Photo: V8 Supercars Media

Chaz Mostert on top for PRA in the first practice session at Bathurst

Prodrive Racing Australia’s Chaz Mostert led a Ford 1-2 in the first practice session at Mount Panorama as the weekend activity got underway, leading David Reynolds and Shane Van Gisbergen in the twice aborted 45 minute session.

The session was red flagged twice in the first 15 minutes, both for incidents at Hell Corner, the first turn.

First, Holden Racing Team’s Garth Tander spun the #2 Commodore around and backwards into the gravel trap, beaching the Star Wars “Dark Side” liveried car, while just a few minutes after the session had restarted, Lucas Dumbrell Motorsport driver Tim Blanchard also spun at Hell, damaging his Holden, bringing out red flag #2.

At this point, the two Nissans of Todd and Rick Kelly respectively were first and second, but when the session resumed it was the turn of the PRA Fords to take over at the top, with first Mark Winterbottom going quickest, shortly followed by Mostert.

There was then a scare for Triple Eight Race Engineering’s Craig Lowndes at The Chase, with Lowndes spinning around at the famous corner at the exit of the Conrod Straight, and was narrowly avoided by both Walkinshaw Racing’s Tim Slade and Nissan’s Rick Kelly as he rejoined the track. The former champion would go on to finish the session in ninth.

David Reynolds put his Rod Nash Racing Ford Falcon FG X fastest with just over 15 minutes remaining, but a quick lap from Mostert saw last year’s Bathurst winner take over on top, initially just 0.0645 faster than Reynolds, but a late flyer saw him blow away the competition with a time over a second faster, the only driver in the 2:06s.

Of all the full-time entries, it was mainly the primary drivers took part in the session, with the next session at 13:20 AEST reserved for co-drivers only. Although Alexandre Prémat (#33 GRM Volvo), Steve Owen (#5 PRA Ford), Dean Canto (#55 Rod Nash Ford), Marcos Ambrose (#17 DJR Penske Ford) and Sébastien Bourdais (#18 Walkinshaw Holden) all had some late running in the session.

The two wild card entries of Novocastrian Motorsport and Prodrive Racing Australia finished 25th and 27th respectively. Aaren Russell, in the Novocastrian Holden, was 3.7 seconds off of the overall pace, while the Prodrive wild card driver Simona de Silvestro was 27th and last, 5.3 seconds from Mostert’s best.