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Honda international fastest again in Practice 2
Import ace Nestor Girolami continued his rampaging run at the front of the carsales TCR Australia series as he gapped the field in the second of two Friday practice sessions.
Taking advantage of brand-new Michelin tyres, while his rivals ran around on used racing rubber, he set the standard with a 1 minute 14.1641 second lap in his Honda Civic Type R.
Liam McAdam popped up into second place with his Audi RS3 with a time of 1:15.8172 while title leader Will Brown concentrated on his race set-up but still managed third in his Hyundai i30 N on 1:16.0349
John Martin, who is doing double duty as an S5000 driver the same as Brown, put in one attacking lap with his Honda for fourth as Andre
Heimgartner banked the benefits of major suspension changes to finish fifth in his Holden Astra.
“Now I like the car more than before. Now I feel more confident,” Girolami says after his second session at Sandown.
“We made some changes. Now we can push a bit more.”
But he admits he will need more work on his starts to ensure a quick getaway in the weekend’s three TCR sprints.
“Yes, too much wheelspin. I will have to work on that,” he smiles.
For Brown, the long game and maximum points is more important than a single quick lap.
“We did a race run and other people put on fresh tyres,” he says.
“We just want to have a good race pace. We’re not fussed at all.
“That’s alright. P2 is not too bad.”
Girolami’s Honda team mates Martin and Tony D’Alberto are both learning and benefitting from the experience of the two JAS team engineers in the Argentinian’s entourage.
“We tuned it up. It’s gone from undriveable to something we can work with,” says Brown.
“We made a few chaanges that went my way,” says D’Alberto.
The only signficiant drama in the session, after Garry Rogers’ crew machined a new part at their nearby workshop to fix a turbo problem on James
Moffat’s 11th-placed Renault Megane RS, was Jordan Cox’s Alfa, which was parked after a stone holed the radiator.
Track action continues tomorrow with qualifying at 10:15am and Race 1 scheduled for 1:10pm AEST.
More to follow
Results: TCR Australia Practice 2, Sandown
| Pos | Num | Driver | Team | Car | Lap | Gap |
| 1 | 38 | Nestor Girolami (ARG) | Wall Racing | Honda Civic Type R | 1:14.1631 | |
| 2 | 97 | Liam McAdam (Qld) | Melbourne Performance Centre | Audi RS 3 | 1:15.6113 | 01.4482 |
| 3 | 24 | John Martin (NSW) | Wall Racing | Honda Civic Type R | 1:15.6686 | 01.5055 |
| 4 | 30 | William Brown (Qld) | HMO Customer Racing | Hyundai i30N | 1:15.8172 | 01.6541 |
| 5 | 777 | Andre Heimgartner (NZ) | Kelly Racing | Holden Astra | 1:16.1090 | 01.9459 |
| 6 | 50 | Tony D’Alberto (Vic) | Wall Racing | Honda Civic Type R | 1:16.1236 | 01.9605 |
| 7 | 100 | Russell Ingall (Qld) | Melbourne Performance Centre | Audi RS 3 | 1:16.1416 | 01.9785 |
| 8 | 62 | Bryce Fullwood (NT) | Kelly Racing | Holden Astra | 1:16.1935 | 02.0304 |
| 9 | 3 | Garth Tander (Vic) | Melbourne Performance Centre | Audi RS 3 | 1:16.4175 | 02.2544 |
| 10 | 8 | Jason Bright (Vic) | Taskforce/Melb Performance Cnt | Volkswagon Golf GTI | 1:16.6175 | 02.4544 |
| 11 | 9 | Dylan O’Keeffe (Vic) | Ashley Seward Motorsport | Alfa Romeo Giulietta | 1:16.6387 | 02.4756 |
| 12 | 34 | James Moffat (Vic) | Garry Rogers Motorsport | Renault Megane RS | 1:16.6712 | 02.5081 |
| 13 | 11 | Nathan Morcom (NSW) | HMO Customer Racing | Hyundai i30N | 1:17.0852 | 02.9221 |
| 14 | 33 | Chris Pither (NZ) | Garry Rogers Motorsport | Renault Megane RS | 1:17.2324 | 03.0693 |
| 15 | 2 | Aaron Cameron (Vic) | Melbourne Performance Centre | Volkswagen Golf GTI | 1:17.6857 | 03.5226 |
| 16 | 35 | Alexandra Whitley (Qld) | Melbourne Performance Centre | Volkswagon Golf GTI | 1:19.8405 | 05.6774 |
| 17 | 7 | Jordan Cox (NSW) | Garry Rogers Motorsport | Alfa Romeo Giulietta | 1:20.5523 | 06.3892 |