Tickford Racing's Lee Holdsworth has emerged as the fastest driver at the end of Friday's practice for the ITM Auckland SuperSprint at Pukekohe Raceway.
Holdsworth's result completed a sweep of sorts for the factory Mustang squad; Will Davison having topped a weather-affected opening session. The day's times were a huge step forward over last year's times, with Holdsworth's 1:01.6281 a new 'practice lap record' for the circuit.
Holdsworth and van Gisbergen were among those to praise the circuit's latest resealing; with the new surface on the exit of turn four in particular making the biggest difference according to van Gisbergen. The 2016 series champ later added that it was too early in the weekend to measure whether the ZB Commodore's latest parity changes had made a measurable difference.
"No, not yet," he said of whether the changes had made a positive difference on the car. "We're too slow down the straight."
His teammate Jamie Whincup held the lead of Practice 2 entering the final few minutes, where his time was naturally set to tumble. A quartet of Fords consisting of Lee Holdsworth, Will Davison, McLaughlin, and Chaz Mostert edged the six-time champion at first. But there was more change to come.
Read more: Supercars showdown — 10 things to look out for this weekend at Pukekohe
Holdsworth and Davison retired to pit-lane early, while Whincup pressed on. The No. 88 pilot ended up getting back by McLaughlin and Mostert, before getting pipped by David Reynolds and Nick Percat.
But Holdsworth's nearest rival ended up being van Gisbergen. He flew over the line with a 1:01.7758 — a tenth and a half adrift of Holdsworth's best. Davison, Reynolds, and Percat completed the top five.
The day's two 30-minute sessions were relatively incident free, despite Mother Nature's best efforts in the form of a series of showers just minutes into Practice 1.
The one casualty from the wet conditions was Kiwi Richie Stanaway [video above]. Having just returned to the series following a stint on the sidelines due to injury, Stanaway ran wide through the grass on the run up to the front straight — slamming the outside wall before skidding to the pit-exit lane.
Thankfully he emerged uninjured, and the team were able to repair the Boost Mobile Commodore for Practice 2 where he wound up clocking the 15th fastest time.
Stanaway wasn't quite alone in venturing out into the Pukekohe grass. Van Gisbergen spoiled his final run with an off at the hairpin, while Cameron Waters ended the second session with a frightening bounce across the grass on the front straight. Thankfully, unlike his former teammate Stanaway, Waters was able to maintain control without clouting the wall.
Practice 3 for the Supercars Championship kicks off tomorrow at 11.20am, with qualifying and race 23 to follow at 1.55pm and 4.10pm respectively.
ITM Auckland SuperSprint: Practice 1
1. Will Davison
2. Scott McLaughlin
3. Shane van Gisbergen
4. David Reynolds
5. Scott Pye
6. Fabian Coulthard
7. Lee Holdsworth
8. Mark Winterbottom
9. Garry Jacobson
10. Simona De Silvestro
11. James Golding
12. James Courtney
13. André Heimgartner
14. Richie Stanaway
15. Jack Le Brocq
16. Macauley Jones
17. Jamie Whincup
18. Todd Hazelwood
19. Cameron Waters
20. Chaz Mostert
21. Rick Kelly
22. Tim Slade
23. Anton De Pasquale
24. Nick Percat
ITM Auckland SuperSprint: Practice 2
1. Lee Holdsworth
2. Shane van Gisbergen
3. Will Davison
4. David Reynolds
5. Nick Percat
6. Jamie Whincup
7. Scott McLaughlin
8. Anton De Pasquale
9. Fabian Coulthard
10. Scott Pye
11. Tim Slade
12. Chaz Mostert
13. Cameron Waters
14. James Courtney
15. Richie Stanaway
16. André Heimgartner
17. Todd Hazelwood
18. Mark Winterbottom
19. Rick Kelly
20. James Golding
21. Garry Jacobson
22. Simona De Silvestro
23. Macauley Jones
24. Jack Le Brocq