Zach Bates left stunned by record-breaking provisional pole
Second generation star set fastest ever Gen3 lap of Mount Panorama
Garth Tander labelled Bates' lap "career-defining"
When someone of the ilk of Garth Tander labels a Bathurst provisional pole lap as "career-defining", you know it must be something special.
Zach Bates' stunning effort in the #10 Matt Stone Racing Chevrolet was just that, becoming the first driver to break the 2:04s barrier in a Gen3 Supercar, flying to provisional pole on a 2:03.9376s.
It was a career highlight capping off a difficult 12 months for the second generation star, who lost his mother Ali, before making his Bathurst debut last year. He has then endured a rollercoaster rookie full-time season that has left his MSR future in doubt.
However, the 2024 Super2 champion sent out a timely reminder of his talent, breaking into new ground in provisional qualifying.
“I’m just absolutely speechless, it’s incredible to get provisional pole, never thought during the weekend that it was going to be possible," Bates told media.
“We made a few good changes in the practice session before, and yeah, just tried my best, and here we are.
“We’ve been pretty good in qualifying, the races I’ve still got a lot to learn, but the qualy speed has been pretty decent all year getting a few Shootouts and things like that.
“But we’ve always kind of been the back end of the 10 I suppose, so to be up the front is pretty cool, and especially here.”
The Bates name has been synonymous with Australian rallying, with his family winning a combined eight Australian Rally Championships through uncle Neal, and cousins Harry and Lewis.
Zach's father Rick, himself a successful driver and former Bathurst class podium finisher, was in tears as he greeted his son in the garage, with Harry and Lewis also on hand to greet their younger cousin.
It adds a unique circuit racing achievement to his family's impressive racing resume, the rising star paying tribute to his family for their role in his rapid rise.
“It’s fantastic, I honestly wouldn’t be here today without them," Bates added.
“I’m super fortunate to be born into a family of rich motorsport heritage, so I definitely got a pretty big leg up in that aspect.
“But it’s fantastic to be able to repay all of the hard work that my whole family has done to get me to this point. A proper pole tomorrow would be incredible.”
After starring through the opening rounds of the season with several strong qualifying performances, Bates was mired at the back of the field through the final sprint rounds in Perth and Ipswich.
After qualifying 23rd, 22nd, 24th, 21st, 16th, and 25th across the last six sprints, Bates was back to his best with a Shootout berth at The Bend. Few could've guessed what was to follow at Bathurst.
"Yeah absolutely, it’s been a bit of an average last half of the season up to this point," Bates admitted of his recent form.
“Going from qualifying last on pace and then QR not being too much better, I mean it’s a big turnaround.
“I love this track, and we’ve worked super hard with Aaron and the whole team to try and prepare as best as we can. I’m surprised that I’m sitting here, but I wanted to get in the top 10, and to do that is great.”
Saturday's Supercars action begins with Practice 5 for co-drivers at 10:05am AEDT. Bates will be the last car on track for the Boost Mobile Top Ten Shootout, which commences at 5:05pm AEDT.
