Rookie Murray powers to first Super2 pole

Eggleston Motorsport rookie Cooper Murray has motored to his first Dunlop Series pole position at the Thrifty Newcastle 500.

Murray, 21, powered to pole by a whopping 0.3140s over Erebus Motorsport veteran Jack Perkins.

Zak Best, who topped both Friday practice sessions, will share the second row for Race 1 with Murray’s teammate Kai Allen.

The session featured a number of flashpoints, notably between Aaron Love and Ryan Wood in the closing minutes.

Love closed the door on Wood at the final corner, and was penalised to the tune of three positions for impeding.

It dropped Love from fifth to eighth, promoting Brad Vaughan, Jay Hanson and Matt Chahda.

It came after Love ran long at Turn 11 earlier in the session, but recovered to set a top-five time.

Wood qualified 10th behind Jaylyn Robotham, who is making a cameo in a MW Motorsport Mustang.

Wood’s Walkinshaw Andretti United teammate Zach Bates qualified 12th despite crashing at Turn 8.

Replays showed Bates locking up and burying his Commodore into the tyre barriers.

Bates managed to limp back to the pit lane, albeit with broken front left suspension.

Cameron Crick and Jordan Sinni were 11th and 17th in the other two Eggleston Holdens, with Elly Morrow 18th on her Tickford debut.

Lochie Dalton’s first full season with Brad Jones Racing begins with 13th for Race 1, with Aaron Seton 14th in his repaired Gomersall Commodore.

Seton — who crashed at Turn 6 during Friday’s Practice 1 — qualified ahead of Nash Morris and Zane Morse.

Debutants Callum Walker and James Masterson were 19th and 20th of the Super2 runners.

Second-generation driver Cameron McLeod scored his maiden Super3 pole.

The first race of the 2023 Dunlop Series season, the 21-lap Race 1, will commence at 1:50pm local time on Saturday.