Hanford puts Torana on Bathurst TCM pole

The Duggan Family Hotels Touring Car Masters round is more open than ever after Ryan Hansford took pole in challenging conditions.

Hansford held his nerve on the wet track to record a 2:22.7052, more than a second clear of Andrew Fisher and Marcus Zukanovic.

However, Fisher had reason to wonder what could have been after catching traffic in The Chase and still managing a time good enough for second.

The major talking point from the session was runaway championship leader Joel Heinrich only managing 10th.

There was drama even before laps could be posted.

The black and gold Ford Mustang of Angus Fogg crawled to a halt underneath “The Tree.”

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It was tough timing for everyone, but Fisher and Johnson especially as they were just three corners away from being the first post flying laps.

This left the field very nervous at the prospect of a mixed-up grid with Lewis beating Patterson with just a 3:27.0238 that was just a warm-up lap.

Fortunately, the track was cleared in time to allow seven minutes of green flag running.

But this left the drivers with the prospect of having no more than two cracks at nailing laps in the tricky conditions.

Johnson was the first to make a move, recording a 2:29.1783, which was a massive 3s faster than Heinrich.

Fisher found more speed, reducing the deficit to 2s with Wallace not far behind.

However, with the track getting dryer, that time was never going to stand for long.

Garwood found a further 4s on Johnson with Zukanovic not far behind.

The session became all about timing and Hansford found the perfect window.

His 2:22.7052 with his final lap proved to be untouchable as he took pole by more than a second.

However, Fisher had the right to be frustrated as he was on track to challenge his fellow Torana runner, only to get stuck behind Tony Galbraith in The Chase.

Despite being slowed, the Jesus Racing Torana still secured second, squeezing seven tenths ahead of Zukanovic.

He was not the only one to get trapped within the huge field, with Scott Cameron and others stuck in a wall of cars in the middle of the Esses.

Despite the tricky conditions, few got caught out, with only newcomer Garnett Patterson spearing off.

He simply caught the wet on the inside of The Chase, which forced him to spear off.

A mixed-up grid sets the scene for an intriguing weekend when racing gets underway with the Trophy Race at 16.15 AEDT.

Touring Car Masters Qualifying results

Pos Car Competitor/Team Driver Vehicle Cap CL Laps Fastest…Lap Gap

1 6 Multispares Racing Ryan Hansford (QLD) Torana 5000 PM 5 4 2:22.7052*

2 09 Jesus Racing Andrew Fisher (NSW) Torana 5000 PM 6 6 2:23.9050 0:01.1998

3 71 Action Motor Industries Marcus Zukanovic (VIC) Falcon 5800 PS 5 5 2:24.5784 0:01.8732

4 1 AMA Collisions Adam Garwood (TAS) Capri 5800 PM

5 4 2:24.7886 0:02.0834 5 85 Whiteline Transport (Aust) P/L Scott Cameron (NSW) Camaro 5700 PA

6 6 2:25.5839 0:02.8787 6 28 Prolube Lubricants Jamie Tilley (NSW) Falcon 5800 PA 6 6 2:27.8795 0:05.1743

7 60 Tilley Motorsport Spares Cam Tilley (NSW) Valiant 6000 PA 5 5 2:28.1327 0:05.4275

8 24 Mona Vale Smash Repairs Scott Fleming (NSW) Monaro 5700 PS 6 6 2:28.3033 0:05.5981

9 33 Hancock Racing Steven Johnson (NSW) Mustang 5800 PM 6 4 2:29.1783 0:06.4731

10 95 Whiteline Transport (Aust) P/L Joel Heinrich (SA) Camaro 5700 PM 6 5 2:32.1109 0:09.4057

11 18 Pearcedale Plant Hire P/L David Hender (VIC) Torana 5000 PS 5 5 2:32.6519 0:09.9467

12 3 Western General Bodyworks Danny Buzadzic (VIC) Torana 6000 PA 6 5 2:33.4843 0:10.7791

13 58 Duggan Family Hotels Garnet Patterson (NSW) Commodore 6000 PM 6 5 2:34.4990 0:11.7938

14 88 TIFS Third Party Logistics Tony Karanfilovski (NSW) Mustang 5800 PA 5 4 2:37.8490 0:15.1438

15 78 Team Bullfrog Jeremy Hassell (QLD) Torana 5000 PS 6 5 2:40.7499 0:18.0447

16 12 Depulo Wheel Recon.Gold Coast Peter Burnitt (QLD) Torana 5000 PS 6 6 2:44.5376 0:21.8324

17 65 Cannon Trailers Rod Cannon (QLD) Falcon 5800 PS 5 5 2:44.5834 0:21.8782

18 29 Heywoods Sheppartoon Motor Martin Riseley (VIC) Mustang 5000 PS 6 6 2:55.3729 0:32.6677

19 46 PiercePlumbing/ProWashCarWash Leo Tobin (VIC) Mustang 5000 PS 4 4 3:03.2022 0:40.4970

Touring Car Masters NZ results

Pos Car Competitor/Team Driver Vehicle Cap CL Laps Fastest…Lap Gap

1 151 Mike Wallace Mike Wallace (NZ) Monza 6800 NZ 5 5 2:30.5662*

2 70 Rob Lewis Rob Lewis (NZ) Camaro 5800 NZ 6 6 2:38.8301 0:08.2639

3 127 Tristan Teki Tristan Teki (NZ) Camaro 6653 NZ 6 6 2:40.3512 0:09.7850

4 101 Keltic Racing Tony Quin (NZ) Pontiac 6685 NZ 6 4 2:42.3384 0:11.7722

5 143 Tony Galbraith Tony Galbraith (NZ) Valiant 6700 NZ 6 4 2:43.1750 0:12.6088

6 138 Grant Rivers Adrian Rivers (NZ) Falcon 6182 NZ 6 5 2:43.6765 0:13.1103

7 51 Gavin McLaughlin Gavin McLaughlin (NZ) Monaro 5866 NZ 6 6 2:44.9515 0:14.3853

8 81 Hamish Frew Hamish Frew (NZ) Camaro 5871 NZ 5 5 2:50.9655 0:20.3993

9 56 Rod Hayman Rod Hayman (NZ) Camaro 6720 NZ 4 3 2:52.5304 0:21.9642

10 117 Greg Cuttance Greg Cuttance (NZ) Falcon 6720 NZ 5 4 2:57.2630 0:26.6968

11 477 Greg Donaldson Greg Donaldson (NZ) Camaro 5700 NZ 6 4 2:57.6619 0:27.0957

12 129 Bruce Tinnelly Bruce Tinnelly (NZ) Monaro 6000 NZ 5 4 3:02.6622 0:32.0960

13 16 Sandra Eden Sandra Eden (NZ) Torana 5000 NZ 5 4 3:05.7219 0:35.1557

14 11 Angus Fogg Angus Fogg (NZ) Mustang 6440 NZ 1 1 3:41.6358 1:11.0696

15 36 Janine Wallace Janine Wallace (NZ) Commodore 6200 NZ 5 1 3:58.7587 1:28.1925

Image: Touring Car Masters

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