The McLaren 650S GT3 will make its debut start at the 2016 Liqui Moly Bathurst 12 Hour from pole position after an action-packed and record-breaking qualifying session.
Shane Van Gisbergen posted the fastest time in both qualifying sessions to put the #59 650S GT3 of customer team Tekno Autosports on pole with the fastest time ever recorded at the 6.213km Mount Panorama circuit.
Objective Racing, running the #11 650S GT3, secured pole position with the #37 Darrell Lea / Keltic Racing 650S GT3 a close second in the highly competitive Pro-Am class, and will line up on the second row of the 37 car grid.
After a positive morning practice session, the four 650S GT3s were quickly on the pace, running comfortably in the top 10. As the session progressed, Darrell Lea / Keltic Racing, Objective Racing and Tekno Autosports ran in the top three positions with each vying for the top spot. Mid-point through the session, New Zealand-born Van Gisbergen headed out on track in the iconic orange #59 Tekno Autosports 650S GT3 and was looking to make an immediate impression and making the most of a well-judged gap in the traffic. His first flying lap set a new benchmark for the session, and he quickly followed this up with an improved time of 2m 01.591s to end the session in P1.
The second qualifying session quickly followed and saw Objective Racing and Tekno Autosports back on track looking to improve further, and neither team disappointed. Warren Luff moved the striking black 650S GT3 up to a solid P3 overall and claimed pole position in the Pro-Am category, while Van Gisbergen went on to beat his own record pace by three tenths of a second to take the coveted pole position with a laptime of 2m 01.286s. The time secured Van Gisbergen the Allan Simonsen pole position trophy and set a new official lap record for Mount Panorama.
Starting Grid
| Pos | Laptime | Car | Team | Drivers |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 2m 01.286s | #59 | Tekno Autosports | A. Parente S. Van Gisbergen J. Webb |
| 3 | 2m 01.884s | #11 | Objective Racing | T. Walls W. Luff M. Campbell T. Slade |
| 5 | 2m 02.317s | #60 | Tekno Autosports | R. Bell A. Watson W. Davison |
| 6 | 2m 02.317s | #37 | Darrell Lea / Keltic Racing | T. Quinn K. Quinn C. Baird |
The 2016 Liqui Moly Bathurst 12 Hour takes place on Sunday 7 February, starting at 05.45 local time (Saturday 6 February, 18.45 GMT).