Hogs Breath Cafe/Griffith Co | Mark Griffith (QLD) | Mercedes Benz AMG GT | 1:23.6300 | 03.4261 |
20 | Modena Engineering | Ricky Capo (VIC) | BMW Z4 GT3 | 1:23.7016 | 03.4977 |
21 | HBS Motorsports | Simon Ellinghham (NZ) | Audi R8 Ultra | 1:24.2328 | 04.0289 |
22 | Koala Motorsport | B.Griguol/T.Macrow | Ferrari F430 GT3 | 1:24.3008 | 04.0969 |
23 | Team ASR | Ash Samadi | Mercedes Benz AMG SL | 1:24.3300 | 04.1261 |
24 | Skwirk Online Education | Rod Salmon (NSW) | Audi R8 Ultra | 1:25.8675 | 05.6636 |
25 | AMAC Motorsport | Andrew Macpherson (NSW) | Porsche 997 GT3-R | 1:27.9641 | 07.7602 |
26 | Veloce Motorsportn – ULX110 | Keith Wong (SA) | 1:28.5473 | 08.3434 |
Result: Australian GT Qualifying 2
1 | JAMEC PEM Racing | Christopher Mies (Ger) | Audi R8 LMS | 1:20.2039R | |
2 | Scott Taylor Motorsport | Craig Baird (QLD) | Mercedes Benz AMG GT | 1:20.6530r | 00.4491 |
3 | Tekno | Nathan Antunes (NSW) | McLaren 650S GT3 | 1:20.8621 | 00.6582 |
4 | Tekno | Nathan Morcom | McLaren 650S GT3 | 1:21.0813 | 00.8774 |
5 | Supabarn Supermarkets | Marcus Marshall | Audi R8 LMS | 1:21.3064 | 01.1025 |
6 | JBS Australia | Roger Lago (QLD) | Lamborghini R-EX | 1:21.3496 | 01.1457 |
7 | Darrell Lea | Klark Quinn (QLD) | McLaren 650S GT3 | 1:21.5231 | 01.3192 |
8 | Eggleston Motorsport | Dominic Storey | Mercedes Benz AMG GT | 1:21.5632 | 01.3593 |
9 | Waltec Motorsport | John Martin | Porsche 997 GT3-R | 1:21.5703 | 01.3664 |
10 | Eggleston Motorsport | Matthew Solomon | Mercedes Benz AMG GT | 1:21.6853 | 01.4814 |
11 | McLaren Melbourne | Jonathon Webb (NSW) | McLaren 650S GT3 | 1:21.7215 | 01.5176 |
12 | Interlloy M Motorsport | Glen Wood (VIC) | Lamborghini R-EX | 1:22.6065 | 02.4026 |
13 | SR Motorsport | Steve Richards (VIC) | BMW M6 GT3 | 1:22.6806 | 02.4767 |
14 | Objective Racing | Tony Walls (QLD) | McLaren 650S GT3 | 1:22.9321 | 02.7282 |
15 | Adina Apartment Hotels | Greg Taylor (NSW) | Audi R8 LMS | 1:23.4407 | 03.2368 |
16 | Taplin Real Estate | Andrew Taplin (SA) | Lamborghini Gallardo | 1:23.5246 | 03.3207 |
17 | JAMEC PEM Racing | Steven McLaughlan (VIC) | Audi R8 LMS | 1:23.5369 | 03.3330 |
18 | Modena Engineering | Ricky Capo (VIC) | BMW Z4 GT3 | 1:23.7016 | 03.4977 |
19 | Hogs Breath Cafe/Griffith Co | Mark Griffith (QLD) | Mercedes Benz AMG GT | 1:23.8087 | 03.6048 |
20 | HBS Motorsports | Simon Ellinghham (NZ) | Audi R8 Ultra | 1:24.2328 | 04.0289 |
21 | Koala Motorsport | Tim Macrow (VIC) | Ferrari F430 GT3 | 1:24.3008 | 04.0969 |
22 | Team ASR | Ash Samadi | Mercedes Benz AMG SL | 1:24.3300 | 04.1261 |
23 | M Motorsport | Hayden Cooper (QLD) | Lamborghini Gallardo | 1:25.3058 | 05.1019 |
24 | Skwirk Online Education | Rod Salmon (NSW) | Audi R8 Ultra | 1:27.3828 | 07.1789 |
25 | AMAC Motorsport | Andrew Macpherson (NSW) | Porsche 997 GT3-R | 1:27.9641 | 07.7602 |
26 | Veloce Motorsportn – ULX110 | Keith Wong (SA) | Porsche GT3 Cup Car | 1:29.8294 | 09.6255 |
Result: Australian GT Qualifying 1
1 | Taplin Real Estate | Dean Canto (SA) | Lamborghini Gallardo | 1:21.7219 | |
2 | Supabarn Supermarkets | James Koundouris (ACT) | Audi R8 LMS | 1:22.2019 | 00.4800 |
3 | Tekno | Elliot Barbour | McLaren 650S GT3 | 1:22.3463 | 00.6244 |
4 | McLaren Melbourne | Grant Denyer (NSW) | McLaren 650S GT3 | 1:22.4749 | 00.7530 |
5 | JBS Australia | Roger Lago (QLD) | Lamborghini R-EX | 1:22.7152 | 00.9933 |
6 | Eggleston Motorsport | Peter Hackett (VIC) | Mercedes Benz AMG GT | 1:22.7200 | 00.9981 |
7 | JAMEC PEM Racing | Geoff Emery (TAS) | Audi R8 LMS | 1:23.2225 | 01.5006 |
8 | Eggleston Motorsport | Matthew Solomon | Mercedes Benz AMG GT | 1:23.2561 | 01.5342 |
9 | Darrell Lea | Tony Quinn | McLaren 650S GT3 | 1:23.4421 | 01.7202 |
10 | M Motorsport | John Magro (QLD) | Lamborghini Gallardo | 1:23.6145 | 01.8926 |
11 | Hogs Breath Cafe/Griffith Co | Mark Griffith (QLD) | Mercedes Benz AMG GT | 1:23.6300 | 01.9081 |
12 | JAMEC PEM Racing | Steven McLaughlan (VIC) | Audi R8 LMS | 1:23.8085 | 02.0866 |
13 | Objective Racing | Tony Walls (QLD) | McLaren 650S GT3 | 1:24.3089 | 02.5870 |
14 | Interlloy M Motorsport | Justin McMillan (VIC) | Lamborghini R-EX | 1:24.3434 | 02.6215 |
15 | Waltec Motorsport | John Martin | Porsche 997 GT3-R | 1:24.3859 | 02.6640 |
16 | SR Motorsport | Max Twigg (VIC) | BMW M6 GT3 | 1:24.5297 | 02.8078 |
17 | Modena Engineering | Ricky Capo (VIC) | BMW Z4 GT3 | 1:24.6394 | 02.9175 |
18 | Adina Apartment Hotels | Greg Taylor (NSW) | Audi R8 LMS | 1:25.2450 | 03.5231 |
19 | Tekno | Nathan Morcom | McLaren 650S GT3 | 1:25.2629 | 03.5410 |
20 | Scott Taylor Motorsport | Scott Taylor (QLD) | Mercedes Benz AMG GT | 1:25.6342 | 03.9123 |
21 | Skwirk Online Education | Rod Salmon (NSW) | Audi R8 Ultra | 1:25.8675 | 04.1456 |
22 | HBS Motorsports | Simon Ellinghham (NZ) | Audi R8 Ultra | 1:26.3391 | 04.6172 |
23 | Team ASR | Ash Samadi | Mercedes Benz AMG SL | 1:26.3600 | 04.6381 |
24 | Veloce Motorsportn – ULX110 | Keith Wong (SA) | Porsche GT3 Cup Car | 1:28.5473 | 06.8254 |
25 | AMAC Motorsport | Andrew Macpherson (NSW) | Porsche 997 GT3-R | 1:28.5971 | 06.8752 |
26 | Koala Motorsport | Brenton Griguol (SA) | Ferrari F430 GT3 | 1:29.9486 | 08.2267 |
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