Motorsport: Whincup quickest in Townsville

Australian driver Jamie Whincup. Photo / Alan Gibson

V8 Supercars championship leader Jamie Whincup has set down an early marker to his rivals by topping the timesheets at Friday's practice for the Townsville 400.

Whincup clocked a fastest lap of one minute and 12.7590 seconds to finish quickest on the day, pulling out the time with just one minute left in the day's final 30-minute practice session.

The TeamVodafone pilot, his Commodore decked out in a camouflage-patterned livery in support of Townsville's military community for this weekend's event, is aiming to dominate the Reid Park street circuit after a disappointing round last time out in Darwin.

Holden's Lee Holdsworth came in second overall with Whincup's team-mate Craig Lowndes in third.

Garth Tander was fourth fastest with Ford's Mark Winterbottom sixth on the standings to be the fastest driver in a Falcon.

Reigning champ James Courtney's woes continued, clocking the day's 19th fastest time overall.

The Townsville 400 gets under way on Saturday with a 200km race following qualifying and top 10 shootout in the morning.

- AAP