Aussie Racing Cars championship hopeful Nathan Townsend placed himself in the box seat for glory after securing pole position for Saturday’s first race at Sydney Olympic Park.
Townsend, who is just five points behind series leader Maurice Masini, left the 40 car field chasing after grabbing pole by seven tenths of a second. A total of 10 drivers are still in with a shout of claiming the title.
Peter Carr will start alongside him on the front row with the second row filled by fellow title contenders Trent Young and Darren Chamberlin. Championship leader Masini could only secure sixth spot on the grid.
However, the day was not without drama as Brendon Tucker was involved in a huge accident. The car backed into the wall before encountering nine violent barrel rolls. Luckily the driver clambered out of the cockpit and was unscathed.
David Sieders proved to be the quickest of the four V8 Utes title contenders as he and Kris Walton shared the honours in free practice at Sydney Olympic Park.
Sieders, who is fourth in the championship standings but very much in contention, topped Friday’s first uneventful free practice session.
The New South Welshman immediately set the pace and ended the session two tenths quicker than Ryan Hansford. Kim Jane was third quickest with Kris Walton fourth.
Championship leader Ryal Harris was sixth while fellow title rivals Nathan Pretty and Rhys McNally were 11th and 16th respectively.
Extra rubber on the track surface helped ensure times were quicker in free practice two as Walton starred on the Sydney streets. The Ford FG driver was two tenths quicker than Sieders.
Only a second separated the top nine as Hansford and Kim Jane filled third and fourth spots. McNally showed signs of pace as he finished sixth just ahead of Harris while Pretty was 13th quickest.
Minda Motorsport’s Liam Sager will start from pole position for Saturday’s opening Australian Formula Ford Championship after coming through a shortened qualifying session.
The field could only manage one flying lap when Jordan Lloyd endured a heavy crash which brought out the red flags. Lloyd, who escaped a hard impact into the wall unscathed, caused extensive damage to the barrier which was unable to be repaired in time for the session to continue.
As a result, Sager secured pole with a time just eight hundredths of a second quicker than Sam Power. Newly crowned champion Anton De Pasquale will start from third ahead of Thomas Randle and Macauley Jones.
In the earlier free practice session, De Pasquale clocked the quickest time a full two tenths faster than Sam Power.
