New names top the timesheets on Teretonga test day

Tayler Bryant and Clay Osborne enjoyed their moment at Teretonga today, but it was a moment in the rain rather than the sun.

Wet weather peppered the entire day’s running and even when it started to dry out in the afternoon, the drivers were still faced with mixed conditions and the constant threat of rain.

Surprise of the first session was Tayler Bryant – returning after a year on the sidelines and confirming the promising form he showed at Highlands last week. It wasn’t a lucky lap either, he was a full second ahead of second-placed Rylan Gray at the end of the session with round one winner Brock Gilchrist down in seventh as the drivers got used to the TR86 car on a wet Teretonga for the first time since the series last visited here in 2020.

Clay Osborne and Christina Orr-West were the stars of the second session, both confirming the improved form they had shown at Highlands. Gilchrist meanwhile, clocked the third fastest time with session one stars Bryant and Gray still competitive in fifth and sixth overall.

Sam Cotterill had a nasty off in the closing stages of the session, making side contact with the tyre wall damaging his car and necessitating a trip to the hospital for a check over. It would mean that his weekend was over before it had begun.

Osborne carried on his run of good form in the third much drier session too, topping the timesheets ahead of rookie William Exton and Justin Allen. Gray and Gilchrist rounded out the top five.

Action on Saturday gets underway with qualifying in the morning and the first of three races on Saturday afternoon. The weather forecast is good and qualifying could produce a few surprises after Friday’s testing results.

Practice 1