Garry Rogers Motorsport rookie James Golding has been handed a five-place grid penalty for the second leg of the Coates Hire Supercars Melbourne 400, for impeding Craig Lowndes in qualifying.
On a flying lap, Lowndes caught a cruising Golding entering Turn 9 at Albert Park during the second ARMOR ALL Qualifying session on Thursday afternoon.
It proved costly for the three-time champion, who ended up at the foot of the times that set the grid for Saturday's shorter race.
Golding wound up 19th but, having indicated post-session he didn't see Lowndes, drops to 24th with the penalty.
"Following a [Deputy Race Director] investigation and an admission by Car #34, James Golding, of a breach of Schedule B2, Article 2.1.1 (Careless Driving – impeding of Car #888, Craig Lowndes, at Turn 9 during the session), the Stewards imposed the penalty of the loss of five grid spots in Race 4 of the Virgin Australia Supercars Championship on Car #34, James Golding," the stewards' summary read.
Catching Golding compounded a tough afternoon for Lowndes, who could only manage 17th in the other 10-minute session, after going off at Turn 3 on his first flying lap.
"We start where we start," Lowndes said.
"It's not a good representation of where the car's at, so we're going to have a lot of fun in Race 1 and Race 2 to bounce back."
Another rookie, Richie Stanaway, and Lee Holdsworth were both fined $5,000, with $2,500 suspended until the end of the year, for meeting ride indiscretions.
Stanaway's fine was for performing a practice start in his Tickford Racing Falcon during the Thursday-morning session.
Following a "DRD investigation and an admission", Holdsworth was penalised for breaching "Rule E.6.3.2 (the Driver must maintain control of the Car and must use the Race Track at all times during a Ride)".
The fight for the inaugural Larry Perkins Trophy continues with qualifying for Races 3 and 4 from 1:50pm on Friday afternoon, before the 25-lap Race 1 at 5:50pm.
Sign up to the Repco Supercars Championship Newsletter
We use cookies to ensure that we give you the best experience on our website. If you continue to use this site we will assume that you are happy with it.Ok