Tekno Autosports Holden driver Shane van Gisbergen has set the pace in opening practice for the Castrol Townsville 500.
Just a week after settling an 18 month legal dispute over his move to Tekno, the Kiwi made the most of what he later described as a “good set” of pre-marked tyres to clock a best time of 1:14.06s.
“We still need to do some work on the car,” said Van Gisbergen post-session.
“It's not perfect but to be on top is definitely a good start.
“We had a fast car here last year so we know what a good car feels like.
“If we can get the same I'm sure we can go even quicker.”
Van Gisbergen ended up with the four best times of the 20 minutes, with his quickest a full 0.33s clear of second-placed Garth Tander.
James Courtney and Tim Slade added to Walkinshaw Racing's strong start to the weekend in third and fourth respectively, while the Melbourne-based squad's fourth car was sixth in the hands of Nick Percat.
Todd Kelly's Nissan was best of the non-Holdens in fifth, with seventh through 10th was filled by Scott McLaughlin, Mark Winterbottom, David Reynolds and Jason Bright.
Red Bull duo Craig Lowndes and Jamie Whincup made a quiet start to their weekends in 11th and 16th respectively.
Fellow title contender Fabian Coulthard was just 23rd; 1.24s away from Van Gisbergen's pace.
The session ran green for its duration, with a spin at the final corner for Lee Holdsworth the only notable incident.
The day's second 20 minute practice hit-out will get underway at 1140 local time.
See below for full practice 1 results
1 |
Team Tekno VIP Petfoods |
Shane Van Gisbergen |
Holden Commodore VF |
1:14.0553 |
|
2 |
Holden Racing Team |
Garth Tander |
Holden Commodore VF |
1:14.3860 |
0:00.3307 |
3 |
Holden Racing Team |
James Courtney |
Holden Commodore VF |
1:14.4486 |
0:00.3933 |
4 |
Supercheap Auto Racing |
Tim Slade |
Holden Commodore VF |
1:14.5162 |
0:00.4609 |
5 |
Jack Daniel's Racing |
Todd Kelly |
Nissan Altima |
1:14.5343 |
0:00.4790 |
6 |
Walkinshaw Racing |
Nick Percat |
Holden Commodore VF |
1:14.6055 |
0:00.5502 |
7 |
Valvoline Racing GRM |
Scott McLaughlin |
Volvo S60 |
1:14.6114 |
0:00.5561 |
8 |
Ford Pepsi Max Crew |
Mark Winterbottom |
Ford Falcon FG |
1:14.6565 |
0:00.6012 |
9 |
The Bottle-O Racing Team |
David Reynolds |
Ford Falcon FG |
1:14.6600 |
0:00.6047 |
10 |
Team BOC |
Jason Bright |
Holden Commodore VF |
1:14.6721 |
0:00.6168 |
11 |
Red Bull Racing Australia |
Holden Commodore VF |
1:14.6837 |
0:00.6284 |
|
12 |
Erebus Motorsport V8 |
Lee Holdsworth |
Mercedes E63 AMG |
1:14.6983 |
0:00.6430 |
13 |
Erebus Motorsport V8 |
Mercedes E63 AMG |
1:14.7023 |
0:00.6470 |
|
14 |
Repair Management Aust Racing |
Russell Ingall |
Holden Commodore VF |
1:14.7031 |
0:00.6478 |
15 |
Wilson Security Racing |
Scott Pye |
Ford Falcon FG |
1:14.7503 |
0:00.6950 |
16 |
Red Bull Racing Australia |
Holden Commodore VF |
1:14.7620 |
0:00.7067 |
|
17 |
Norton Hornets |
Michael Caruso |
Nissan Altima |
1:14.8512 |
0:00.7959 |
18 |
Wilson Security Racing |
David Wall |
Ford Falcon FG |
1:14.9927 |
0:00.9374 |
19 |
Ford Pepsi Max Crew |
Chaz Mostert |
Ford Falcon FG |
1:15.1071 |
0:01.0518 |
20 |
Norton Hornets |
James Moffat |
Nissan Altima |
1:15.2018 |
0:01.1465 |
21 |
Valvoline Racing GRM |
Robert Dahlgren |
Volvo S60 |
1:15.2364 |
0:01.1811 |
22 |
Jack Daniel's Racing |
Rick Kelly |
Nissan Altima |
1:15.2589 |
0:01.2036 |
23 |
Lockwood Racing |
Holden Commodore VF |
1:15.2903 |
0:01.2350 |
|
24 |
Team JELD-WEN |
Jack Perkins |
Ford Falcon FG |
1:15.5032 |
0:01.4479 |
25 |
Team Advam/GB |
Dale Wood |
Holden Commodore VF |
1:15.6351 |
0:01.5798 |