Five-time champion Jamie Whincup has broken the record for most pole positions in V8 Supercar-Australian touring car championship history.
The Holden star and series leader racked up pole No.58 at Sydney Motorsport Park on Saturday for the round’s first 100km race, surpassing the late great Peter Brock’s tally of 57.
Brock scored his last pole position at Oran Park in 1997, aged 52.
Whincup was just 0.0547secs quicker than Volvo young gun Scott McLaughlin, who returned fire to qualify fastest for the day’s second sprint race.
“It’s an amazing feeling,” Whincup told the Seven Network.
“I remember early in my career I wasn’t sure whether I could get pole position – it took me two years to get one and I thought maybe pole’s not my thing.
“I’m certainly not going to compare the past to the present, it’s pretty unfair, but I’m happy with the pole positions I’ve been able to get for myself and the team and hopefully many more to come.”
Whincup, who will start alongside McLaughlin on the front row for the second race, has now earnt more than $250,000 in pole position prizemoney – most of which he says has been spent at the bar.
“You know, at the end of the year on those team Christmas parties and whatnot,” he laughed.
“It’s certainly funded some really good fun over the last eight years, without a doubt.”
Ford’s Mark Winterbottom, 15 points behind Whincup on the overall standings, qualified a lowly 17th for both of Saturday’s 100km races.
Whincup’s teammate Craig Lowndes will start the opening sprint from fourth and 21st in the second.
Nissan’s Rick Kelly also posted his best qualifying result of the year with a third for race one.
Sydney Motorsport Park – formerly known as Eastern Creek Raceway – has only hosted two championship rounds since 2008, the last in 2012.
It’s the first time, however, the category’s new generation of cars have raced at the track, with Volvo, Nissan and Mercedes-Benz all making their debuts.
Lowndes is the only driver in the current field to win multiple times at the western Sydney circuit with five victories.
Race one of the weekend begins at 2.25pm (AEST), followed by the second at 4.30pm.
