Broc Feeney has snared pole for the first of four Supercars races in Melbourne, while Cam Waters will be at the front for the second after back-to-back sudden-death qualifying sessions.
Feeney jumped 24 places to the top in the dying seconds of Thursday’s first qualifying session at Albert Park with a lap time of one minute and 47.72 seconds to claim his second pole of the year and fifth career pole.
The Triple Eight driver, nine points behind championship leader and teammate Will Brown, had set the pace in the final practice of the weekend after surviving a high-speed brush with the wall.
Dick Johnson Racing driver Anton De Pasquale pipped Walkinshaw Andretti United’s Chaz Mostert by 0.11 seconds to start next to Feeney on the grid, while Brown was made to settle for fourth.
In a repeat of last year’s qualifying session, Mark Winterbottom (Team 18) hit the gravel and finished 20th.
Looking to make up for a poor season-opening performance at the Bathurst 500, Waters clocked a lap time of 1:47.491in the second session to claim pole position for Friday’s afternoon race.
It is the Tickford Racer’s 23rd career pole and his first at Albert Park.
Brown will start the second race of the weekend in second with Feeney third fastest, while Winterbottom improved to snatch fourth place.
PremiAir Nulon Racing driver Tim Slade spun into the gravel after turning too wide just after pit lane, before teammate James Golding also pirouetted out of control at the same turn.
Golding will start in 19th behind 16th-placed Slade.
A total of 300 points across four sprint races will be on offer in Melbourne this weekend.
The winner can grab a maximum of 80 points, with 75 for first place and an additional five points for the fastest lap.
Race three gets under way at 5.55pm (AEDT), with race four scheduled for 2.55pm on Friday.
RACE THREE QUALIFYING:
1. Broc Feeney (Triple Eight) 1:47.714
2. Anton De Pasquale (Dick Johnson Racing) +0.153
3. Chaz Mostert (Walkinshaw Andretti United) +0.263
4. Will Brown (Triple Eight) +0.269
5. Matthew Payne (Grove Racing) +0.407
RACE FOUR QUALIFYING:
1. Cam Waters (Tickford Racing) 1:47.491
2. Will Brown (Triple Eight) +0.105
3. Broc Feeney (Triple Eight) +0.149
4. Mark Winterbottom (Team 18) +0.221
5. Matthew Payne (Grove Racing) +0.269
Source Agencies
