Pukekohe Supercars: Van Gisbergen puts tweaked Holden on pole

Shane van Gisbergen took Holden's second pole of the 2019 Supercars season with a stunning last-gasp lap at Pukekohe.
The big guns fired early in the 20-minute session, Chaz Mostert going quickest on his first run with a 1m02.009s, followed closely by Scott McLaughlin and van Gisbergen.
At the six-minute mark Cam Waters made the first appearance in the ones, lowering the benchmark to a 1m01.929s.
Mostert swiftly responded with a 1m01.902s, before van Gisbergen trumped the lot with a 1m01.753s.
Momentum swung back in Tickford's favour as the crucial final runs kicked off, Waters going quickest with a 1m01.698s as Will Davison moved into second place.
At the same time van Gisbergen looked to have ruined his run with a costly slide at the back chicane, forcing him into a second lap on his tyre set.
But a spectacular middle sector helped the Red Bull Holden driver to pole right at the flag, van Gisbergen gapping the Tickford Mustangs by 0.15s.
It's just the second pole for a Commodore driver this season, and comes off the back of a fresh round of aero tweaks.
"I just fired up man, there's nothing like racing at home. With all the people here cheering us on, it's such a cool feeling," said van Gisbergen.
"The first lap of the second run I mucked up, and then I put it together for the last one. I'm super stoked. The race is going to be tough with a bunch of those Fords behind us and the weather coming."
Mostert made it a three-car Tickford train behind van Gisbergen, while Fabian Coulthard made a rare appearance ahead of Scott McLaughlin, the Penske pair locking out the third row.
David Reynolds was the second-best Holden driver down in seventh, followed by Lee Holdsworth, Anton De Pasquale and Nick Percat.
Jamie Whincup was a surprise omission from the top 10, the seven-time champ more than half a second off his teammate's pace down in 12th.
Cla | # | Driver | Car | Time |
---|---|---|---|---|
1 | 97 | Holden Commodore ZB | 1'01.5480 | |
2 | 6 | Ford Mustang GT | 1'01.6986 | |
3 | 23 | Ford Mustang GT | 1'01.7513 | |
4 | 55 | Ford Mustang GT | 1'01.7804 | |
5 | 12 | Ford Mustang GT | 1'01.8018 | |
6 | 17 | Ford Mustang GT | 1'01.8461 | |
7 | 9 | Holden Commodore ZB | 1'01.9151 | |
8 | 5 | Ford Mustang GT | 1'01.9338 | |
9 | 99 | Holden Commodore ZB | 1'02.0444 | |
10 | 8 | Holden Commodore ZB | 1'02.0786 | |
11 | 2 | Holden Commodore ZB | 1'02.1043 | |
12 | 88 | Holden Commodore ZB | 1'02.1251 | |
13 | 14 | Holden Commodore ZB | 1'02.1477 | |
14 | 33 | Holden Commodore ZB | 1'02.1694 | |
15 | 18 | Holden Commodore ZB | 1'02.1829 | |
16 | 7 | Nissan Altima | 1'02.2470 | |
17 | 3 | Nissan Altima | 1'02.2680 | |
18 | 34 | Holden Commodore ZB | 1'02.2712 | |
19 | 22 | Holden Commodore ZB | 1'02.3129 | |
20 | 35 | Holden Commodore ZB | 1'02.3532 | |
21 | 21 | Holden Commodore ZB | 1'02.3648 | |
22 | 15 | Nissan Altima | 1'02.4633 | |
23 | 78 | Nissan Altima | 1'02.6325 | |
24 | 19 | Holden Commodore ZB | 1'03.1087 |

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About this article
Series | Supercars |
Event | Auckland |
Author | Andrew van Leeuwen |