Waters tops Feeney in opening Sydney qualifying, Payne seventh

Cam Waters has qualified on the provisional pole for this evening’s Sydney SuperNight opener at Sydney Motorsport Park.

The Monster Energy Tickford Mustang driver set a 1:29.8422 on his fourth of five attempts to claim the final run for this evening’s Top 10 Shootout, bettering Broc Feeney by 0.1588 seconds.

Chaz Mostert was third quickest, ahead of Nick Percat, Thomas Randle and Will Davison.

Penrite Racing’s Matt Payne progressed to the Top 10 Shootout in seventh, ahead of championship leader Will Brown, Anton De Pasquale and David Reynolds.

Andre Heimgartner will start tonight’s race under lights in 11th, missing the top ten by just 0.0094 seconds to Reynolds.

Ryan Wood was unable to replicate the pace that saw him top Friday’s sole practice session and will line up 14th.

A late kerb strike cost Richie Stanaway, who starts 21st, alongside Jaxon Evans, in 22nd.

Payne had led proceedings after the first round of flyers, setting the benchmark at 1:30.2963. Aaron Love went 24th fastest over the first runs but was forced to sit in pit lane for the final minutes as Blanchard Racing Team battled steering issues with the #3 Mustang

Waters was the first driver to break the 1m30s barrier, jumping to the top with a 1:29.8422 in the final minute.

Mostert, Randle, and then Feeney also jumped Payne, whose penultimate lap time was deleted due to a kerb strike. The Kiwi made one further attempt at bettering his best lap but could not do so. His Penrite Racing teammate, Stanaway, also had a time invalidated in the final minute.

Percat jumped to fourth on his final lap, while Davison climbed to sixth at the expense of Payne.

The Kiwi’s kerb strike only cost him six positions, and his drop stopped at seventh.

Brown struggled in the early stages and sat as low as 21st after his first flyer, but he progressed to the Top 10 Shootout in eighth on his last run.

De Pasquale improved on his fourth of five laps for ninth, while Reynolds’ first flyer was enough to scrape into the top ten ahead of Heimgartner.

Supercars return with the Top 10 Shootout at 6.55 pm NZST, with the Sydney night race following at 9.35 pm.

Sydney SuperNight Race 1 Provisional Grid

Header Image: Tickford Racing