Ford has struck the first blow at the Bathurst 1000 with Cameron Waters claiming the first Supercars practice session.

The Tickford driver showed why he is a leading contender to claim a debut victory at Mt Panorama by handling the circuit with aplomb.

“The car was pretty good, not 100 per cent happy with it, but good to start the weekend in P1,” Waters said.

Boosting 26-year-old Waters’ chances is being teamed up with two-time Bathurst 1000 winner Will Davison.

Last winning the great race in 2016, Davison was left without a full-time drive this season after his team, 23Red, pulled out of Supercars once the coronavirus pandemic hit.

He did race at the Adelaide 500 and will be one of the only co-drivers to have race experience this year after the traditional lead-up enduro events were cancelled.

Jamie Whincup also got another star pairing off to the right start, with the Red Bull Holden star finishing second.

His co-driver, semi-retired Supercars legend Craig Lowndes, will get his first practice session in later on Thursday.

It was an electric first session for Tickford, with veteran James Courtney the third-fastest around Mt Panorama.

Erebus favourite David Reynolds and Ford veteran Lee Holdsworth rounded out the top-five.

Scott McLaughlin, who has already wrapped up his third straight championship, started strongly before handing over the reins to co-driver Tim Slade with about 15 minutes to go.

But Slade turned in a rusty first-up performance, conceding he made a mistake in tangling with Shane van Gisbergen, which caused his Ford Mustang to spin out.