Saturday didn’t go to script for Mobil 1 HSV Racing, with James Courtney finishing 17th, and Scott Pye 19th.
After a tough qualifying session for JC, who ended up P24, he had it all in front of him for the 50 lap race.
He got off to a ripping start, picking up five spots on the opening lap alone, before climbing to 17th in the first stint.
An early stop for clear air meant he leap frogged another 5 cars, including Scotty, but would have to do extra laps on an abrasive track that is harsh on tyres.
He hung on for dear life in the closing stages of the race battling with cars on much fresher rubber, crossing the line in 19th.
As for Scott, the opening part of his race was smooth.
Starting in P13, he got off the line well, kept his nose clean, and looked after the tyre.
After a manic few laps as everyone stopped, it shuffled him back to P20.
He worked hard in the last segment of the race to pick up time, ending up right on the rear bumper of JC in a manic last lap where cars were three wide.
It was a disappointing day for the team as a whole. Everyone is working hard overnight to try and find some more car speed and work our way up the grid for tomorrow’s qualifying and race.
From the cockpit
James Courtney
“It hasn’t been the best day for us.
“Qualifying was really disappointing, we missed the window there.
“The race was always going to be tough, but we got a great start, which was a bit of fun.
“It’s nowhere near good enough, we could have been further up without the problem with the front left in the pit stop, but we will look at everything tonight and have another crack at it tomorrow.”
Scott Pye
“We got a reasonable start, kept the car straight and made sure it looked after the tyres well.
“After an issue in the stop, it put us back down the pack which meant we would be chasing for the rest of the afternoon. The car speed wasn’t too bad, but we were being held up.
“The end saw a couple of guys on fresh tyres sneak through.
“It was a disappointing afternoon, but we need to put our heads down and improve tomorrow.”