News
Lap Record Shattered in Adelaide Qualifying
Todd Hazelwood is another step closer to the Trico Trans Am Series title after acing Adelaide qualifying.
Click here for the full results.
The field was split in two for the Adelaide finale, based on practice times, with a pair of 10-minute sessions to decide the Race 1 grid.
Getting an early banker in was bound to be crucial given the lack of wiggle room for any red flag periods – and sure enough one came when Brett Holdsworth rolled to a halt on the outside of Turn 14.
That looked like heartache for Tim Brook, who was on pace to go to the top of Q1 before the red flags came out to leave him without a time on the board.
Some swift work by officials allowed the session to resume with little more than two minutes on the clock, and Brook took full toll to bang in a 1m23.9139s to go more than eight tenths clear of Brad Gartner.
Where that would leave him in the overall pecking order was still to be determined as another nine drivers had their 10-minute turn (the absence of Mark Bailey, Tom Davies and Elliott Cleary made for a 19-car field).
The news was good for Brook, who wound up fifth overall, aided by Tom Hayman stopping on track between Turns 10 and 11 – causing a session-ending red flag.
Either way, no one had an answer for Hazelwood, who led both practice sessions and smoked his rivals in qualifying.
The 2024 Bathurst 1000-winning co-driver immediately rocketed to the top on a 1m22.4452s before going better yet on a 1m22.3263s.
Hazelwood might have gone faster again had it not been for Hayman’s drama.
Title hopefuls Jordan Boys and James Moffat, who are 59 and 24 points behind leader Hazelwood respectively, didn’t get within three-quarters of a second but will line up second and third.
Then it’s Nathan Herne from Brook, Jackson Rice, Edan Thornburrow, Elliot Barbour, Ben Grice and Gartner in 10th.
Pro-Am bragging rights went to Joshua Thomas in outright 11th.
Holdsworth and Hayman will start from 18th and 19th.
The first of three races is scheduled for today at 3:25pm local (3:55pm AEDT).