A solid start to our weekend at the NTI Townsville 500, with Chaz Mostert finishing P5 and Ryan Wood close behind in P8.
This morning’s only practice session of the weekend was cut short by a red flag. With more than half the field unable to complete their green tyre runs before the interruption, the first proper green tyre running came during qualifying.
Both drivers rolled out strong in Qualifying Part 1, securing their places in Pa2 alongside the top 10 drivers. Chaz put together a great lap to qualify on the second row in P4, while Ryan lined up P7 for the 100km race.
As the lights went out, Chaz got a mega launch off the line, jumping from P4 to P2 from P4 by the end of turn two, while Ryan maintained position through the opening laps.
A few laps later, Matt Payne made an optimistic move down the inside of the Mobil 1 Optus Racing No. 1, forcing Chaz to concede two positions. As explained over the radio by Chaz “I had to let him through, otherwise he would have taken me out”. Prioritising a strong points finish over risking retirement, Chaz put his head down and continued to fight.
On lap 18, Chaz came into the lane for four tyres. A quick stop from the crew saw him rejoin effectively P5, where he remained until the checkered flag.
Opting for a longer first stint, Ryan pitted on lap 22. Once back on track, he set personal best lap after personal best lap as the closed in on the four car battle for P6. Despite his charge, he ran out of laps and crossed the line in P8.
Chaz Mostert
“A solid qualifying session today, starting on the second row. Sammy and the crew did an awesome job rolling out a strong package to start our weekend.
“Stoked to start the weekend with a P5, probably wasn’t quite as competitive as the guys in front of us, but it’s a good start.
“Good news is, it’s only Friday which means we have two more days of racing and plenty of opportunities to fight for some cowboy buckle trophies.”
Ryan Wood
“I can’t complain about a P8 finish for our first time around the streets of Townsville in our Toyota GR Supras.
“We have lots of homework to do tonight, we’ll be putting our heads down so we can be racing further up the front as the weekend goes on.”