'It's as tight as it gets': The incredible margins behind Tassie qualifying

While drivers will fight for three wins and the maximum 315 points at the upcoming Snowy River Caravans Tasmania Super 440, there is also set to be an almighty fight in Boost Mobile Qualifying.

At 2.4km, Symmons Plains Raceway is the shortest circuit on the Supercars calendar, and regularly lends itself to thrilling battles for pole position.

The notoriously hard-to-pass circuit ensures qualifying is vitally important, and the cream often rises to the top. If there was a circuit that showcases the incredibly tight margins in Supercars, especially in the Gen3 era, Symmons Plains is it.

In the last 10 years, the average pole-winning margin at Symmons Plains is a miserly 0.0953s. If you discount the two wet sessions in 2017, that number drops to 0.0721s.

In the Gen3 era, the number drops again to 0.0368s. The closest ever pole margin at Symmons Plains is 0.0029s, between Brodie Kostecki to Broc Feeney for the first Sunday race in 2023.

As is also often the case in Supercars, pole doesn't guarantee victory, even at Symmons Plains. Only four of the last 13 races have been won from pole position.

"It's so up and down at the moment, and Tasmania's the closest track we're gonna go to," Triple Eight star Broc Feeney said.

"Normally a tenth of a second's probably 10 spots. So, it's as tight as it gets, no mistakes, which is gonna make the racing even better.

"You've really gotta be on the front side of that tenth to be fighting for pole position."

Pole margins in Tasmania (2015-2024)

The difference in 2025, thanks to the new Super 440 format, is drivers will also tackle a Boost Mobile Top Ten Shootout, the first of its kind in Tasmania in 15 years.

Tight margins aren't immune to Shootouts either; across the five one-lap dashes held at Symmons Plains, the average pole-winning margin is just 0.0380s.

For what it's worth, Garth Tander was the king of the Tassie Shootout, taking pole twice and qualifying second twice. Steven Richards topped the first two Shootouts in 2004 and 2005, with Mark Skaife (2006) and Tander (2009 and 2010) topping the others.

Top Ten Shootout results in Tasmania