Team 18’s David Reynolds has charged from 14th to second in a rain-soaked Race 31 at the Boost Mobile Gold Coast 500, while Anton De Pasquale secured fourth to bank valuable points in his Supercars Finals campaign.

Reynolds combined strong wet-weather pace with an early pit stop strategy to bring the No. 48 Snowy River Racing Chevrolet Camaro onto the podium, capping a strong Saturday for Team 18 with both cars inside the top four.

De Pasquale began the day by securing third on the grid in the Top Ten Shootout, recording a 1:11.3911 aboard the No. 18 Cub Cadet Racing Chevrolet Camaro.

Torrential rain and standing water forced the 85-lap race to begin behind the Safety Car, with racing getting underway on lap four. De Pasquale moved into second with a pass on Broc Feeney at Turn 12 on lap six.

Further back, Reynolds faced severely limited visibility in the spray before pitting for rear tyres on lap nine. The early stop gave him clean air to make use of the Snowy River Camaro’s pace, bringing him into contention at the front as the strategies unfolded.

De Pasquale stopped for four tyres on lap 35, rejoining third before settling into fourth behind Matt Payne. Reynolds made his second stop on lap 52, taking on fuel in a longer stop, before De Pasquale completed his final visit to pit lane on lap 58.

The Team 18 pair settled into third and fourth for the closing stint, with Payne’s five-second time penalty putting second place within Reynolds’ reach.

Reynolds kept the margin inside five seconds at the chequered flag to secure second in the classification, finishing 0.8627 seconds ahead of Payne once the penalty was applied. De Pasquale brought the Cub Cadet Camaro home fourth after a demanding race in changing conditions.

Anton’s fourth place now sees him move forward to sixth position in the standings ahead of the final day of the Gold Coast 500 tomorrow, where the top seven drivers will advance to the next round of the finals.

Team 18 returns to the streets of Surfers Paradise on Sunday for qualifying at 11:20am AEST, followed by the Top Ten Shootout at 12:05pm and Race 32 at 2:45pm. All the action can be viewed live on Channel 7, Fox Sports and Kayo.

RESULTS & QUOTES

Anton De Pasquale, driver – No. 18 Cub Cadet Racing Chevrolet Camaro

Top Ten Shootout – Race 31: P3 (1:11.3911)
Race 31: P4

“It was a rainy, long race with very difficult conditions that were changing a lot throughout.

“We came home fourth, which is a decent result, so we’ll see what tomorrow brings.”

David Reynolds, driver – No. 48 Snowy River Racing Chevrolet Camaro

Race 31: P2

“To finish second after starting 14th is an unbelievable result. There was rain and mist everywhere, and it was so hard to see and just drive the car.

“We opted for a very early stop to get ourselves some clean air. I absolutely believe that was the right call because it allowed me to drive my own race.

“I knew the car was going to be quick based on Practice 1, which was the only other fully wet session we’d had. I knew if I put my head down, drove the car and made no mistakes, we could be somewhere near the front.

“My car was brilliant. Thanks to all the boys at Snowy River Racing and Geoff for giving me a great strategy. Hopefully it rains again tomorrow.”