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Remarkable Randle storms to S5000 pole position
The remarkable story of Thomas Randle has a new chapter, the 24-year-old Victorian driver charging to pole position for the opening round of the VHT S5000 Australian Drivers’ Championship today at Symmons Plains.
In a gripping 2o-minute qualifying session, Randle’s 49.5995s flyer saw him edge out Team BRM teammate Joey Mawson by two-tenths of a second to grab the first pole position of the season; and 10 championship points as well.
CLICK HERE for Qualifying results.
“A few weeks ago I probably couldn’t have even sat in this car,” Randle said.
“It was such a great session and especially good to give the boys at Team BRM a 1-2 result. It’s such a great way to start the weekend.”
Mawson threw everything in a bid to unseat Randle and set his fastest time late in the session, the field having a three-minute dash to improve their positions following a red flag.
Ultimately he remained second, while James Golding was another late improver, the Team Valvoline GRM driver missing a spot on the front row by just 0.03 seconds.
His teammate Nathan Hearne was fourth having jumped out of his TransAm entry moments before the session, while Ricky Capo and Luis Leeds completed the third row.
Tim Macrow and Cooper Webster qualified seventh and eighth respectively, however will make up the front row of the second heat race by virtue of the top eight reverse grid.
Tommy Smith and Antonio Astuti completed the top-10, with Brayden Willmington eleventh.
Astuti brought out the sole red flag of the 20-minute session when his car stopped on Symmons Plains start-finish straight.
The Victorian driver reported warning lights on his dash before shutting down the car to avoid any damage, the Yellow Tail Astuti Motorsport entry towed back to the pits before the session resumed.
Race 1 of the 2021 VHT S5000 Australian Drivers Championship is scheduled for 4:13pm local time and will be broadcast live on the screens of Seven.