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Rick Kelly tops opening Clipsal 500 practice

By Stefan Bartholomaeus

Friday 27th February, 2015 - 10:21am

Rick Kelly on the way to the fastest time in Practice 1

Rick Kelly and Nissan Motorsport have drawn first blood at the Clipsal 500 Adelaide, topping the opening V8 Supercars practice session of the season.

The 2006 champion was among the pace-setters for the entire 30 minute hit-out, ending up fastest with a 1:21.58s.

As usual, pre-marked tyre condition was the talk of the paddock, with Nissan engineering manager Scott Sinclair noting he was not surprised to see Kelly on top.

“The guys on #15 have gone aggressive with their tyre plan and are pushing pretty hard,” explained Sinclair.

“It’s not a surprise that they’re up there but it’s whether they can stay there that’s the question.”

A late effort from Garth Tander put the lead Holden Racing Team entry just 0.015s adrift in second.

Chaz Mostert was the fastest of the new FG X Ford Falcons in third ahead of Jamie Whincup and Shane van Gisbergen.

Mark Winterbottom survived a late brush with the Turn 8 exit wall to end up sixth fastest.

The session ran green for its duration, with a mid-session spin for James Courtney among few notable incidents.

Courtney lost the rear of the #22 HRT Commodore on the bumps into Turn 4, which have been re-profiled this year due to resurfacing work on Wakefield Road.

Andre Heimgartner also had a minor off-track excursion during his first official V8 Supercars session, pulling his Super Black Ford up short of the Turn 11 tyre barrier after running onto the grass.

The second of three 30 minute practice sessions will get underway at 1050 local time.

VIDEO: V8 Supercars Practice 1 highlights

Result: V8 Supercars Practice 1, Clipsal 500

1	Nissan Motorsport	Rick Kelly	Nissan Altima	01:21.59
2	Holden Racing Team	Garth Tander	Holden Commodore VF	01:21.60	00:00.02
3	Pepsi Max Crew	Chaz Mostert	Ford Falcon FG/X	01:21.65	00:00.07
4	Red Bull Racing Australia	Jamie Whincup	Holden Commodore VF	01:21.69	00:00.11
5	Team TEKNO Darrell Lea	Shane Van Gisbergen	Holden Commodore VF	01:21.70	00:00.12
6	Pepsi Max Crew	Mark Winterbottom	Ford Falcon FG/X	01:21.70	00:00.12
7	Erebus Motorsport V8	Ashley Walsh	Mercedes E63 AMG	01:21.71	00:00.12
8	Wilson Security Racing GRM	Scott McLaughlin	Volvo S60	01:21.74	00:00.16
9	Nissan Mororsport	James Moffat	Nissan Altima	01:21.88	00:00.30
10	Nissan Motorsport	Michael Caruso	Nissan Altima	01:21.89	00:00.30
11	Walkinshaw Racing	Lee Holdsworth	Holden Commodore VF	01:21.91	00:00.33
12	Red Bull Racing Australia	Craig Lowndes	Holden Commodore VF	01:21.97	00:00.38
13	Team BOC	Jason Bright	Holden Commodore VF	01:22.08	00:00.50
14	Erebus Motorsport V8	Will Davison	Mercedes E63 AMG	01:22.09	00:00.50
15	DJR Team Penske	Marcos Ambrose	Ford Falcon FG/X	01:22.14	00:00.55
16	Holden Racing Team	James Courtney	Holden Commodore VF	01:22.18	00:00.60
17	Supercheap Auto Racing	Tim Slade	Holden Commodore VF	01:22.27	00:00.68
18	Nissan Motorsport	Todd Kelly	Nissan Altima	01:22.36	00:00.77
19	Freightliner Racing	Fabian Coulthard	Holden Commodore VF	01:22.39	00:00.80
20	The Bottle-O Racing Team	David Reynolds	Ford Falcon FG	01:22.40	00:00.82
21	Wilson Security Racing GRM	David Wall	Volvo S60	01:22.47	00:00.88
22	Team GB Galvanizing	Dale Wood	Holden Commodore VF	01:22.65	00:01.07
23	Repair Management Aust Racing	Nick Percat	Holden Commodore VF	01:22.71	00:01.13
24	Super Black Racing	Andre Heimgartner	Ford Falcon FG	01:23.51	00:01.92
25	Team Cooldrive	Tim Blanchard	Holden Commodore VF	01:24.19	00:02.60