HOLDSWORTH SECOND FASTEST IN A WET AND WILD BATHURST QUALIFYING

Reigning Bathurst champion Lee Holdsworth has tamed the wet and wild conditions on his way to second fastest in Qualifying at Mount Panorama, today.

In his best Qualifying result of the 2022 season so far, Holdsworth threw caution to the wind in his last season as a full time driver to book his place in the top ten shootout tomorrow.

Overcoming a slow start to the session Holdsworth chipped away on the slippery track, building momentum as he got faster and faster as an elated crew in the Penrite Racing garage watched on, ending the the session just 0.2128s behind Cam Waters.

After a promising showing in Practice earlier in the day, David Reynolds couldn’t manage to string a fast lap together when it counted in qualifying as he struggled to find tyre temperature, finishing the session in P18 where he and Matt Campbell will start their great race from.

Earlier in the day before the rain poured down, a dry track graced Practice 3 where the team focused on perfecting a raft of race specific tasks including driver changes, pit stops, brake rotor swaps and allowing more track time for the co-drivers to get comfortable.

Saturday at Bathurst brings two more practice sessions before Holdsworth is the second last car on track in the top ten Shootout from 5.05pm AEDT.

DRIVER COMMENTS

Car #10 Driver Lee Holdsworth, said: “I’m absolutely stoked. To even just make the top ten was my aim but to be P2 in seriously tricky conditions makes me feel over the moon.”

“It’s my last Bathurst as a full time driver… I get that one lap at glory tomorrow and I’m really going to lap it up.

“As the track got better It was confidence inspiring knowing where I could feel the grip so I could push harder, I was really enjoying myself out there and I took a lot of risks.

“We flew under the radar before qualifying because we had some issues with the windscreen fogging up in Practice 4.

“If it’s wet in the shootout I’m very confident but I’d love to have a dry lap to have a serious crack around here one last time. Bring it on!”

Car #26 Driver David Reynolds, said: “That was a tough session, the track just kept evolving and in the wet, it makes it like a lottery every lap.”

“I kept circulating trying to find tyre temperature but we just couldn’t turn them on and get the grip I needed. We were one of the fastest cars in Practice 4 in the wet but it just didn’t come together for us in qualifying.

“It’s not the grid position we were hoping for but it has been a positive week so far, it’s going to be a long day on Sunday and a pretty crazy race in these conditions so anything can happen.”

RESULTS

Qualifying (Wet)

Holdsworth: P2

Reynolds: P18

Practice 4 (Wet)

Reynolds/Campbell: P7

Holdsworth/Payne: P16

Practice 3 (Dry)

Reynolds/Campbell: P12

Holdsworth/Payne: P18