Jamie Whincup has defied a tremendous challenge from David Reynolds and Scott McLaughlin to claim provisional pole for the Bathurst 1000.
The Red Bull Racing ace squeaked out the fastest time in qualifying, charting a 2:04.1093 lap at Mount Panorama.
A helter-skelter session saw several changes at the top of the timing charts, with Whincup, Reynolds, McLaughlin and James Courtney all duelling for bragging rights.
Whincup led when the session was red flagged with nine minutes remaining due to Jack le Brocq’s excursion off the bitumen at turn one.
When it resumed, McLaughlin stole provisional pole back with a scorching hot lap reminiscent of his pole-winning drive last year.
Whincup revealed he was in two minds about whether to go hard at the session after the break.
“I’m so glad we went out for the last one or we would have been pipped,” he said.
“That was intense … we were hanging on the edge.
“That’s by far the quickest I’ve been round this place in a Supercar. I couldn’t be happier.”
Reynolds was on track to snatch provisional pole at the death, only to fade in the final sector to finish second.
All three are yet to set their grid positions, but booked the marquee slots in Saturday’s top ten shootout.
Craig Lowndes, on his last visit to Bathurst as a full-time driver, also did so with the sixth-fastest time.
But Chaz Mostert, Fabian Coulthard and Rick Kelly all missed out on the shootout, which will set a grid for Sunday’s 1000-kilometre endurance classic.
No Nissans and just two Falcons – of McLaughlin and Cam Waters – will take their place in the shootout.
TOP TEN SHOOTOUT QUALIFIERS
Jamie Whincup, David Reynolds, Scott McLaughlin, Shane van Gisbergen, James Courtney, Craig Lowndes, Cam Waters, Nick Percat, Anton De Pasquale, Garth Tander.