GARRY’S SYDNEY SUPERCARS SUPPORT WRAP – FRIDAY
DUNLOP SUPER 2
FROM LIGHTS out to flag, Paul Dumbrell led the first of four races to be contested as round five of the Dunlop Super 2 Series on the Red Rooster Supersprint program at Sydney Motorsport Park.
The Eggleston Motorsport Holden Commodore VF driver gained the hole shot from the outside of the front row to lead home the Ford Falcon FGs of Anton de Pasquale (Paul Morris Motorsport) and New Zealand hotshot Richie Stanaway driving for Prodrive Racing Australia.
The latter’s team mate and fastest qualifier Garry Jacobson had a getaway shocker, dropping to ninth on the opening lap before staging a comeback to finish on the back of Jack Le Brocq (Matt White Motorsport Nissan Altima).
Jacobson’s poor start saw Wall Brown (Eggleston VF) falter as well, dropping to eighth and ultimately finishing 12th. Macauley Jones (Brad Jones Racing VF) finished sixth while series leader Todd Hazelwood (Matt Stone Racing VF) was next, only picking up a couple of places after qualifying ninth.
Completing the top ten were Andrew Jones (BJR VF), Shae Davies (MWM Altima) and Kurt Kostecki (VF). Both Garry Rogers Motorsport Holdens had dramas with Mason Barbera forced to retire (crushed exhaust) after lap contact with Matt Chahda (VF) and Richard Muscat battling through for 11th with a fried plug lead.
AUSTRALIAN GT
THE COMBINED efforts of Liam Talbot and John Martin for an aggregate 1 minute 29.015s has ensured pole for tomorrow’s Sydney Motorsport Park 501, the second round the Australian Endurance Championship, in their Porsche 911 GT3-R.
Talbot topped the second qualifying session while Martin was fifth fastest in the initial outing.
Second fastest and starting alongside on the front row will be Geoff Emery and Kelvin van der Linde (Audi R8 LMS) where the latter was fastest in qualifying one and Emery was sixth fastest in the second.
The duo’s aggregate was just 0.01 seconds up on Dominic Storey and Peter Hackett (Mercedes-AMG GT3) as Fraser Ross and Warren Luff (McLaren 650SS) made it four manufacturers in the top four spots.
Round one winners Tim Miles and Jaxon Evans (Audi) were eighth behind Max Twigg/Tony D’Alberto (Mercedes), Daniel Gaunt/Dylan O’Keeffe (Audi) and Scott Taylor/Craig Baird (Mercedes).
TOYOTA 86s
BEN GRICE would have ended Cameron Hill’s run of poles when he edged him out by 0.025 seconds in qualifying for round three of the Toyota 86 Racing Series. But Grice was excluded later in the day.
After dominating round two in Townsville, Hill was going for three top qualifiers in a row, but at Sydney Motorsport Park, was second fastest before the exclusion. Hill finished ahead of Trent Grubel, Aaron Seton, series leader and round one winner Jimmy Vernon, Tim Brook, Liam McAdam, Dylan Thomas and Dylan Gulson.
In tenth and making his circuit racing debut as one of two invited drivers was Australian Rally Championship leader Harry Bates. The other invitee Steve Johnson was twelfth behind Jake Klein and ahead of Luke King.
AUSSIE RACING CARS
CURRENT SERIES title holder, James Duckworth qualified fastest for the fifth round of the Aussie Racing Cars after an engine change. The original in his Camaro-bodied pocket racer blew at the start of the early morning practice session.
After a throttle cable issue impeded Kel Treseder and his Camaro in practice, he came through qualifying for a share of the front row while Peter Carr (Mustang) took a break from his off road racing program to be third fastest.
Series leader Craig Woods (Mustang) was fourth fastest after an inopportune encounter with his team mate Blake Sciberras at turn two. The latter was sixth by session’s end, the pair split by Jaie Robson (Camaro).
Joel Heinrich (Cruze) will start the first of four races with Chris Stevenson (Camaro) alongside on the fourth row, ahead of Brendon Tucker (Camaro) and Adam Casuccio (Aurion) while Reece Chapman (Camaro) probably cost himself a top ten spot with an invalidated lap.
FORMULA 4
TEAM BRM’s Cameron Shields became the third driver to claim pole position in the 2017 CAMS Jayco Australian Formula 4 Championship, edging points leader Nick Rowe (AGI Sport) and reversing the practice session at the top of the time sheets.
Shields only completed five laps, and after an early spin posted his session best of 1 minute 31.2207 seconds. Rowe was 0.37 seconds slower while Tyler Everingham (Zagame Autosport) was a further half second adrift.
Fourth fastest was Shields’ team mate Sage Murdoch ahead of the Team BRM duo of New Zealander Liam Lawson and Simon Fallon.
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