Zukanovic returns to the top step
Marcus Zukanovic returned to winning ways in the Duggan Family Hotels Touring Car Masters by controlling a shortened Race 2.
A fast start boosted Zukanovic to a fifth career win and first of 2024 in the XB Falcon ahead of cousin Danny Buzadzic and championship leader Adam Garwood.
The race was shortened to just nine laps after Tony Karanfilovski went off at Dandenong Road, while Joel Heinrich also had a tough one, suddenly dropped from the top six to a lap down.
When the race began on a drying track, there was a squeeze from the rolling start with Jim Pollicina trying to sneak his way between the front row of Garwood and Zukanovic.
But off the back of a big push from his cousin Buzadzic, Zukanovic powered into the lead, while Garwood dropped to fourth.
There was a big tangle at turn 1 with Karanfilovski diving down the inside and spinning Lance Hughes, while Andrew Fisher and Peter Burnitt were collateral damage.
The race carried on as Heinrich put in a storming opening lap, charging from 13th to sixth, but was soon swamped having been overtaken by Hansford and Jamie Tilley in consecutive corners.
Moments later he was nowhere to be seen and suddenly a lap down.
By Lap 4 Garwood was able to pick off Pollicina and return to the top three, while Ryan Hansford was a man on a mission.
After his Torana started last, he snatched sixth from Jamie Tilley with a special move around the outside of the Mustang at Turn 11.
Karanfilovski’s tough race came to an end on Lap 7 when he got stuck in the grass at Dandenong Road.
The Safety Car wiped out Zukanovic’s 5s lead, but there was no chance of another restart as the race ended under yellows.
The third and final Duggan Family Hotels Touring Car Masters race is at 10.40 AEST Sunday morning.
Image: James Smith Photographer
Duggan Family Hotels Touring Car Masters Sandown 500 Race 2 results
2024 Sandown 500
Practice 1: 1: C. Waters 1:08.7478 2: C. Mostert +0.1445 3: D. Reynolds +0.1834
Practice 2: 1: S. Pye 1:08.8398 2: D. Fraser +0.0780 3: D. O’Keeffe +0.0785
Practice 3: 1: J. Le Brocq 1:08.2772 2: W. Brown +0.0394 3: A. Heimgartner +0.1377
Practice 4: 1: R. Stanaway 1:14.4910 2: B. Feeney +0.0361 3: L. Holdsworth +0.0422
Practice 5: 1: W. Brown 1:13.0865 2: R. Stanaway +0.1550 3: M. Payne +0.1586
Qualifying: 1: B. Feeney 1:12.8980 2: C. Mostert +0.0404 3: M. Payne +0.0879
Top 10 Shootout: Sat 17.20
Warm up: Sun 9.55
Race: Sun 14.05 161 laps
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