Van Gisbergen storms to victory at the Beaurepaires Melbourne SuperSprint opener!
Shane van Gisbergen has done it again, clinching his second win of the season at the Beaurepaires Melbourne SuperSprint opener. It seems that van Gisbergen can’t stop winning, crossing the finish line first in all three races this year. Unfortunately, he was disqualified from the first race in Newcastle, but he has certainly bounced back with a vengeance. The Red Bull Ampol Racing driver started in third position, behind Anton De Pasquale and Brodie Kostecki but managed to overtake De Pasquale on lap 3 to take the lead.
“I’m stoked,” said van Gisbergen after the race, praising his team for their efforts.
The New Zealander had crashed his car during practice 1, attempting to write it off completely. However, the Red Bull Ampol Racing team worked tirelessly to fix it up, resulting in two great qualifying sessions and a well-deserved race win.
The Beaurepaires Melbourne SuperSprint opener saw a Chevrolet top-four sweep, with Broc Feeney taking home the five bonus points for setting the fastest lap of the race. Kostecki led his Coca-Cola Chevrolet teammate, Will Brown, to the finish line, with Chaz Mostert (#25 Mobil 1 Optus Mustang) finishing fifth. Mostert retains the series lead, but Kostecki has reduced the gap to 31 points after his impressive performance.
Before the race, the track was declared wet, nullifying the requirement to use both tyre compounds. Kostecki tried to pressure De Pasquale into making a mistake, but van Gisbergen took advantage of the situation and overtook him at Turn 5. The Kiwi driver then passed De Pasquale with ease on lap 3 at Turn 3 to take the lead.
De Pasquale was unable to keep up with van Gisbergen and fell into the clutches of Kostecki, who managed to overtake him at Turn 11 on lap 15. Unfortunately, a slow pit stop by the Shell V-Power crew ruined De Pasquale’s podium hopes. The likes of van Gisbergen, Kostecki, Mostert, and Waters stopped at the end of the penultimate lap. Van Gisbergen also suffered a slow stop, losing his entire margin to Kostecki, who was forced to defend from Brown on rejoin. However, Kostecki was unable to make an impression on the reigning champion, who won by 0.3910s.
The top 10 was completed by De Pasquale in sixth, followed by Waters, Jack Le Brocq (#34 Truck Assist Camaro), James Courtney (#5 Snowy Rivers Caravans Mustang), and Macauley Jones (#96 Pizza Hut Camaro). Bryce Fullwood (#14 Middy’s Camaro) was the biggest mover, vaulting from 24th to 11th in the 19-lap race.
Tim Slade had a tough day, coming in 20th after starting from the pit lane. He missed qualifying due to repairs to his #23 Nulon Camaro.
The cars will return to the track for the 15-lap Race 3 at 2:55 pm local time on Friday. We can’t wait to see what the drivers will have in store for us!
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