The crowd roared after former Dakar Rally winner Toby Price edged rising Kiwi F1 prodigy Louis Sharp in a photo finish in the opening night of the Race of Champions in Sydney.
Representing Australia (Off Road) and New Zealand, the pair were doing battle in identical Toyota 86s.
Price held the advantage for much of the lap before Sharp made up the ground in the final few corners and they crossed the line neck-and-neck.
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Will Brown reacts to the thrilling photo finish between Toby Price (top) and Louis Sharp. Network 10
“A photo finish! I think it may have been Toby Price by the badge of his car,” Richard Craill said in commentary for 10.
Watching from the pits, the close finish even shocked Supercars stars Will Brown and Brodie Kostecki, as well as ex-F1 ace Valtteri Bottas.
The official margin was 0.024 seconds.
“How close is the margin. Look at that! Toby Price has every right to be pretty happy with himself, because he has just delivered a huge victory,” Craill said.
Price (left) edged Sharp by 0.024 of a second. Network 10
Price is a two-time Dakar Rally winner, while 17-year-old Sharp won the 2024 GP3 open-wheel championship in the UK.
The Race of Champions pits 20 of the world’s best racecar drivers against each other in identical cars on a side-by-side 1km track located entirely inside Accor Stadium.
Friday night’s action follows a ‘Nations Cup’ format where drivers compete in pairs representing their countries, before Saturday night features an individual winner-takes-all Champion of Champions.
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