Holden veteran Jason Bright has taken out the opening race of this weekend’s V8 Supercars round in Auckland after five-time champion Jamie Whincup’s retirement with mechanical issues.

Whincup started from second on the grid and had the jump on polesitter Bright to take an immediate lead in the 100km race at Pukekohe on Anzac Day, but was unexpectedly forced out midway through with steering issues.

The 31-year-old had been eager to put an end to his early-season woes after a poor showing at the last round in Winton sent him from second to fifth on the championship standings.

Whincup has a new engineer this season in David Cauchi, with the man who helped guide him to all five of his previous titles – Mark Dutton – promoted to team manager at Red Bull Racing Australia.

Bright’s victory was his second successive in Auckland, having won the final race of last year’s round in New Zealand.

Kiwi driver Shane van Gisbergen finished second, ahead of series leader Craig Lowndes in third.

Holden star James Courtney and Mercedes’ Will Davison rounded out the top five.

It didn’t take long before the bumpy Pukekohe circuit claimed its first victim, with David Wall spinning into a concrete barrier after being bumped by Chaz Mostert’s bouncing Ford.

The second-lap incident ended Wall’s race and was enough to bring out the first safety car since V8 Supercar bosses scrapped the controversial new restart rules.

The Commission opted to return to last year’s procedure amid safety complaints over the new rules, but all went smoothly on Friday.

Local hero Scott McLaughlin found himself in an Anzac battle of his own with Holden’s Garth Tander, drawing cheers from his home crowd – many of them donning the Volvo blue – as he fought for ninth place.

He eventually was able to get the job done to applause from his Kiwi fans.

The race, cut short by two laps due to time issues, is the first to be held on Anzac Day in the Australian touring car championship’s 55-year history.

Two more 100km races will be run on Saturday, before a mini-marathon 200km battle on Sunday.