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This weekend is set to be big one for motorsport fans, with the Formula One, MotoGP and indeed the V8 Supercars all having key events on.
Formula One will be visiting Russia for the first time at Sochi, MotoGP will head to Japan and the notoriously demanding Motegi circuit and the V8s will descend upon Mount Panorama for the annual Bathurst 1000.
In terms of Australian sport, the Bathurst 1000 will be the one not to miss, with five different manufacturers all in pursuit of a win on the mountain.
The 2013 race went down to wire, FPR’s Mark Winterbottom barely held off his fierce championship rival Jamie Whincup in the Red Bull Racing Australia entry to win his first ever Bathurst crown.
2014’s Bathurst 1000 is set to dish out another enthralling 161 laps of racing, with some crucial points in the championship and indeed the Enduro Cup on the line.
At the moment Whincup leads the series over his teammate Craig Lowndes and in the Enduro standings, Whincup and his partner Paul Dumbrell have the lead after their win at the Sandown 500.
A major talking point heading into this weekend’s 1000 kilometre race is the resurfacing of the circuit and how the expectation is to see quicker lap times than ever before.
Two-time Bathurst winner Russell Ingall said to Speedcafe.com that on the new surface, the faster cars could up to ‘two seconds faster’ than they were twelve months ago.
So while it could be a lottery as to who may win this year’s race, the odds are definitely with Whincup and Dumbrell in the #1 car. Having competed in the Dunlop Series too this year, Dumbrell has been a lot more consistent in his driving, as seen in Sandown.
Last year having not raced in any category full time, Dumbrell’s tardiness showed during the 1000 which ultimately cost that pair the lead.
But the two Holden Racing Team vehicles cannot be ignored, after their double podium finish in Sandown they stand as a leering threat to the Triple Eight squad.
James Courtney and Greg Murphy in #22 car have unfinished business from last year, after Murphy crashed the car at the top of the mountain.
Along with the #2 car and its pilots Garth Tander and Warren Luff, the two HRTs look in better contention than the defending Bathurst champion Winterbottom and his new co-driver Steve Owen.
Nevertheless with a series championship still to fight for, Winterbottom would still be determined to go back-to-back and add a useful 300 points to his tally. And after an inspiring sixth-placed finish at last year’s event with then rookie Scott Pye, Paul ‘The Dude’ Morris will hope to bring similar fortune to FPR’s young gun Chaz Mostert in the #6 entry.
Whincup’s teammate Lowndes will have reigning Bathurst champion in Steven Richards co-piloting the #888 car and with seven victories at the mountain between them they’ll be in the running also.
With their distinctly quick aero package, Volvo Polestar Racing will be a threat as many have claimed, particularly through qualifying. Scott McLaughlin holds five pole positions to his name this year and there’s no doubt that he and his French co-driver Alex Prémat can take the #33 to the all-important Top 10 Shootout.
Other names to keep an eye on will be the #4 Erebus Mercedes entry of Lee Holdsworth and Craig Baird, who are this weekend running a special livery which tributes the team’s Bathurst 12-hour win earlier this year in a Mercedes-Benz SLS GT3 car. Holdsworth at Sandown suffered a nasty crash which ended his race, but the Winton race winner is certainly in the mix for repeating his team’s feat in the GT race earlier in the year.
And the great race would be incomplete without some wildcard entries. While the Dragon Racing outfit who were to run ex-GRM Commodores, they pulled out unexpectedly. This leaves the New Zealand team of Super Black as the only wildcard. The #111 FPR backed car will be run by Dunlop Series drivers Andre Heimgartner and Ant Pederson.
If they’re going to be anything like the #10 Xbox One Commodore last year, then it will be a real treat!
We’re in for another thrilling race on the mountain, with too many contenders in the running to take out the coveted Peter Brock trophy.
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