Ford driver Scott McLaughlin will start Saturday’s Supercars race on the Gold Coast from pole position.
The young New Zealander clocked a fastest lap of one minute and 10.3744 seconds to snare pole in a dramatic top 10 shootout on the streets of Surfers Paradise.
McLaughlin’s 12th pole position of the year means he’s already wrapped up the award for the best qualifier in 2018.
His joy was enhanced by championship rival Shane Van Gisbergen cutting kerbs during his shootout lap, disqualifying his time and meaning the Red Bull Holden Racing Team driver will start the race from ninth position.
“Just to get the lap together and to do it in a shootout is even better,” McLaughlin said.
Van Gisbergen, who had qualified fastest for the shootout, made a minor error in the first sector of his lap and said he simply pushed too hard trying to make up that time when he cut the kerb and was knocked out of the session.
The Holden star holds a slim 19-point lead in the championship standings ahead of McLaughlin heading into Saturday’s race.
“Just pushed too much, that’s a shame. The first sector I mucked up and then was just trying to make it back,” Van Gisbergen said.
Defending series champion Jamie Whincup will start from second alongside McLaughlin with David Reynolds and Fabian Coulthard behind them in third and fourth positions.
Van Gisbergen wasn’t the only driver guilty of kerb-hopping in the shootout, with James Courtney’s lap time also disqualified ensuring the Holden veteran will start his 400th career Supercars race from 10th position.
Bathurst champion Craig Lowndes didn’t even qualify for the shootout and will start from a lowly 21st after a collision with Richie Stanaway in Saturday’s 20-minute qualifying session.
Lowndes was swerving across the Surfers Paradise street circuit while warming up his tyres when Stanaway came up behind him on a flying lap.
The Holden veteran failed to react in time and the pair collided, with race stewards imposing a five-grid spot penalty on Lowndes for his role in the incident.
“We all talk about traffic round here and I was one of them today, unfortunately,” Lowndes said.
“I’ll go up and apologise to him. It was my mistake, I should have got out of his way.”
Saturday’s race starts at 2.25pm AEST.