Wood fastest in Friday practice as Payne strikes Taupo trouble

Wood clocked a 1:26.1581s on his final lap of the Taupo track to pip Triple Eight Race Engineering’s Will Brown by a slender 0.0034s at the end of the second 25-minute session.

Dick Johnson Racing driver Brodie Kostecki was third fastest ahead of fellow Ford driver James Golding for the Blanchard Racing Team.

Andre Heimgartner completed the top five for Brad Jones Racing in his Supra while Anton De Pasquale was the best of the Chevrolet Camaro contingent in seventh for Team 18.

“To be honest, I felt like we were there or thereabouts, but there are some standout cars in race trim,” said Wood.

“I felt like our one-lap speed was going to be okay, but we’ve definitely got a bit of work to do with the Supra, and I’m excited for tomorrow.

“It’s a nice way to start, but as you guys know, everything can change tomorrow – including the weather.

“It’s been really nice to be back home. I think we ended last year, Practice 2, on top as well. Hopefully it’s a good omen.”

After Jack Le Brocq topped Practice 1, teams were given a 15-minute intermission before the start of Practice 2.

There was little in the way of drama until the final minutes of the session.

Triple Eight’s Jackson Walls was forced to abandon his final flying lap due to traffic in the Turn 11 braking zone. He finished the session in last without a representative push lap to his name.

Just a few seconds later, Matt Payne was forced to do the same. However, his moment was far more spectacular as he locked up his front wheels and nudged the back of Cooper Murray’s Erebus Motorsport Camaro.

Payne ended the session in 22nd with a 1:27.6798s to end up 1.5217s off the chart-topping Toyota of Wood.

As it stands, Supercars is scheduled to return on Saturday with qualifying at 8:15am AEST, though that may change with the impending arrival of Cyclone Vaianu.

Results: Repco Supercars Championship ITM Taupo Super440, Practice 2