Pither beats Jones to Sunday Super2 pole

Chris Pither shaded Race 1 polesitter Macauley Jones to secure ARMOR ALL Pole Position for Sunday's second leg of the Townsville Dunlop Super2 Series round.

Pither's 1:14.2560s was set in a hotly-contested finish, good enough for his third pole of the season and first since a pair at Symmons Plains in April.

Jones was the Garry Rogers Motorsport driver’s closest competitor – just 0.0435 seconds adrift – with his 1:14.2995s lap good enough for top spot until Pither’s effort.

In the closing stages, Brodie Kostecki was the first to displace Paul Dumbrell at the top of the order, before Jones moments later and then Pither in the last minute went quicker.

Kostecki and Jack Smith will share the second row, the same spots the pair started in Race 1 at Symmons Plains earlier this year.

Series leader Dumbrell wound up fifth after spending the bulk of the 15-minute session on provisional pole.

Will Brown and Alex Rullo occupy the next two places on the grid, followed by Thomas Randle, who was fastest of the rookies and the Fords.

Paul Morris Motorsport's Shae Davies was ninth in the only other Ford Falcon, followed by Saturday's race winner Garry Jacobson, who rounded out the top 10.

In Matt Stone Racing’s Commodore, rather than its usual Falcon, Bryce Fullwood was 14th fastest.

The final race of the weekend will commence at 2:45pm Sunday, as part of the Watpac Townsville 400.