Reynolds pips Hazelwood in Perth practice

DAVID Reynolds has put Grove Racing on top at Wanneroo Raceway after leading an extended practice session at the Bosch Power Tools Perth SuperSprint.  

A number of drivers enjoyed time atop the timesheets across the 90-minute hitout, which roared to life in the closing stages.

Shane van Gisbergen was the initial pacesetter on a 55.3948s before Andre Heimgartner dislodged his countryman with 51 minutes remaining, going more than three tenths faster.

Will Davison, Brodie Kostecki and then Anton De Pasquale each gradually lowered the benchmark.

The latter did so with less than six minutes on the clock and was one of four drivers to not venture out for a final flying lap, the others being Davison and Matt Stone Racing duo Jack Le Brocq and Cameron Hill.

Kostecki soon went back into first, before Todd Hazelwood put the Blanchard Racing Team into P1 on a 54.5633s.

Reynolds though still had an answer to come, his 54.5285s giving him a buffer of 0.0348s.

Behind Reynolds and Hazelwood, the order ran: Kostecki, De Pasquale, Mark Winterbottom, James Golding, Heimgartner, Chaz Mostert, Matt Payne and James Courtney.

Broc Feeney was the lead Triple Eight driver in 11th, with Shane van Gisbergen 14th, while Tickford Racing star Cam Waters was just 22nd – albeit less than half a second off Reynolds.

It was an interrupted start to the sole pre-qualifying session with two early red flags.

The first was called in unusual circumstances, with a brief stoppage needed in order to reposition a data beacon.

The red flags were being waved again almost immediately after cars returned to the track, this time due to Macauley Jones burying his new-look Pizza Hut Camaro in the Turn 7 sand trap.

He wasn’t the only one to blot his copybook, with Cameron Hill beaching his #35 Chevrolet at Turn 6 to spark a third red flag period just before the halfway mark.

That dug into a chunk of actual track time, with more than six minutes lost from the session.

Heimgartner was the other driver to have a particularly hairy moment, although he managed to escape out of the Turn 6 sand.

Supercars qualifying kicks off tomorrow at 11:10am local time (1:10pm AEST).

RESULTS: Practice, 2023 Perth SuperSprint