It was a hot start to 2007 for Team VIP Petfoods in the Carrera Cup and Aussie Racing Cars with the season beginning today at the Clipsal 500 in Adelaide.
As the air temperature reached the mid-thirties, action on the track was just as hot as Craig Baird and Paul Kemal commenced their title defences in the Carrera Cup and Aussie Racing Cars respectively.
Kemal was impressive after qualifying on pole position and then having a ding-dong battle with James Ward in the first race of the Aussie Racing Cars.
The 32-year-old from Sydney set the fastest lap in qualifying of 1:35.3720 and then got a smoking start to race one to set the pace in the VIP Petfoods-backed Ford Falcon Aussie Racing Car.
Ward proved a hard man to hold out and the pair had a great duel over the closing laps with Kemal settling for second position in the first eight-lapper of the season.
“He got me on the fast sweeper on the back straight, but I almost got back passed him on the final turn – oh well, there’s always tomorrow,” said Kemal.
“The car has the pace to match anyone out there. I’ve just got to keep it together and make sure I have a good consistent round.
“It was good to get my first pole position on this circuit this morning to start the season off.”
The field of 21 Porsche 911 GT3 Cup cars hit the track for two practice sessions today providing a great opportunity for the drivers and teams to readjust to racing mode.
It didn’t take Baird long to hit his straps with the Gold Coast-based Kiwi finishing second fastest for the day with a best lap of 1:24.9625.
“That’s a good start to the round,” said Baird. “We’ve got plenty of pace and will need every bit of it given how competitive the field is.
“Thankfully today I didn’t get food poisoning like the same day last year which proved quite a battle. I’m looking forward to tomorrow and hopefully put the Team VIP Petfoods Porsche on pole.”
Quickest for the day was 2004 series champion Alex Davison in his new seat with Jim Richards Racing.
Baird’s younger team mate in the VIP Petfoods and Stihl-backed Porsche Klark Quinn was firing in the morning practice session and topped the time sheets for much of the session.
Klark ended up with the eighth fastest time of the day but only within a second of Davison’s lap.
“The conditions were very hot but, hey, everyone faces the same conditions,” said Klark. “Maybe being from Queensland, that will give us an advantage over a few of our southern rivals.
“It was just good to get out there and blow some of the cobwebs out of the system.”
The elder statesman of Team VIP Petfoods and actually the oldest driver in the field at 49, Tony Quinn, set a best lap of 1:27.4049 for 15th fastest.
“That’s not bad for the only grandfather in the field,” said Tony. “Most of these drivers might have youth, but I have experience and that should tell for something around this circuit.”
Team VIP Petfoods will be in action tomorrow with qualifying in Carrera Cup and race two of the Aussie Racing Cars.
Carrera Cup will be telecast both live and delayed on the Seven Network this year, while the Aussie Racing Cars will be telecast on Fox Sports with its own exclusive program each month.
TODAY’S RESULTS
Carrera Cup Practice (Combined):
1. Alex Davison 1:24.6550
2. Craig Baird (Team VIP Petfoods) 1:24.9625
3. Aaron Caratti 1:25.0237
8. Klark Quinn 1:25.8253
15. Tony Quinn 1:27.4049
Aussie Racing Cars Qualifying:
1. Paul Kemal (Team VIP Petfoods) 1:35.3720
Aussie Racing Cars Race 1:
1. James Ward – 8 Laps
2. Paul Kemal (Team VIP Petfoods) – 8 Laps
3. Kyle Clews – 8 Laps