Friday at Queensland Raceway
Straight away, before I start, we can see the whole track from the exit of Turn 1. Even if it’s hard to see incidents at Turn 3.
The atmosphere’s cool, similar to Tailem Bend, and what I’d expect of Winton or Sydney Motorsport Park.
There seems to be a different vibe for more rural venues compared to city-based venues.
Anyway, onto the action, and we start with the Porsche practice session.
Not a lot of notable moments. My phone was low on charge, so I couldn’t do much. But a car spun into the grass entering Turn 2 and got stuck, which triggered a red flag.
Aussie Racing cars were next, basically go karts with a car shell and roll cage. Aussie racing cars are always awesome to watch, even in qualifying.
One car went off entering Turn 2 to trigger a Red Flag, while another car dropping oil triggered a second.
A small dust devil blowing through caught two hats in the thirty seconds it whirled through, but thankfully the men got their hats back.
The next series to qualify was the Toyota 86s, where two red flags interrupted the session. The wild second red flag, a car ran wide exiting turn one, then tank slapped across the road, finishing in the gravel entering turn 2.
The Porsche qualifying session came next. This session was annoying, as after Diesel Thomas found himself trapped in the sand trap at Turn 1. While retrieving his car, someone allowed the cars to re-enter the track. Thankfully, only one lap at slow speed. Still, not acceptable.
The Trans Am then entered the track for Race 1.
Todd Hazelwood started on pole and won the race. However, a crash at Turn 2 on Lap 1 brought out the safety car.
Todd’s championship rivals Nathan Herne and James Moffat were among six cars that crashed. The crash left Jack Smith buried, and he would retire soon after. Others involved lost laps in repairs.
Todd Hazelwood held off Blake Tracey and Tim Blanchard to win.
The other Friday race was the Aussie Racing Cars. The race was intense, with plenty of battles throughout the field. One car retired as the cars came to the green.
Which means we move to Supercars Practice.
We’ve got the largest field we’ll have this season at 27 cars. The Bathurst 1000, for comparison, will have 26 entries.
Jackson Walls provided the most entertainment, running off track several times in both practice sessions. This included once at Turn 2 where he nearly made the tires.
The only red flag for both sessions was when Aaron Seton went off at Turn 3 and got stuck.
Will Brown didn’t participate in Practice 2 with left-front issues. Others, including Andre Heimgartner, also had issues.
I enjoyed today, and I’m looking forward to tomorrow. My great uncle also had a pretty good time, which is great for someone who’s nearing 80.
