Heimgartner leads Kiwi charge in Taupō Supercars Practice 1​

The 2025 ITM Taupō Super400 kicked off with an exciting Practice 1 session at Taupō International Motorsport Park, where New Zealand’s own Andre Heimgartner set the pace.​

Heimgartner, driver for Brad Jones Racing, topped the timesheets with a blistering lap of 1:26.8830, showcasing his familiarity with the circuit and giving local fans plenty to cheer about. He edged out Team 18’s Anton De Pasquale, who posted a close 1:26.9088.

Grove Racing’s Matt Payne secured third with a 1:26.9660, making it a strong Top 3 for the Kiwi contingent.

Walkinshaw Andretti driver Ryan Wood clocked a 1.27.1526, not far from Payne’s lap time, placing him 5th on the leaderboard. PremiAir Racing driver Richie Stanaway posted a 1:27.3105 which placed him inside the Top 10 finishing 9th.

Jaxon Evans, representing Brad Jones Racing, clocked a 1:27.7044, resulting in the Kiwi finishing down in 15th place.

The session was red-flagged with less than two minutes remaining when Walkinshaw Andretti driver Ryan Wood clipped the tyre bundle at Turn 12, damaging his steering and ending up in the gravel. Despite the setback, Wood has shown promising pace with a best lap of 1:26.9908, placing him 5th overall in the session.

With the first practice session complete, teams will analyze data and make adjustments ahead of Practice 2 at 2:30 p.m. today before making final set-up adjustments ahead of the back-to-back qualifying sessions, scheduled for Saturday at 10:25 a.m. and 11:05 a.m.

The strong performances by local drivers have set the stage for an exciting weekend of racing at Taupō.

Full Supercars Practice 1 Results:

Header Image: Jessica Barnes / Blissful Photography