Anton de Pasquale has claimed his first victory of 2022, emerging victorious in Race 16 of the Supercars season at Hidden Valley Raceway in Darwin. Teammate Will Davison was second, with kiwi hope Shane van Gisbergen third.
An 11 second pit stop hurt Van Gisbergen after he briefly held the lead, pushing him down to ninth. He was quickly able to retain his place in third following swift overtakes on Broc Feeney, Andre Heimgartner and Chaz Mostert. The two Shell V-Power cars managed to hold off the fast-finishing Red Bull Racing Commodore, sealing a one-two finish for the team.
Heimgartner continued his good form, with a respectable fifth place in his Brad Jones Racing Commodore.
Chris Pither was an unlucky 24th, with early damage hurting his chances of a solid result. The damage came as a result of contact with Will Brown, which spun both cars, damaging the steering of Brown and giving Pither a puncture. Brown had to retire from the race due to the damage.
The start saw the two Shell V-Power cars in a drag race from the line, with de Pasquale taking the lead from Davison. A fast-starting Heimgartner bump-drafted Davison down the straight, before backing off slightly into turn one. Davison and de Pasquale pulled away from here, making slight contact on each of the next few corners.
David Reynolds spun on lap 2 after contact from Bryce Fullwood, resulting in a 15 second time penalty for Fullwood. Reynolds was forced into the garage at the mid-point of the race due to damage sustained.
Races 17 and 18 take place tomorrow afternoon, with the highest point scorer over the weekend being awarded the Merlin Darwin Triple Crown trophy.
Top 10
1st– Anton de Pasquale
2nd– Will Davison
3rd– Shane Van Gisbergen
4th– Chaz Mostert
5th– Andre Heimgartner
6th-Mark Winterbottom
7th-Scott Pye
8th– Cameron Waters
9th– Broc Feeney
10th– James Courtney