What a day!  The action has been non-stop today as the real racing finally began….

The track came up a treat today with good grip levels for tourers, and even the 1/12 cars finding enough for some meaningful racing.
In Stock touring it has been very much a case of the three Queensland drivers streeting the field.  Only two seconds seperate Damien Barnier, Keith Mackrill and Andrew Shapland with a further 5 seconds back to fourth placed Darren Matthews.  The strong southern contingent are still working out the track and setup, but have a big gap to bridge if they are to challenge the front three tommorrow.  Aidan Kelly, Michael Jones, Scott Parkinson, Damien Zarb, Paul Tomic and Rhys Marshall are all in or near the top 10, but have a lot of work to do to reach the leaders.  Of particular interest in the final two rounds of qualifying will be to see whether the 18 lap barrier is broken. Barnier is just over 1 second away…
In modified the three young guns Peter Jovanovic, Jake Zarb and Simon Nicholson have been fighting out a stunning dual for the TQ position.  All three smashed the 20 lap barrier leaving veteran Darrin Campbell fourth ahead of Anthony Atack.  Steven Jovanovic, Andrew Abbot, Andy Cooke, myself and Josh Pain round out the top 10 with two rounds remaining.  The battle for A final positions is far from over with just a handful of seconds between 7th placed Abbot and about 13th position.  Tight indeed!  In terms of predictions, Anthony Atack looks the man most likely to challenge the front three  – but it will be a tough ask even for Anthony.  Thermal issues were prevelant today with many runs brought to a premature end by overheating as track temperatures rose.  There remain several talented drivers yet to complete a full 5 minute run – notably including Jeff Hamon who definitely has the pace to challenge for an A final position.
1/12th is shaping as a battle between Simon Nicholson and Damien Barnier, with Greg Fisher and our own Big Mac close by as well.  The pocket rockets found some traction today with some innovative (!) setup techniques. 
Two more rounds of qualifying tommorrow starting from 9am, should precede some intense finals – with action kicking off around 12.30 or so based on today’s timetable.  Come on down…