Ford’s hot form in V8 Supercars has continued, with David Reynolds leading a pair of Falcons at the top of the practice timesheets for this weekend’s round in Darwin.

Reynolds took advantage of the new track surface at Hidden Valley to set fastest laps in both of Friday’s sessions.

His best lap of 1min 6.73secs was 1.12secs quicker than the previous practice record set by Holden’s Jason Bright in 2002.

Reynolds’ Prodrive Racing Australia (PRA) stablemate and championship leader Mark Winterbottom also fell inside that time to finish second, ahead of Holden’s Fabian Coulthard and fellow PRA driver Chaz Mostert.

Defending champion Jamie Whincup, eager to turn around his recent poor run, was seventh, while his Red Bull Racing teammate Craig Lowndes – second in the overall standings – was ninth.

Returning champion Marcos Ambrose, meanwhile, completed 19 laps in his return to a V8 Supercar for the first time since stepping down as DJR Team Penske’s lead driver.

Friday’s results bode well for PRA, who are in line to make history this weekend.

Between Winterbottom and Mostert, the Ford outfit have taken the last six pole positions in a row.

If they do it again on Saturday, it will be the longest streak seen in the championship since Peter Brock’s Holden Dealer Team did it in 1980.

Winterbottom currently leads the title race by 12 points over Lowndes, with Coulthard 86 points behind in third and Whincup 136 points in arrears in fourth.

Qualifying for the round’s two sprint races begins at 12pm (AEST) on Saturday.