Bathurst 1000 - Qualifying, Top 10 shootout, news and results: Payne claims provisional pole
A Kiwi young gun was fastest after one of the closest, and most dramatic qualifying sessions in Bathurst history. Find out how he survived the carnage, and came out on top by the slimmest of margins, inside.
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Grove Racing’s Kiwi young gun Matt Payne has claimed provisional pole for the Bathurst 1000 and is now aiming to “seal the deal” in the Top 10 Shootout after a wild qualifying session when two former winners crashed heavily at Mount Panorama.
In a session full of drama after Team 18’s David Reynolds and Dick Johnson Racing’s Will Davison were both involved in big smashes at the same section of the track, Payne pipped Tickford Racing’s Cam Waters and Triple Eight’s Broc Feeney with the fastest time.
Feeney had been on track to better Payne’s 2:05.6452 time at the very end of the session, but he fell just short of completing the lap before the red flags came out for Davison’s crash.
Davison hit the concrete heavily after losing control on the dirty oil-covered track where Reynolds had crashed earlier in the session.
In an act of sportsmanship, Nick Percat immediately pulled up alongside Davison and jumped out of the car to make sure Davison was all right.
Reynolds smashed his Team 18 Camaro heavily into the concrete wall after losing control at The Esses, prompting an almost 15-minute delay while officials cleaned up the track.
The times are close!
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Waters held the fastest time when the season resumed, but Payne upstaged his fellow Ford driver and the series’ top qualifier with his hot lap.
Defending Supercars champion Brodie Kostecki and Triple Eight’s series leader Will Brown rounded out the top five, which was separated by just 0.12sec, to book their tickets to the Top 10 Shootout on Saturday.
Racing at just his third Bathurst 1000, Payne admitted he was amazed with his time in an intense qualifying session.
“It was a really good lap, I was pretty stoked to be able to get that done,” Payne said.
“I was quite amazed at what the time was … the previous practice we didn’t have such a good run on our green tyres, we made a couple of mistakes and we were actually 14th so I was kicking myself a little bit after that one. I knew our car was a bit better than that.
“To be P1 in the provisional qualifying was pretty cool … I knew we were going to be in the top five, but to be first was really good.
“It’s amazing how tight the top four are, the competition is incredible out there, everyone is driving at such a high limit. I got out of the car and I’m almost about to have a heart attack because I’m breathing that hard.
“But it’s probably more from excitement than actually working.”
Payne, teaming with five-time Bathurst 1000 winner Garth Tander, now has his sights on securing pole in the Top 10 Shootout.
“Absolutely I would love it (pole position). It’s probably one of the things in my aspiring career that I have always wanted to achieve,” Payne said.
“I love the Top 10 Shootout here at Bathurst … every YouTube video I have watched of Bathurst, all of it is probably the top 10.
“To seal the deal would be one of my dreams, but there is a 1000km race on Sunday, so I think that is more the important way to think of things and see if we can get it done then.”
Two-time Bathurst champion Chaz Mostert, Brad Jones Racing’s Andre Heimgartner, Erebus Motorsport’s Jack Le Brocq, DJR’s Anton De Pasquale and defending Bathurst champion Richie Stanaway also booked their places in the Top 10 Shootout.
Aside from the Reynolds and Davison crashes, there were also some hairy moments for other drivers.
Kostecki, last year’s Bathurst 1000 pole sitter who has finished on the podium twice at Mount Panorama, was forced into the pits for repairs on his car after kissing the concrete on the run to McPhillamy.
It's sooooo close 🔥
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Waters also pulled off a big save over the top of the mountain after a near miss with the wall going into Forrest’s Elbow.
The Tickford star, who has started on the front of the grid twice at Bathurst, said he would be aiming for another pole on Saturday.
“I want pole (position) as well … I will definitely be giving that a shot. I think we have got the car to get a pole here,” Waters said.
“It’s probably three or four cars that can do it. Tomorrow we have got a bit of a plan, we still have to work on a race car, it’s not all about qualifying.
“So we’ll try and juggle that a bit tomorrow, but we’re in good shape.”
There are two final practice sessions on Saturday ahead of theTop 10 Shootout.
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