Ryan Wood during practice at the ITM Taupo Super440. Image: InSyde Media
Wood clocked a 1:26.1581s on his final lap of the Taupo track to pip Triple Eight Race Engineering’s Will Brown by a slender 0.0034s at the end of the second 25-minute session.
Dick Johnson Racing driver Brodie Kostecki was third fastest ahead of fellow Ford driver James Golding for the Blanchard Racing Team.
Andre Heimgartner completed the top five for Brad Jones Racing in his Supra while Anton De Pasquale was the best of the Chevrolet Camaro contingent in seventh for Team 18.
“To be honest, I felt like we were there or thereabouts, but there are some standout cars in race trim,” said Wood.
“I felt like our one-lap speed was going to be okay, but we’ve definitely got a bit of work to do with the Supra, and I’m excited for tomorrow.
“It’s a nice way to start, but as you guys know, everything can change tomorrow – including the weather.
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“It’s been really nice to be back home. I think we ended last year, Practice 2, on top as well. Hopefully it’s a good omen.”
After Jack Le Brocq topped Practice 1, teams were given a 15-minute intermission before the start of Practice 2.
There was little in the way of drama until the final minutes of the session.
Triple Eight’s Jackson Walls was forced to abandon his final flying lap due to traffic in the Turn 11 braking zone. He finished the session in last without a representative push lap to his name.
Just a few seconds later, Matt Payne was forced to do the same. However, his moment was far more spectacular as he locked up his front wheels and nudged the back of Cooper Murray’s Erebus Motorsport Camaro.
Payne ended the session in 22nd with a 1:27.6798s to end up 1.5217s off the chart-topping Toyota of Wood.
As it stands, Supercars is scheduled to return on Saturday with qualifying at 8:15am AEST, though that may change with the impending arrival of Cyclone Vaianu.
Results: Repco Supercars Championship ITM Taupo Super440, Practice 2
Pos
Num
Driver
Team
Car
Laps
Lap
Diff
Gap
1
2
Ryan Wood
Walkinshaw TWG Racing
Toyota GR Supra A90
8
1:26.1581
2
888
William Brown
Triple Eight Race Engineering
Ford Mustang GT
8
1:26.1615
0.0034
0.0034
3
17
Brodie Kostecki
Dick Johnson Racing
Ford Mustang GT
8
1:26.2685
0.1104
0.1070
4
7
James Golding
Blanchard Racing Team
Ford Mustang GT
7
1:26.5144
0.3563
0.2459
5
8
Andre Heimgartner
Brad Jones Racing
Toyota GR Supra A90
8
1:26.5443
0.3862
0.0299
6
88
Broc Feeney
Triple Eight Race Engineering
Ford Mustang GT
8
1:26.7627
0.6046
0.2184
7
18
Anton De Pasquale
Team 18
Chev Camaro ZL1
8
1:26.7648
0.6067
0.0021
8
6
Cameron Waters
Tickford Racing
Ford Mustang GT
8
1:26.7675
0.6094
0.0027
9
20
David Reynolds
Team 18
Chev Camaro ZL1
10
1:26.8862
0.7281
0.1187
10
3
Aaron Cameron
Blanchard Racing Team
Ford Mustang GT
10
1:26.9055
0.7474
0.0193
11
4
Jack Le Brocq
Matt Stone Racing
Chev Camaro ZL1
8
1:26.9450
0.7869
0.0395
12
14
Cameron Hill
Brad Jones Racing
Toyota GR Supra A90
10
1:26.9779
0.8198
0.0329
13
99
Cooper Murray
Erebus Motorsport
Chev Camaro ZL1
7
1:27.1014
0.9433
0.1235
14
96
Macauley Jones
Brad Jones Racing
Toyota GR Supra A90
6
1:27.1170
0.9589
0.0156
15
1
Chaz Mostert
Walkinshaw TWG Racing
Toyota GR Supra A90
8
1:27.1331
0.9750
0.0161
16
31
Jayden Ojeda
PremiAir Racing
Chev Camaro ZL1
9
1:27.1358
0.9777
0.0027
17
26
Kai Allen
Grove Racing
Ford Mustang GT
9
1:27.1909
1.0328
0.0551
18
777
Declan Fraser
PremiAir Racing
Chev Camaro ZL1
9
1:27.2331
1.0750
0.0422
19
38
Rylan Gray
Dick Johnson Racing
Ford Mustang GT
9
1:27.4802
1.3221
0.2471
20
10
Zach Bates
Matt Stone Racing
Chev Camaro ZL1
10
1:27.6163
1.4582
0.1361
21
55
Thomas Randle
Tickford Racing
Ford Mustang GT
8
1:27.6694
1.5113
0.0531
22
19
Matthew Payne
Grove Racing
Ford Mustang GT
8
1:27.6798
1.5217
0.0104
23
9
Jobe Stewart
Erebus Motorsport
Chev Camaro ZL1
9
1:27.7397
1.5816
0.0599
24
11
Jackson Walls
Triple Eight Race Engineering
Ford Mustang GT
6
1:28.6123
2.4542
0.8726
