It’s that time of the year again, the weekend we have all been waiting for, the Bathurst 1000!
Fabian Coulthard and Lee Holdsworth are back behind the wheel ready to take on The Mountain alongside Nick Percat and Chaz Mostert.
There’s been huge preparations back at the workshop, getting ready for the unknowns of whatever the Bathurst Gods throw at us.
161 laps, 1000kms, the toughest race in Australian motorsport, bring it on.
The Track
What more can you say about Bathurst? 6.2 kilometres of the most amazing piece of road in Australia (and the world if you ask us…)
With 23 wild corners from Conrod to McPhillamy, The Grate to Forrest Elbow, it’s a hold your breath operation for most of the lap, which is just over 2 minutes long.
Tyres
For the first time, we will be running the Dunlop Soft tyre all weekend, tyre degradation will be a big unknown.
Format
We kick start the event on Thursday afternoon with practice. Across the weekend there six practice sessions which includes two co-driver only sessions, plus a Sunday morning warm-up.
The greatest qualifying session of the year takes place on Friday afternoon, with a 40-minute session that determines 11th-28t h on the grid, but more importantly, who gets a lap of The Mountain to themselves on Saturday afternoon in the Top 10 Shootout.
On Sunday, 11:15am AEDT is when the lights will go out, engines will roar, and 161 laps later, a champion will be crowned.
Pitstops
A similar format to Sandown with no compulsory pitstop requirements. So how much fuel you take, and when, will be the big question, it all depends on strategy.
At some stage during the race, cars will have to complete a front brake rotor change. This involves, for us, taking the entire brake calliper and rotor off, and replacing them with brand new ones, fresh out of the oven to warm up.
Weather
There is chance of a shower for Thursday’s practice sessions, the rest of the weekend is sunny with patches of cloud.
How to Watch
Fox Sports and Kayo will have you covered for every session live across the weekend. For the free to air viewers Channel 7 will have Saturday and Sunday live. For the Kiwi fans Sky Sports will cover all of the on-track action.
For the full TV guide, please CLICK HERE.
Nick Percat
“It’s the biggest week of the year, I’m pumped for Bathurst.
“I’m exciting to be teaming up with Fabian for the great race this year, we are ready to leave it all out on the track. We all know how this team prepares for Bathurst – and the history here, so we are all ready to bounce back strongly.
“It’s going to be interesting to see how the Dunlop soft tyre reacts, we haven’t run these tyres around here before so tyre conservation will be key this weekend.”
Fabian Coulthard
“It’s awesome to be back at Bathurst again, I’ve been waiting all year for this!
“It was great to get behind the wheel of a Gen3 at Sandown for a full weekend, it wasn’t the results we were after which makes us hungrier this weekend.
“I love this track, there isn’t one moment where you aren’t driving on the limit so lets put on a show for the fans!”
Chaz Mostert
“The holy grail is here, it’s Bathurst, there is nothing quite like this week.
“We have had a pretty big debrief as a team, the whole crew have put in a crazy amount of work in the last few weeks, it’s awesome to see the commitment from everyone!
“It’ll be an interesting weekend, we know the mountain could chuck anything at us, throw in the soft tyre which we have never used around here and it’s going to be an exciting race.”
Lee Holdsworth
“I’m pumped to be getting back behind the wheel with Chaz again this weekend, a huge amount of work has gone into the last two weeks, so I’m confident heading in we can bounce back strongly. A huge thanks to everyone for the work, and support.
“The fans at Bathurst are so passionate, the track is one of the best in the world, the first time over the top will be special.
“As we know, anything can happen at Bathurst, so I’m looking forward to seeing what The Mountain has in store for Chaz and I.”