Ford has set the stage for a fascinating qualifying session at the Clipsal 500, sweeping the first three spots in final practice on Friday for the V8 Supercar season-opener.

Ford Performance Racing duo Mark Winterbottom and Will Davison clocked the fastest two times at the Adelaide street circuit, with Stone Brothers Racing’s Shane Van Gisbergen third.

Defending champion Jamie Whincup was seventh fastest in his Holden.

Winterbottom defied the pain of a healing broken leg to upstage Whincup in the final two practice sessions, topping the timesheets for both.

His final practice session time of 1min 21.1303sec was close to a lap record and edged out the Fords of Davison (1:21.1936) and New Zealander Van Gisbergen (1:21.2363).

Winterbottom broke his leg eight weeks ago while waterskiing, and admits the injury is still healing.

But with qualifying and a top-10 shootout later on Friday, Team Vodafone driver Whincup will get the chance to reinforce his dominance ahead of the weekend’s two Clipsal 500 races.

The two 250km races will be held on Saturday and Sunday.