TASMANIAN SUPERCARS SUPERSPRINT FRIDAY WRAP

Day one of the Tyrepower Tasmania SuperSprint has seen all the classes here this weekend have at least two sessions throughout the day.  Fine weather greeted the reasonably sized crowd here today at Symmons Plains albeit with a fresh breeze from the South.

Virgin Australia Supercars

The Supercars had two forty five minute practice sessions today which saw the Red Bull Holden Racing Team lock out both top spots, Shane van Gisbergen was fasted from Scott Pye and Fabian Coulthard with Craig Lowndes recording a fourth spot, the highest we’ve seen him for a while.  The whole 26 car field is covered by just one second in the first session.

In practice two the final event for today Jamie Whincup was fastest with David Reynolds just 0.0722 behind, and continuing his new found form was Lowndes, behind him were a trio of kiwi’s in Scott McLaughlin, Van Gisbergen and Coulthard.  And once again the whole field was covered by under one second.

A new qualifying format takes place as per the outline in our Symmons Plains preview for this weekends race meeting.

Practice One Top 10

1 97 Red Bull Holden Racing Team Shane Van Gisbergen 0:50.7894
2 2 Mobil 1 Boost Mobile Racing Scott Pye 0:50.8534
3 12 Shell V-Power Racing Team Fabian Coulthard 0:50.9947
4 888 Autobarn Lowndes Racing Craig Lowndes 0:51.0272
5 1 Red Bull Holden Racing Team Jamie Whincup 0:51.0383
6 25 Mobil 1 Boost Mobile Racing James Courtney 0:51.0510
7 5 The Bottle-O Racing Team Mark Winterbottom 0:51.0693
8 14 Freightliner Racing Tim Slade 0:51.0757
9 17 Shell V-Power Racing Team Scott McLaughlin 0:51.0946
10 23 Drive Racing Michael Caruso 0:51.0988

Practice Two Top 10

1 1 Red Bull Holden Racing Team Jamie Whincup 0:50.5609
2 9 Erebus Penrite Racing David Reynolds 0:50.6331
3 888 Autobarn Lowndes Racing Craig Lowndes 0:50.6491
4 17 Shell V-Power Racing Team Scott McLaughlin 0:50.6571
5 97 Red Bull Holden Racing Team Shane Van Gisbergen 0:50.7199
6 12 Shell V-Power Racing Team Fabian Coulthard 0:50.7528
7 5 The Bottle-O Racing Team Mark Winterbottom 0:50.7556
8 25 Mobil 1 Boost Mobile Racing James Courtney 0:50.7786
9 2 Mobil 1 Boost Mobile Racing Scott Pye 0:50.8316
10 14 Freightliner Racing Tim Slade 0:50.8545

CAMS Formula 4 Championship

Young Queenslander Cameron Shields set the pace in the first practice in the Formula 4 this morning and then set about to do the same in the second session later in the afternoon.  Jackson Walls appeared to have car issues in the first session and could only manage 5 laps compared to the front runners getting 20 laps in, in the second practice he was on the pace and up to 6th place.

Practice One

1 73 McDonald’s Australia Cameron Shields (QLD) 0:56.2449*
2 31 Engine Sensors Australia Jayden Ojeda (NSW) 0:56.3322
3 5 CAMS Rising Star / Ray White Ryan Suhle (QLD) 0:56.6108
4 78 Coco’s / Team BRM Aaron Love (WA) 0:56.7359
5 16 SCT Logistics Thomas Smith (VIC) 0:56.7825
6 27 Team BRM Zayd Tones (QLD) 0:56.8354
7 15 Team BRM Lachlan Hughes (QLD) 0:56.9985
8 12 Team BRM Josh Smith (VIC) 0:57.6772
9 39 Astuti Motorsport Antonio Astuti (VIC) 0:58.8509
10 11 Objective Racing Jackson Walls (NSW) 1:09.7574

Practice Two

1 73 McDonald’s Australia Cameron Shields (QLD) 0:55.7781*
2 15 Team BRM Lachlan Hughes (QLD) 0:55.9344
3 31 Engine Sensors Australia Jayden Ojeda (NSW) 0:55.9569
4 5 CAMS Rising Star / Ray White Ryan Suhle (QLD) 0:56.1020
5 78 Coco’s / Team BRM Aaron Love (WA) 0:56.1761
6 11 Objective Racing Jackson Walls (NSW) 0:56.5796
7 27 Team BRM Zayd Tones (QLD) 0:56.6723
8 16 SCT Logistics Thomas Smith (VIC) 0:56.8951
9 12 Team BRM Josh Smith (VIC) 0:57.1382
10 39 Astuti Motorsport Antonio Astuti (VIC) 0:57.8736

Touring Car Masters

Tasmanian John Bowe quickly settled back into a fast Symmons Plains rhythm in the first practice for the Paynter Dixon TCM cars, Steve Johnson wasn’t far off recording a time 0.229 of second behind Bowe in this first session for the day, Ryan Hansford didn’t record a lap after breaking down just after the hairpin on the out lap after breaking a steering arm.

In qualifying it was another Bowe/Johnson affair – 0.06 was the margin as John Bowe edged out Steve Johnson for the closest ever  Touring Car Masters pole in Tasmania. After the mornings misfortune Hansford turned it around to qualify third.  Both Bowe and Johnson were under the lap record.  The only disappointment for the TCM class was the field size of just 13 cars making the trip to the deep south.

Qualifying Top 10

1 18 Wilson Security / PAYCE John Bowe 0:56.1266
2 17 WM Waste / Herrod Performance Steve Johnson 0:56.1961
3 6 Multispares Racing Ryan Hansford 0:56.5858
4 85 Whiteline Racing / King Spring Mark King 0:56.8376
5 95 Whiteline Racing / Fabre Austr Adam Bressington 0:56.9422
6 16 Carne Grill / Precinct Bar Gavin Bullas 0:57.1917
7 25 Maxi-Trans Trailers Paul Freestone 0:57.2896
8 60 Glennan Transport / ANGLOMOIL Cameron Tilley 0:57.5277
9 35 Bigmate Racing Jason Gomersall 0:57.5334
10 46 THD Motorsport Leo Tobin 0:57.5788

Dunlop Super2

Twenty three Dunlop Super2 cars took to the track mid morning today in a Fast Friday Grand Prix – Kiwi Chris Pither was fastest out of the box in session one but could only manage 11th in the second run.  Past champion Paul Dumbrell managed second in the first and then was third in the final run today, youngster Alex Rullo was 17th in the first practice but got his Nissan Altima up to P2 for the second session.

The feeder category were tested today by the Launceston circuit, many of the drivers in both sessions with numerous cars leaving the track at turns two and turn six at the end of the incredibly fast back straight come kink.

Garry Jacobson was the man to beat in the second practice and along with Jacobson, Rullo and Dumbrell all went under the lap record of 52.152.

There were two red flags in the second session, the first was caused by Dean Fiore beaching his Nissan Altima in the gravel trap at the turn 4 hairpin before Kurt Kostecki (Holden Commodore) also came unstuck in the same place with just over a minute to run in the session.

The Super2 class have two races for the weekend with Dumbrell currently leading the Championship.

Practice One Top 10

1 44 Wilson Security PAYCE GRM Chris Pither 0:52.3842
2 88 Eggleston Motorsport Paul Dumbrell 0:52.6301
3 26 MEGA Fuels / MWM Garry Jacobson 0:52.6836
4 57 Arcoplate Racing Brodie Kostecki 0:52.8026
5 5 Skye Sands Thomas Randle 0:52.8087
6 14 Payce Macauley Jones 0:52.8119
7 38 Eggleston Motorsport William Brown 0:52.8415
8 23 Sitech-Trimble / MWM Dean Fiore 0:52.8665
9 55 Arcoplate Racing Kurt Kostecki 0:52.9154
10 54 Eggleston Motorsport Nathan Morcom 0:52.9859

Practice Two Top 10

1 26 MEGA Fuels / MWM Garry Jacobson 0:51.9332
2 62 Land Surveys / MWM Alex Rullo 0:52.0158
3 88 Eggleston Motorsport Paul Dumbrell 0:52.1275
4 23 Sitech-Trimble / MWM Dean Fiore 0:52.1916
5 56 Arcoplate Racing Jake Kostecki 0:52.3470
6 15 Auto One Racing Adam Marjoram 0:52.3712
7 16 Middy’s Electrical Bryce Fullwood 0:52.3949
8 57 Arcoplate Racing Brodie Kostecki 0:52.4584
9 8 BGD Architects Zane Goddard 0:52.4746
10 67 Paul Morris Motorsport Shae Davies 0:52.5105