Rick Armstrong has won the opening race of the GT New Zealand Championship at Highlands Motorsport Park today, while 16-year-old Matt Day has won on debut in GT4.
A stark contrast to last weekend at Teretonga, hot and sunny conditions greeted competitors for the first 30-minute race of the weekend.
Starting from pole, Armstrong was passed into turn one by Nigel Cromie, while in GT4, Glen Chappel took the lead from pole sitter Allan Sargeant.
There was a wild moment for Sam Fillmore in his Porsche 992, losing control of the rear on the entry to the bridge. Making light contact with the wall, he managed to limp back to the pits, and, luckily, the International Motorsport Team deemed the front splitter and rear diffuser only lightly damaged. Fillmore managed to rejoin and lined up behind the safety car.
Following the restart of the race, Armstrong made a pass on Cromie into the hairpin and took P1. While back in GT4, Sargeant assumed the lead of the GT4 field.
There was another wild moment on the bridge in the closing stages of the race where Nigel Cromie made a bold move up the inside of Joel Giddy in the Mercedes AMG GT2. Light contact was made between the two, and Cromie was through to P2.
Further back in GT4, youngster Matt Day passed Sargeant on the inside of the hairpin. Sargeant is running wide, with little grip left in his front tyres.
With 30 minutes of racing complete, Armstrong crossed the line in first place, Cromie second and Joel Giddy third.
In GT4, Matt Day held on for his first win, followed by the Toyota Supras of Sargeant and Glen Chappel.
The GT New Zealand Championship have a further 30-minute race tomorrow morning, followed by a 50-minute race in the afternoon.
Header Image: GT New Zealand
