Gold Coast 600: McLaughlin leaves it late in FP1

The Volvo driver led the running early with a 1m12.211s set inside the first 10 minutes, but dropped right down into the midfield as the the street circuit gripped up across the half-hour session.

He then made a huge gain on his last run, McLaughlin making up 14 spots to end up fastest with a 1m11.324s.

Shane van Gisbergen was second fastest, having hung around the Top 5 throughout the session. He had a stint on top at the halfway point thanks to a 1m12.016s, before going fastest again 30s from the end with a 1m11.412s. It was only when McLaughlin improved right at the end that van Gisbergen was bumped to P2.

“I think I knocked a mirror on the first lap!” said van Gisbergen. “It’s awesome around here. The new surface is really good, and the kerbs are the best they’ve been.”

David Reynolds was one of the surprises of the session, popping up in third. His 1m11.460s actually put him in P1 two minutes from the end, before being shuffled back.

Jamie Whincup shrugged off the Bathurst 1000 controversy with P4, which came thanks to a two-lap stint five minutes from the end that saw him bank a 1m11.710s, and then improve to a 1m11.500s.

Cam Waters was the best of the Prodrive Fords in fifth, with Michael Caruso leading the way for Nissan in sixth after running some new tyres just inside the last 10 minutes.

Bathurst 1000 winner Will Davison was seventh, Holden Racing Team’s James Courtney in eighth, Volvo’s James Moffat in ninth, and Prodrive’s Chaz Mostert rounding out the Top 10.