V8 Supercar champion Jamie Whincup put his Holden at the front of the grid, and co-driver Paul Dumbrell raced it to perfection for a comfortable win in the first of two qualifying races on Saturday ahead of the Sandown 500.

Dumbrell led for all but the opening lap and a half at Sandown Raceway to win the 20-lap co-drivers race on Saturday.

With finish positions determining the grid for the series’ regular drivers in their 20-lap sprint later on Saturday, Dumbrell’s steady hand to keep the car out of trouble gives Whincup an ideal chance of winning that race.

Finish positions in that race double as grid positions for Sunday’s Sandown 500 endurance classic – the lead-in for next month’s Bathurst 1000.

Dumbrell beat Ford driver Steve Owen, who teams with Will Davison in Sunday’s race, with Dale Wood third in another Ford.

Earlier Whincup broke the Sandown lap record during qualifying.

After several lap records tumbled during practice, Whincup’s 1min 8.6203sec made him the fastest ever V8 driver around the outer Melbourne track.