Craig Lowndes has brushed aside a hairy practice day to take a pair of V8 Supercars poles at Symmons Plains.

Lowndes had a day of cross-country racing on Friday, with wild weather forcing his Commodore off the Tasmanian track at several points.

But the pace of his Red Bull Racing Holden couldn’t be denied, as he swept the pair of pole positions for Saturday’s two 100km races.

“This is a track I traditionally go well at, I do enjoy it,” Lowndes said.

In race one, the five-time Bathurst champion denied Ford’s Mark Winterbottom by less than one 20th of a second.

Lowndes will share the front row for the second race with teammate Jamie Whincup.

It was a chaotic end to qualifying at the shortest race track on the Supercars tour.

The Symmons Plains track was transformed in the space of under a minute, with all 25 cars taking to the track as time ticked down on the session.

Series leader James Courtney took home third place for both races.

New Zealand teenager Andre Heimgartner raised eyebrows with a fifth-placed effort for race two; his best effort since joining the category.

Heimgartner’s countryman Shane Van Gisbergen missed his brake mark around the notorious turn four hairpin, charging into Ash Walsh’s Mercedes.

The Kiwi was penalised two grid spots and will start in eighth for the transgression.