Shane van Gisbergen sails home, 6.1 seconds ahead of his nearest competitor in the first race of the MSS Security V8 Supercars Challenge.
The battle between Jamie Whincup and Scott McLaughlin was reignited, the Commodore and Volvo arguing over second for the majority of the 10-lap race. But it played into the VIP Petfoods driver’s hands, as he widened his margin and took his second career victory at the Albert Park circuit.
“We didn’t have any grip, Whincup was all over me and so was the rest of the pack, but the car just came on and we left them,” van Gisbergen said.
The race kicked off with a rolling start, which saw van Gisbergen pinch the lead quickly from pole sitter Michael Caruso, who crossed the line fourth.
Will Davison will be investigated for jumping the start in his Erebus Mercedes Benz, and David Reynolds had a less than desired start, spinning on lap four in his green Bottle-O Falcon.
Fabian Coulthard came home fifth, with Garth Tander, Craig Lowndes, James Moffat, Chaz Mostert and Todd Kelly completing the top 10.
Others to note include Mark Winterbottom 13, Jason Bright 14 and Clipsal 500 winner James Courtney 15.
Click here for full race results and stay tuned for Race Two at 2.45pm local time.
