The inaugural Supercars race at New Zealand’s Taupo Motorsport Park has started in total chaos.
Earlier, Tickford Racing’s Cam Waters had mastered the wet and wild conditions to claim pole, but it was a different scenario for the beginning of the 60-lap race.
WATCH THE VIDEO ABOVE: Chaos at the start of Supercars race in New Zealand.
Stream Supercars and more motorsport action live and free on 7plus 
Just seconds after the green light, pole sitter Waters and Tim Slade collided only metres out from the start line.
Waters and Slade were sent spinning into the inside of the retaining wall as championship leader Will Brown squeezed into them on pit straight.
Slade, from PremiAir Nulon Racing, was immediately out of the race, but Waters was able to continue despite some damage to his vehicle.
“Contact, contact, contact,” the commentators shouted.
“Unfortunately trouble for Tim Slade and Cam Waters the pole sitter.
“And there’s more trouble down here at (Turn 1).”
Just moments later, Kiwi hero Matt Payne and young star Broc Feeney joined the drama as they spun out at Turn 1.
“But that’s heavy contact there with Tim Slade,” the commentators observed.
“It was only a matter moment before we had trauma on the race tack. It was no great surprise in these conditions.”
Heavy rain has made the track surface very slippery and hazardous.
Earlier, during the top-10 shootout, rain bucketed down and got substantially heavier the longer the session went.
Some drivers, including Shell V-Power pair Will Davison and Anton De Pasquale, made costly mistakes.
“Pretty wild qualifying … obviously got pretty lucky getting wetter throughout the session, but in saying that the car was was pretty hooked up and felt comfortable straight out the gate,” Waters said after the shootout.
“I’ve had a lot of bad luck this year so I’ll take a bit of good luck then.
“I think it’s gonna be a pretty spicy race in the wet or the dry so hopefully we can keep her up the front and get a win.”
After breaking through for his first Supercars win in four years in the last race in Melbourne, Matt Stone Racing’s Nick Percat qualified 24th and started from the back of the grid.
Red Bull Ampol star Broc Feeney missed the shootout and will begin back in 13th.
Reigning champion Brodie Kostecki qualified 15th in his first race back following his dramatic dispute with Erebus after he sat out rounds in Bathurst and Melbourne.
After the closure of Pukekohe Raceway in 2022, the touring car series stayed solely in Australia last year.
But Taupo, about three hours south of Auckland, is hosting its first race.
You can watch all the highlights of the event 7plus.
– With AAP
