Kelvin van der Linde has set the fastest lap in Qualifying 1 for Australian GT in Townsville, but will face a post-session investigation for allegedly passing under yellows.
Van der Linde was fastest for the entire 20-minute session, with Ash Walsh again his nearest rival.
The South African Audi factory driver reeled out fastest laps on each of his first four efforts before pitting two laps later in the #74 Jamec Pem Audi R8.
Walsh, driving the #44 Supabarn Audi R8, edged closer while van der Linde sat in pit lane but still ended up 0.2s away from the mark.
Van der Linde returned to the circuit with adjustments to his rear wing and while he couldn’t go quicker on a now-used set of Pirellis, it mattered not as he took his third provisional pole of the season.
What may matter is a post-session investigation into an incident on the out-lap, when it appeared that van der Linde passed cars under yellow flags in order to gain track position as the session got underway.
Glen Wood (#48 M Motorsport Lamborghini R-EX) was third-fastest, from Brad Shiels (#51 AMAC Motorsport Porsche 997 GT3-R), and Max Twigg (#8 WM Waste Management Mercedes AMG GT).
Steven Richards (#100 Laser Plumbing BMW M6) was ninth-quickest, with championship leader Liam Talbot battling with his #911 Walkinshaw Porsche 911 GT3-R as he brought up the rear of the 15-car field.
Qualifying 2 takes place from 1025, with the best time for each car determining the grid for this afternoon’s Race 1.
Results: Qualifying 1
| 1 | Valvoline | Kelvin van der Linde | Audi R8 LMS | 1:12.3081 | |
| 2 | Supabarn Supermarkets | Ash Walsh (QLD) | Audi R8 LMS | 1:12.5207 | 0:00.2126 |
| 3 | Interlloy M Motorsport | Glen Wood (Vic) | Lamborghini R-EX | 1:13.0396 | 0:00.7315 |
| 4 | AMAC Motorsport/IMAK/Kwikmit | Brad Shiels (NSW) | Porsche 997 GT3-R | 1:13.0869 | 0:00.7788 |
| 5 | WM Waste Management Services | Max Twigg (Vic) | Mercedes Benz AMG GT | 1:13.2342 | 0:00.9261 |
| 6 | YNA Autosport/McElrea Racing | Fraser Ross (Vic) | McLaren 650S GT3 | 1:13.3558 | 0:01.0477 |
| 7 | Moveitnet / AFS | Tony Bates (Vic) | Mercedes Benz AMG GT | 1:13.4356 | 0:01.1275 |
| 8 | JBS Australia | Roger Lago (Qld) | Lamborghini R-EX | 1:13.5022 | 0:01.1941 |
| 9 | BMW Team SRM | Steve Richards (Vic) | BMW M6 GT3 | 1:13.9669 | 0:01.6588 |
| 10 | Objective Racing | Tony Walls (NSW) | McLaren 650S GT3 | 1:14.3417 | 0:02.0336 |
| 11 | Ah Apartments/Team ASR | Ash Samadi (Vic) | Audi R8 LMS | 1:14.4512 | 0:02.1431 |
| 12 | Scott Taylor Motorsport | Scott Taylor (Qld) | Mercedes Benz AMG GT | 1:14.4644 | 0:02.1563 |
| 13 | Darrell Lea/Keltic Racing | Tony Quinn (Qld) | McLaren 650S GT3 | 1:14.6211 | 0:02.3130 |
| 14 | Hallmarc Constructions | Marc Cini (Vic) | Audi R8 LMS | 1:14.8322 | 0:02.5241 |
| 15 | MEGA Racing | Liam Talbot (Qld) | Porsche 911 GT3-R | 1:15.9708 | 0:03.6627 |
Discussion about this post