Whincup snatches final pole of 2019 in Newcastle

Jamie Whincup has gone fastest in the Armor All Top 10 Shootout ahead of the final race of the 2019 Supercars Championship at the Coates Hire Newcastle 500.

The Red Bull Holden Racing Team driver swapped positions with provisional pole-sitter Cameron Waters after the Tickford racer missed out on pole proper by a margin of just over two tenths of a second.

Row 2 will be an all-Shell V-Power Racing Team affair with Scott McLaughlin coming up only 0.0020s short of Fabian Coulthard having followed him onto the Newcastle East Street Circuit.

Whincup drove a committed lap which saw him scuff the #88 ZB Commodore against the tyre wall as he exited the first corner, before stopping the clocks at 1:10.5551s.

Waters gave up two tenths at the first sector but set the fastest middle sector, then bumped the wall exiting the Pilot Station on his way to a 1:10.7737s in the #6 Monster Energy Mustang.

“That one meant a lot; (I) went all out,” said Whincup.

“The track was obviously a bit slower than yesterday, or even in qualifying, but (I) got the most out of the car,” he added in reference to the sunnier conditions that greeted the 10 drivers.

“Obviously the time, we’re very, very happy with, but you’ve got to keep a wraps on it because 95 laps is a long way this afternoon.

“We’ll have a little celebration of this right now and then focus on the race.”

Whincup’s and Waters’ laps were completed on new tyres but Coulthard (#12 Mustang) rolled out his 1:10.8432s on used rubber, with his only obvious blemish being that he was slightly wide of the apex at the Hairpin.

Like Whincup on the front row, Coulthard simply swapped from the outside of the second row to the inside when McLaughlin (#17 Mustang) was ever so slightly slower than his team-mate on his last set of new tyres for the weekend.

Scott Pye (#2 Mobil 1 ZB Commodore) set a 1:10.9907s which survived the challenge of the next four drivers and saw him move to fifth from a provisional ninth.

Anton De Pasquale came three cars later and was faster than Pye to the second sector but lost almost a tenth in comparison in the last, with the #99 Penrite ZB Commodore classified sixth all told on a 1:11.0278s.

David Reynolds had a slight wiggle at the change of direction on Zaara Street as he put the #9 Penrite ZB Commodore into seventh with a 1:11.0352s.

James Courtney, next to complete his lap after Reynolds, had an even bigger moment in the same spot on his way to a 1:11.6552s which ultimately saw the #22 Mobil 1 ZB Commodore take 10th.

Between those two will be Tim Slade (#14 Freightliner ZB Commodore) and Lee Holdsworth (#5 The Bottle-O Mustang), the latter of whom is due to start from the inside of Row 5 having been on the outside a day earlier.

The season-ending 32nd race of the Virgin Australia Supercars Championship, to be run over 95 laps/250km, will start at 1615 local time/AEDT.

Results: Armor All Top 10 Shootout