Cool Kiwi Smashes Lap Record in Sydney
The young Kiwi driver is looking to claim his first ever Supercars title at this weekend’s season finale on the streets of Sydney.
“It’s a hell of a lot better than where we were at in New Zealand, but completely different tracks. For whatever reason I’ve had a half decent run at Homebush," Slade said.
“We’re pretty happy with where we started so fingers crossed it carries through to tomorrow."
Van Gisbergen leads six-time Champion Jamie Whincup by 191 points with 300 points up for grabs across this weekend’s two 250 kilometer races.
Temperatures climbed into the mid-30s C today, forcing drivers to take a number of precautionary measures to fight the intense heat. Despite the hot conditions, six drivers finished under the lap record at Homebush.
Whincup and Tim Slade also set impressive times in today’s practice as did Scott McLaughlin ahead of his final event in a Volvo this weekend before he moves to a DJR Team Penske Ford next year.
This weekend’s event will also be the last for Walkinshaw Racing as the official factory backed Holden Racing Team. It will also be three-time Bathurst champion Garth Tander’s final race for the team.
The first 250 kilometer race will be held tomorrow ahead of the final 250 kilometer race on Sunday.
Results
| Pos | Driver | Team | Time | Gap | Lap | Of |
| 1 | Shane van Gisbergen | Holden Commodore VF | 01:27.0734 | 0.0000s | 16 | 19 |
| 2 | Tim Slade | Holden Commodore VF | 01:27.0944 | 0.0211 | 16 | 17 |
| 3 | Jamie Whincup | Holden Commodore VF | 01:27.2414 | 0.1680 | 17 | 18 |
| 4 | Chaz Mostert | Ford Falcon FG/X | 01:27.2467 | 0.1734 | 15 | 16 |
| 5 | James Courtney | Holden Commodore VF | 01:27.2583 | 0.1850 | 13 | 14 |
| 6 | Scott McLaughlin | Volvo S60 | 01:27.3348 | 0.2614 | 14 | 14 |
| 7 | Nick Percat | Holden Commodore VF | 01:27.4151 | 0.3417 | 14 | 15 |
| 8 | Garth Tander | Holden Commodore VF | 01:27.4770 | 0.4036 | 13 | 14 |
| 9 | Todd Kelly | Nissan Altima | 01:27.6239 | 0.5505 | 17 | 17 |
| 10 | Cameron Waters | Ford Falcon FG/X | 01:27.6634 | 0.5900 | 14 | 15 |
| 11 | Jason Bright | Holden Commodore VF | 01:27.6692 | 0.5958 | 15 | 16 |
| 12 | Craig Lowndes | Holden Commodore VF | 01:27.7839 | 0.7105 | 17 | 18 |
| 13 | Will Davison | Holden Commodore VF | 01:27.8687 | 0.7954 | 16 | 17 |
| 14 | Rick Kelly | Nissan Altima | 01:27.8810 | 0.8076 | 12 | 15 |
| 15 | Fabian Coulthard | Ford Falcon FG/X | 01:27.9932 | 0.9198 | 15 | 16 |
| 16 | Mark Winterbottom | Ford Falcon FG/X | 01:28.0309 | 0.9575 | 11 | 17 |
| 17 | Dale Wood | Nissan Altima | 01:28.2227 | 1.1493 | 13 | 16 |
| 18 | David Reynolds | Holden Commodore VF | 01:28.2292 | 1.1559 | 9 | 14 |
| 19 | Lee Holdsworth | Holden Commodore VF | 01:28.2309 | 1.1575 | 16 | 17 |
| 20 | Scott Pye | Ford Falcon FG/X | 01:28.3045 | 1.2312 | 16 | 17 |
| 21 | James Moffat | Volvo S60 | 01:28.3657 | 1.2924 | 15 | 15 |
| 22 | Michael Caruso | Nissan Altima | 01:28.7232 | 1.6498 | 2 | 4 |
| 23 | Andre Heimgartner | Holden Commodore VF | 01:28.9214 | 1.8481 | 16 | 19 |
| 24 | Tim Blanchard | Holden Commodore VF | 01:29.0653 | 1.9920 | 14 | 16 |
| 25 | Chris Pither | Ford Falcon FG/X | 01:30.3625 | 3.2891 | 1 | 1 |
| 26 | Shae Davies | Holden Commodore VF | 01:47.7523 | 20.6789 | 1 | 9 |