Motorsport: Wood claims maiden GT win

Glen Wood in action at the Watpac Townsville 400. Photo / Australian GT Championship

Lamborghini ace Glen Wood has claimed his maiden CAMS Australian GT Championship victory around the streets of Townsville.

The Interlloy M Motorsport driver dominated the second race of the weekend, while two strong performances in the first and third races also ensured him of the round win.

"Unbeleivable! I'm just so excited to take my first win," said Wood after securing third in the final race of the weekend.

"I'm so grateful for the guys in the team, and Justin McMillan for the opportunity, and of course our sponsors.

"I think the Audis still have a little bit of pace on us, but the car was awesome straight out of the gate!"

Third fastest in opening qualifying, Wood then lowered his personal best in Qualifying 2 to line up third on the grid.

He then raced to a solid podium place in the opening race, which set him up for a dominant performance in race two, where clever use of strategy saw him leap Liam Talbot in the pit stop cycle.

Another podium in the final race of the weekend assured Wood of his first round win ahead of Geoff Emery and Kelvin van der Linde in the Valvoline Jamec Pem Audi.

The Audi duo found themselves tied on points with Talbot for second, though fourth place in Race 3 was enough to see them take second for the round.

Having qualified on pole, the Valvoline Audi trailed Talbot home in the opening 40-minute race, before a dramatic chase from van der Linde in Race 2 fell an agonising two seconds short at the chequered flag.

An epic battle with Ash Walsh in the Supabarn Supermarkets Audi proved a highlight in the opening stages of the final race, Emery piloting the Valvoline machine home in a solid fourth.

Championship leader Talbot claimed victory in the opening race of the weekend, and maintains a 28-point advantage at the top of the standings.

The Mega Racing Porsche driver showed strong pace all weekend, controlling the opening race and scoring healthy points in both races two and three.

"That was a really good weekend," Talbot said after the final event.

"It's good to get some points on the Lamborghini, because we go to Sandown next and that's a Lamborghini track.

"But of course I'm really happy to be in the lead of the points at this stage of the year."

Max Twigg claimed the final race of the weekend in sensational style, controlling the race following the pit stop sequence to head home Duvashen Padayachee in the Supabarn Supermarkets entry.

It marked Twigg's fifth victory in Australian GT, and his first since he dominated the streets of Albert Park in 2010.

It was an up and down weekend for the WM Waste Management Services Mercedes-AMG GT3 driver, Twigg rallying back after a tough opening day, to show his class around the tricky Reid Park circuit.

Roger Lago secured victory in the Gold Driver Cup for the round, narrowly pipping Ash Samadi who proved the revelation of the weekend.

The Apartment Hotels Audi driver equalled his career best finish with a fine fourth place in Race 2, and came within seconds of sealing his first Australian GT victory in the first race of the weekend.

The 2017 CAMS Australian GT Championship now builds to its season climax at Sandown (September 15-17) where a new champion will be crowned.

With a number of drivers still on contention, it promises to be a thrilling finale to what has been an action-packed season of racing.

Australian GT is next in action at Queensland Raceway (August 5-6) with the CAMS Australian GT Trophy Series presented by Pirelli before Round 2 of the CAMS Australian Endurance Championship, which will take to the sweeping curves of Sydney Motorsport Park on August 18-20.