Bethune smashes Toyota 86 qualifying record to secure pole position

Josh Bethune delivered the fastest ever lap around Taupo International Motorsport Park by any Toyota 86 in championship history to secure pole position for the opening race of the crucial final weekend of the Bridgestone GR86 Championship.

Sitting third in the championship points table with just three races remaining this weekend and the man with form over the past few rounds, pole position gives Bethune the initial advantage over title rivals Hugo Allan and Hayden Bakkerus further back on the grid.

“It’s great to have that pace in qualifying when it mattered,” said Josh afterwards. “We hadn’t been quite there in practice but we had the speed in that session.

“It was quick and there was plenty going on out there but credit to the team, the car is much stronger than it was when we came here for the first round and we’re now in a very good position for the weekend.”

Additional exit curbing at Turn 9 - replacing the grass verge there previously - helped drivers find significantly more speed through what was already a fast corner.  That, along with a track most thought was particularly grippy for the early stages of a race weekend – had led to some eye-catching lap times in practice but on new tyres, the Bridgestone GR86 front runners delivered breath-taking pace.

Australian Cooper Barnes’ first effort in the overcast qualifying conditions for Right Karts By M2 Competition was a mighty one – the first ever lap by a Toyota 86 of any generation under the 1 minute 40 second lap.  His 1 minute 39.897 looked impregnable until team mate Bethune made the most of a great lap and a little slipstream from Hugo Allan and Hayden Bakkerus ahead on the track to clock an even more remarkable 1 minute 39.782 second effort.

The youngest racer in the field, Ajay Giddy, also made the most of the conditions and was another under the 1 minute 40 second barrier - his 1 minute 39.836 good enough for second spot early on. Zach Blincoe was the only other driver under 1 minute 40 and went fourth on 1 minute 39.997 behind Barnes.

Blincoe was one of the few to have a second crack at a good lap and made it stick, moving up on to the front row alongside Bethune. Giddy could not improve on his second run and had to settle for third.

Allan had another late run and managed to make a significant step forward to fifth while top rookie Chris White had a good session and went sixth – completing the drivers who beat the 1 minute 40 second marker.

Jett Murray, who had been one of the pace setters in the earlier two practice sessions, was a solid seventh and will share the fourth row of tomorrow’s grid with Cameron Hill. Justin Allen and Arthur Broughan line up ninth and tenth while Bakkerus was unable to improve from his early time and will start 11^th.

Other performances of note included Super 2 driver Cam McLeod - guesting for the weekend on a mission to learn the intricacies of the Taupo circuit – in 12^th.

Saturday brings just one race before Sunday’s big final two. With 75 points up for grabs and the championship finally poised, Saturday’s race is hugely important.

2024-2025 Bridgestone GR86 Championship – Qualifying