THE lap record took a battering at Mount Panorama ahead of qualifying for the Liqui-Moly Bathurst 12 Hour — and it sits in Australian hands.
Rising star Matthew Campbell set a blistering 2m02.287s lap aboard Objective Racing’s McLaren 650S, slashing three tenths of a second off last year’s record.
The 20-year-old headed a field of four cars that broke into the ‘twos’ in the cool morning conditions, his McLaren joined by Maro Engel’s Erebus Mercedes, Rene Rast in the Jamec Pem Audi he will share with Garth Tander, with Shane van Gisbergen fourth in the McLaren.
Engel was the first to dip into the twos, shaking off Friday morning’s crash with a 2m02.391 to firmly establish the Erebus car as a contender for pole.
Friday’s fast man Steven Kane ended the session down in seventh, while reigning winners Nissan sat ninth, two spots ahead of reigning pole sitters Phoenix Racing and their No. 2 Audi.
The session ended five minutes early after the No. 48 Lamborghini, set to be shared by V8 racer Dale Wood, crashed at Hell Corner.
Qualifying gets underway at 12:55pm AEDT.
