After an overall season-best qualifying session for Mobil 1 Boost Mobile Racing on Saturday morning, the afternoon took a turn for the worse at the Sandown 500.

Following top 10-running in all four practice sessions, hopes were high heading into qualifying this morning, and the pace and consistency in both cars continued.

James Courtney set the third quickest time, and Scott Pye the fifth, cementing the fact that both cars were in the window from the moment they rolled out of the truck on Friday.

Unlike any other round though, that did not determine the grid for the 500km race tomorrow.

Instead, Jack Perkins and Warren Luff would get behind the wheel in the first part of the ‘race to the grid’, and where ever they finished would be where JC and Scott would start part 2. Final positions of that 20-lap race would determine tomorrow’s grid.

Both cars were inside the top five for the start, but Luffy struggled to get the car off the line, falling back in the field.

Jack was doing well in third when the heavens opened up and hail hit the track. The team called him into pit lane to pit for wets. Miraculously, the hail disappeared after seconds, meaning those who stayed out held an advantage and untimately, wets were the wrong decision. Jack re-joined outside the top 10.

Luffy was one of those to stay out but contact with the #35 car gave him a right rear puncture and forced him to stop.

At the end of the 60kms, Jack was 14th and Warren 22nd, which was where JC and Scott started part 2.

After a rough and tumble first few laps, car 25’s day went from bad to worse, as JC hit the wall at turn 6, immediately ending his day.

As for Scott, he was caught nose to tail in a battle group, unable to find any clear air to show the car’s pace. He moved forward to 19th, which is where he will start tomorrow, while JC was classified in 26th.

That means we are going to have to do it the hard way for the first endurance race of the season, but the positives are that the pace of both cars has been consistently strong all weekend in all conditions, and that there are 161 laps, and 500kms to move forward.

The boys went straight to work on car 25, to get it ready for the morning.

James Courtney

“Really disappointing finish to the day for us.

“The car has been great all weekend, super speedy, so there’s no reason we can’t work our way forward tomorrow.

“The sun will come up, it’s 500kms and plenty of laps, so not all is lost.”

Jack Perkins

“For the car to be top-5 in every session including qualifying shows we’ve got a good package, the change of conditions in the race to the grid just really hurt us.

“It’s an endurance race tomorrow, there is plenty of time, plenty of laps.”

Scott Pye

“It was a tough old day in the end after a good start to the weekend.

“The start of the race to the grid put us back in the field, and then the puncture Luffy got really hurt any hope we had of moving forward despite making the right call to stay out on slicks.

“The car is fast, even in part two we still set the fifth quickest lap of the race, we just didn’t have any clear air to punch those numbers out consistently.

“Long race tomorrow though, a lot can happen.”

Warren Luff

“It was a bad start by me which really hurt us in terms of the race to the grid.

“After staying out on slicks it looked like we were really going to get a few places back, but then we copped a hit in the rear and the puncture ended that hope.

“The car is strong, in all conditions, so we just need to maximise that for as long as possible tomorrow.”