Mixed night for Kiwis as Verstappen shines

The Kiwi Supercars contingent endured an evening of mixed results while Red Bull Racing Formula 1 Max Verstappen shone in his wildcard appearance.

Anton de Pasquale was once again the pace setter of the evening, with McLaughlin and Van Gisbergen also demonstrating themselves on the pace front.

Verstappen was immediately on the pace and maintained a constant presence at the front of the field.

Silverstone, Race 1

De Pasquale leapt off the line well, storming into the lead ahead of McLaughlin and Van Gisbergen. The two Kiwi’s were locked in an intense battle through Maggot’s and Beckett’s, which saw Verstappen take advantage and take second position.

Heimgartner meanwhile had worked his way up into fifth, ahead of Chaz Mostert. Although the Walkinshaw Andretti United driver kept the pressure on.

Through the benefit of the draft, Mostert eventually worked his way past Heimgartner at Stowe.

Van Gisbergen began to close the gap to Verstappen, with McLaughlin hanging onto their coattails.

Up the front however, de Pasquale ran unopposed to the chequered flag, taking the first race of the evening. Verstappen kept second, and Van Gisbergen completed the podium.

Silverstone, Race 2

It was a reverse grid race for the second race, and it was Mark Winterbottom who led off the line.

After taking the lead from Winterbottom, Coulthard immediately found himself off the circuit, losing positions hand-over-fist.

Whincup’s evening turned from bad to worse after suffering a heavy crash down the Hangar Straight. Verstappen too had incurred damage before the completion of the first lap.

Will Brown – who replaced David Reynolds in the #9 Erebus Commodore – was the first driver in the queue to have completed the compulsory pitstop.

De Pasquale eventually worked his way past Brown while McLaughlin began to work his way back up the field.

After the pitstops had played out, it was Jake Kostecki who was leading over Cameron Waters, de Pasquale, Van Gisbergen and Brown. Waters subsequently passed Kostecki for the lead.

Van Gisbergen and de Pasquale came together at Luffield, with the pair barely getting away unscathed.

The positions would go largely unchanged for the remainder of the race, with the only change in the top six coming when McLaughlin passed Brown for fifth.

Waters took his first victory of the series, with Kostecki second and de Pasquale in third.

Barcelona, Race 1

Van Gisbergen made use of his pole position start, leaping into the line early on.

Verstappen and Mostert came to blows, while McLaughlin tumbled down to order after spinning at Turn 1.

As the race settled down, McLaughlin began to work his way back up the field.

Verstappen kept the pressure on Van Gisbergen, while de Pasquale worked his way past team-mate Brown for the final podium slot.

The race would remain largely uneventful with Van Gisbergen taking the race victory, with Verstappen and de Pasquale completing the podium.

Barcelona, Race 2

Van Gisbergen leapt off the line well to take the lead on the run down to turn 1.

Chaos ensued at the start as de Pasquale spun at the exit of turn 2. Several cars were caught up in the melee as a result.

On lap three, the pitstop shuffle began, with the majority of the midfield completing their compulsory stops.

Verstappen and McLaughlin were the first of the front-runners to complete their stops as Van Gisbergen elected for a longer stint.

After stopping on lap 7, Van Gisbergen emerged in second place, with Verstappen having performed the undercut beautifully.

However, the Dutchman’s margin was dramatically cut down as Van Gisbergen began to apply the pressure.

With three laps to go, Van Gisbergen passed Verstappen on the run down to turn one and began to walk away from the pack.

Van Gisbergen took the final race of the evening, with Verstappen and McLaughlin completing the podium.

The next event on the schedule takes place next Wednesday at Mount Panorama.