HMO Customer Racing’s TCR Australia points leader Will Brown took pole position at the Winton Motor Raceway, denying Kelly Racing’s Andre Heimgartner by two tenths of a second.
It marks the first pole for both Brown and Hyundai in the new series, as a confident Brown elected not to even take to the track for the final ten minutes of the session.
Wall Racing’s John Martin was third fastest, a mere 0.0008 seconds slower than Heimgartner in second, the latter making his second appearance in one of Kelly Racing’s Holden Astras.
“I decided to go early because it was only going to get hotter and then the cars get slower,” said Brown. “I used up both of my sets of new front tyres and that was it.
“I was a bit nervous in the end, but I survived. I thought Martin might have got me, but he didn’t.”
Brown’s closest title challenger, Ashley Seward Motorsport’s Dylan O’Keeffe, was fourth fastest in his Alfa Romeo, ahead of the second Wall Racing Honda of Tony D’Alberto in fifth.
Jason Bright was sixth in his Volkswagen, after a close battle for second ultimately saw the Alliance Autosport driver end up just four tenths from pole.
Aaron Cameron put his Melbourne Performance Volkswagen in seventh, ahead of the second Hyundai of Nathan Morcom in eighth.
Completing the top ten were the GRM Alfa of Jordan Cox and Melbourne Performance’s Russell Ingall.
TCR Australia Race 1 will begin at 1415 AEST (05:15 BST, 06:15 CEST).
Qualifying result
| POS | NO | DRIVER | NAT | ENTRANT | CAR | LAPS | TIME | GAP |
| 1 | 30 | Will BROWN |  |
HMO Customer Racing | Hyundai i30 N TCR | 9 | 1:24.098 | 0.000 |
| 2 | 777 | Andre HEIMGARTNER |  |
Kelly Racing | Holden Astra TCR | 12 | 1:24.323 | 0.225 |
| 3 | 24 | John MARTIN | |
Wall Racing | Honda Civic Type R TCR | 15 | 1:24.323 | 0.225 |
| 4 | 9 | Dylan O’KEEFFE | |
Ashley Seward Motorsport | Alfa Romeo Giulietta TCR | 16 | 1:24.410 | 0.312 |
| 5 | 50 | Tony D’ALBERTO | |
Wall Racing | Honda Civic Type R TCR | 18 | 1:24.455 | 0.357 |
| 6 | 8 | Jason BRIGHT | |
Taskforce / Alliance Autosport | Volkswagen Golf GTi TCR | 18 | 1:24.511 | 0.413 |
| 7 | 16 | Aaron CAMERON | |
Melbourne Performance | Volkswagen Golf GTi TCR | 17 | 1:24.567 | 0.469 |
| 8 | 11 | Nathan MORCOM | |
HMO Customer Racing | Hyundai i30 N TCR | 14 | 1:24.686 | 0.588 |
| 9 | 38 | Jordan COX | |
Garry Rogers Motorsport | Alfa Romeo Giulietta TCR | 14 | 1:24.734 | 0.636 |
| 10 | 100 | Russell INGALL | |
Melbourne Performance | Audi RS3 LMS TCR | 16 | 1:24.763 | 0.665 |
| 11 | 34 | James MOFFAT | |
Garry Rogers Motorsport | Renault Mégane RS TCR | 13 | 1:24.919 | 0.821 |
| 12 | 38 | Tim BROOK | |
Wall Racing | Honda Civic Type R TCR | 15 | 1:24.920 | 0.822 |
| 13 | 97 | Liam MCADAM | |
Melbourne Performance | Audi RS3 LMS TCR | 17 | 1:24.975 | 0.877 |
| 14 | 33 | Chris PITHER | |
Garry Rogers Motorsport | Renault Mégane RS TCR | 14 | 1:25.097 | 0.999 |
| 15 | 3 | Leanne TANDER | |
Melbourne Performance | Audi RS3 LMS TCR | 16 | 1:25.141 | 1.043 |
| 16 | 22 | Hamish RIBARITS | |
Kelly Racing | Holden Astra TCR | 14 | 1:25.708 | 1.610 |
| 17 | 37 | Bryce FULLWOOD | |
Kelly Racing | Subaru WRX STi | 14 | 1:26.029 | 1.931 |
| 18 | 35 | Alexandra WHITLEY | |
Alliance Autosport | Volkswagen Golf GTi TCR | 18 | 1:26.727 | 2.629 |
| 19 | 6 | Molly TAYLOR | |
Kelly Racing | Subaru WRX STi | 16 | 1:27.239 | 3.141 |