Lee Holdsworth fastest qualifying time at Bathurst

To everyone's surprise, the pilot Tickford Racing Lee Holdsworth signed the provisional pole position of the 1000 km from Bathurst. The Top 10 Shootout, contested tomorrow morning, will decide who will start at the front of Australia's biggest race on Sunday.  

Holdsworth completed a lap of the Mount Panorama Circuit in 2:04. He beat one of the big favorites, Shane van Gisbergen (Holden Commodore n°024) in the final moments of the session. This performance is the accumulation of many circumstances.

All the drivers having signed their best times, the resident of Red Bull Holden Racing (behind Triple Eight Race Engineering) thought they had done the hard part by signing the reference mark, but a few seconds later, Holdsworth stole it from them by only 0”0108.

The session was then interrupted to allow the stewards to evacuate the #34 Holden Commodore of debutant Jake Kostecki, who had made a mistake. 

There were then only a few moments left for all the protagonists wishing to embark on a final attempt. But a fairly intense downpour put a definitive end to this qualifier. The hopes of Scott McLaughlin (DJR Team Penske #17 Ford Mustang) to improve its brand fell through. 

The Kiwi, supported by Tim Slade, can still be satisfied with his third best time, enough to qualify for the Superpole on Saturday morning, alongside all the other big favorites of the event.

The duo of Jamie Whincup-Craig Lowndes (Holden Commodore no. 888) is 5th, just ahead of the pair Fabian Coulthard-Tony d'Alberto (Ford Mustang no. 12 of DJR Team Penske). 

The 2020 edition of the Bathurst 1000 km will take place this Sunday. The start of the race is scheduled for 2:30 a.m. for those of you who are early risers… or late sleepers.