Star driver Harry Bates has converted his overnight bitumen success to the dirt roads of the Tasmanian forest.
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The 2019 Australian Rally Championship leader took out the honours at the halfway mark of Rally Tasmania.
Weary-eyed after perfecting the fastest lap time at Inveresk on Friday night, the 24-year-old has claimed all 10 stages on Saturday.
Bates and co-driver John McCarthy had finished the 130.2kms course in 1:11.07 for Toyota Gazoo Racing.
The Canberran is one minute and 35 seconds ahead of Subaru do Motorsport's Molly Taylor and Malcolm Read.
Lewis Bates and Anthony McLoughlin driving a Toyota Yaris sit in third, a further 56 seconds behind Taylor.
Tim Auty and Jon Mitchell in a Mazda 323 GTR were the standouts in the Tasmanian Rally Championship.
The pair finished just under six minutes behind Bates and fourth overall on the day.
AGI Sport's Luke Anear and Steve Glenney in a Ford Fiesta R5 ended the heat fifth.
Richie Dalton and Dale Moscatt looked on target for a top three finish, but were unable to finish the final stage of the heat, ending their day in cruel circumstances.
A broken gearbox prior to a midday service cost Simon Evans a top-five finish in the Les Walkden Rallying entry.
Andrew Mathieson
The day I realised I wasn't good enough to play for St Kilda or be the No.1 spinner for Australia was when I realised journalism was the closest I could come to follow my passion for sport. And it's not just about the scores for me. It's the back story behind the game.
The day I realised I wasn't good enough to play for St Kilda or be the No.1 spinner for Australia was when I realised journalism was the closest I could come to follow my passion for sport. And it's not just about the scores for me. It's the back story behind the game.
