Ducati rider Bautista, who wrapped up his first WSBK title with a round to spare last time out in Indonesia, was the only rider to break the 90-second barrier at the Australian track as he topped the timesheets on a 1m29.815s.
That was enough to edge out the Kawasaki of Rea by a little over two tenths of a second, ending a pole drought dating back to June's Misano round.
