Lowndes catches fire, Moffat tops second practice

The first co-driver practice for this year’s Bathurst 1000 is in the books with Tickford continuing its stronghold on the top of the timesheets.

This time, James Moffat powered the Supercheap Auto Mustang to the fastest lap of the session. Moffat set a mammoth 21 laps in the sixty-minute session with his best time of a 2.06.058 coming in the final few moments.

Brodie Kostecki was just two-hundredths behind in the No.99 Penrite Racing Commodore with Tim Slade picking up from where he left off earlier in the day by laying down the third-fastest time.

The session ran green for its entirety, but there were dramas for the No.888 with Craig Lowndes at the helm.

The seven-time Bathurst winner suffered a power steering gremlin coming down the mountain and a small fire which put an end to his session after just eight laps.

“As I was coming down Conrod I could start smelling a bit of oil, but I couldn’t see any smoke and there was nothing in the cabin,” said Lowndes.

“So I didn’t know if it was the car in front of me that was oiling, I didn’t realise it was us until I got the call to come in. It’s a bit of a shame.”

His best time was only good enough to be classified 23rd, but the team are confident the issue will be rectified in time for the final practice later this afternoon.

Behind Slade, the top-five was rounded out by Supercar veterans Will Davison and Warren Luff. Davison spent a brief moment at the head of the timing boards but ultimately was shuffled back to fourth.

After a duff opening practice, the No.12 Shell V-Power Mustang looked steady across its stint. Tony D’Alberto was behind the wheel of the car often filled by Fabian Coulthard and steered himself to 18 tours and the sixth-fastest time.

Will Brown was seventh quickest in the second Erebus Commodore, leading Garth Tander who also spent a short time at the front of the timesheets before the field rolled on green tyres for the final 15 minutes.

Slade was the first to lay down a competitive benchmark for the rest of the field to chase before Moffat leapt ahead of the No.17. Kostecki then slotted himself in between as the chequered flag concluded the session.

Practice 3 sees the return of the regular field and starts at 6 pm NZT.