Jamie Whincup’s quest for a record equalling fifth V8 Supercars title remains on track after securing the fastest time in Friday practice in Sydney.
After a typically mixed day of results dictated by tyre condition, all four drivers in mathematical contention for the title finished in the top seven positions in Practice 4.
Whincup set the pace for much of the final session and jumped a full 0.7s clear with four minutes remaining after bolting on new rubber.
Other new tyre runners soon closed the gap, but were unable to knock-off the points leader, who ended the session watching on from the garage.
Scott McLaughlin continued Fujitsu GRM’s strong day by eventually scoring second, just 0.11s adrift of Whincup.
Mark Winterbottom, Shane van Gisbergen, Jason Bright, Will Davison and Craig Lowndes completed the top seven.
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Nick Percat ran as high as fourth in the closing minutes before fading to 13th as he deputises for the injured James Courtney.
Lee Holdsworth’s Mercedes returned after its Practice 2 accident saw it miss the penultimate session.
The Erebus entry only completed nine laps, however, before becoming stranded in its garage with a broken starter motor.
James Moffat provided the most spectacular moment of the 30 minutes with an extreme two-wheel moment at the Turn 2/3/4 chicane.
Qualifying, a Top 10 Shootout and an opening 250km race will all take place on Saturday.
See below for full Practice 4 results
| 1 | Red Bull Racing Australia | Jamie Whincup | Holden Commodore VF | 1:27.7038* | |
| 2 | Fujitsu Racing GRM | Scott McLaughlin | Holden Commodore VF | 1:27.8145 | 0:00.1107 |
| 3 | Pepsi Max Crew FPR Ford | Mark Winterbottom | Ford Falcon FG | 1:28.0336 | 0:00.3298 |
| 4 | TEKNO Team VIP Petfoods | Shane Van Gisbergen | Holden Commodore VF | 1:28.0769 | 0:00.3731 |
| 5 | Team BOC | Jason Bright | Holden Commodore VF | 1:28.0841 | 0:00.3803 |
| 6 | Pepsi Max Crew FPR Ford | Will Davison | Ford Falcon FG | 1:28.2029 | 0:00.4991 |
| 7 | Red Bull Racing Australia | Craig Lowndes | Holden Commodore VF | 1:28.2333 | 0:00.5295 |
| 8 | TEKNO Team Darrell Lea | Jonathon Webb | Holden Commodore VF | 1:28.3462 | 0:00.6424 |
| 9 | Fujitsu Racing GRM | Alexandre Premat | Holden Commodore VF | 1:28.4220 | 0:00.7182 |
| 10 | ekol Racing | Scott Pye | Holden Commodore VF | 1:28.4375 | 0:00.7337 |
| 11 | Wilson Security Racing | David Wall | Holden Commodore VF | 1:28.5171 | 0:00.8133 |
| 12 | Heavy Haulage Australia Racing | Tim Slade | Mercedes E63 AMG | 1:28.5826 | 0:00.8788 |
| 13 | Holden Racing Team | Nick Percat | Holden Commodore VF | 1:28.5853 | 0:00.8815 |
| 14 | Team HIFLEX | Tony D’Alberto | Holden Commodore VF | 1:28.5968 | 0:00.8930 |
| 15 | Lockwood Racing | Fabian Coulthard | Holden Commodore VF | 1:28.6306 | 0:00.9268 |
| 16 | Jeld-wen FPR Ford | Alex Davison | Ford Falcon FG | 1:28.7153 | 0:01.0115 |
| 17 | The Bottle-O FPR Ford | David Reynolds | Ford Falcon FG | 1:28.7615 | 0:01.0577 |
| 18 | Irwin Racing | Lee Holdsworth | Mercedes E63 AMG | 1:28.8434 | 0:01.1396 |
| 19 | Norton Hornets | James Moffat | Nissan Altima | 1:28.8477 | 0:01.1439 |
| 20 | Holden Racing Team | Garth Tander | Holden Commodore VF | 1:28.8479 | 0:01.1441 |
| 21 | Wilson Security Racing | Tim Blanchard | Ford Falcon FG | 1:28.9367 | 0:01.2329 |
| 22 | Wilson Security Racing | Chaz Mostert | Ford Falcon FG | 1:29.0013 | 0:01.2975 |
| 23 | Norton Hornets | Michael Caruso | Nissan Altima | 1:29.1482 | 0:01.4444 |
| 24 | Supercheap Auto Racing | Russell Ingall | Holden Commodore VF | 1:29.1970 | 0:01.4932 |
| 25 | Jack Daniel’s Racing | Rick Kelly | Nissan Altima | 1:29.1974 | 0:01.4936 |
| 26 | Jack Daniel’s Racing | Todd Kelly | Nissan Altima | 1:29.2114 | 0:01.5076 |
| 27 | SP Tools Racing | Maro Engel | Mercedes E63 AMG | 1:29.4103 | 0:01.7065 |
| 28 | Dodo Insurance Racing | Dean Fiore | Holden Commodore VF | 1:29.4997 | 0:01.7959 |
