[IGTC] 2024 Intercontinental GT Challenge Series

[Everso Biggyballies]

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31/1/24 THREAD NOW RENAMED AS 2024 SEASON....;. 2024 POSTING STARTS ON PAGE 10





Edit: Round 1 Bathurst 12 hour removed from thread title as we move on to round 2 Kyalami 9hr etc


2023 LIQUI-MOLY BATHURST 12 HOUR
AUSTRALIA’S INTERNATIONAL ENDURANCE RACE
3RD FEBRUARY - 5TH FEBRUARY 2023





Best put up the pic I still use as my Desktop


44 days to go as of today, and news is starting to build so time for a thread. After a troublesome run with Covid related issues, we did have an event in 2022, albeit at an odd time in the calendar which caused the entry to be less International than prior pre Covid years. However this year it returns to its traditional early Feb slot. The 2023 event also doubles as the opening round of next season’s Intercontinental GT Challenge Powered by Pirelli Championship,

From the official website. https://www.bathurst12hour.com.au/

Australia’s international endurance event has become one of the most anticipated races on the GT calendar, with 12 hours of bumper-to-bumper action featuring some of Supercars and the world’s biggest named drivers behind the wheel.

International manufacturers are expected to return in 2023 following the challenges of covid in 2021 and 2022.

The once-around-the-clock race is generally acknowledged and recognised around the world as one of the most significant races for GT vehicles.

In May, French racing star Jules Gounon made it back-to-back victories at the Bathurst 12 Hour after leading his team to victory in their Mercedes-AMG GT3.

The 27-year-old took the chequered flag alongside teammates Australian Kenny Habul, German Luca Stolz and Austrian Martin Konrad.

The victory fulfilled a lifelong ambition for Habul, who owns a property on Conrod Straight and dreamed of emulating his childhood mentor and Bathurst icon Peter Brock.

Millions watched the race unfold on the Seven Network and Fox Sports around Australia, with millions more tuning in via the event’s international stream.

Mayor of Bathurst Robert Taylor said: “The LIQUI MOLY Bathurst 12 Hour has become renowned as one of the premier international endurance challenges attracting a large contingent of international teams to Bathurst.

The world-wide exposure of the race builds on Mount Panorama’s excellent reputation as one of the world’s finest motor racing circuits and puts Bathurst firmly in the international spotlight.”

Stephane Ratel, SRO Motorsports Group Founder and CEO, said: “February just isn’t the same without the LIQUI MOLY Bathurst 12 Hour.

“Finding a way to stage this year’s race in May underlined the resilience and commitment that exists within motorsport, and also resulted in some unusual conditions for the 12 Hour as well as the first overall Pro-Am victory for many years. But I am delighted to see the event switching back to its traditional weekend, which allows greater scope for international entries to attend – a major element of Bathurst’s global appeal.”

Mark Johnson – Managing Director, LIQUI MOLY Australia said: “2023 is shaping up to be a big year for the LIQUI MOLY Bathurst 12 Hour.

“This race is special to us as we not only are proud major sponsors, we know there are teams in the race using our products and looking for our support on the ground when they are pushing hard to rebuild engines or swap engines out and we are only too happy to continue supporting those teams with our products.

“They are genuine users of LIQUI MOLY and have shared their feedback on how well the products perform in an enduro race such as this.

“2023 will mark 10 years of LIQUI MOLY partnering with this great race (due to missing 2021 from COVID).

“We knew this year’s race wasn’t going to be as big as previous years and are thankful to those teams that were as eager as us to get back to Bathurst for the best endurance race there is.

“We know next year with the race moving back to its usual place on the calendar we will see a bigger and hopefully more diverse grid with an international mix and are looking forward to seeing everyone back at Bathurst in 2023.”

In terms of Interntional entries news is a bit thin but a lot of expectation.


We do know of a couple of notables though....

Valentino Rossi to make his Bathurst 12 Hour debut



The 43-year-old Rossi, a seven-time World Champion in the top level of MotoGP competition, will drive a BMW M4 GT3 for 2018 12-Hour winners Team WRT

Rossi has turned his attention to circuit racing and this year competed for WRT in the GT World Challenge Europe Sprint and Endurance Championships, including tackling the famous Spa 24 Hour race.

It will mark Rossi’s debut at Mount Panorama, however the Italian is accustomed to success in Australia as a record eight-time winner of the Australian Motorcycle Grand Prix at Phillip Island.

Vale has an enormous Australian fanbase and we are prepared for a significant increase in attention as a result of his entry.

His co-drivers will be experienced GT and Endurance specialists, Belgian Maxime Martin and Brazilian Augusto Farfus.

Both have previous Bathurst experience to their credit: Martin in 2020 and Farfus on three occasions, in 2018, 19 and 2020 – including finishing fifth in the 2019 race with Chaz Mostert as a co-driver.

Rossi’s car will naturally sport his iconic number 46.

BMW M Team WRT will field two cars in the 2023 12-Hour with the second entry, to run #32, also featuring a stunning driving squad.

2018 12-Hour winner Dries Vanthoor will lead the team and will be joined by 2022 DTM Champion Sheldon van der Linde; the South African to make his Bathurst debut next year.

The duo will also be joined by 21-year-old Belgian rising star, Charles Weerts – a two-time GT World Challenge Europe Sprint Cup Champion.

The 2023 Bathurst 12 Hour will represent the Australian racing debut of the brand-new BMW M4 GT3 car. BMW, a brand with a Bathurst history dating back to the early 1980s, has never won the 12-hour in the current International GT3 era however scored pole position for the race in 2018.

GRUPPE M Racing has entered the 12 Hour, returning one of the most consistently high-performing international teams of the recent GT3 era to Mount Panorama.

The team will enter a Mercedes-AMG GT3 for their third 12-Hour campaign next February 3-5 in a bid to claim a Bathurst win.

The Hong Kong-flagged, German-based team made their 12-Hour debut in 2019, finishing third with drivers Maximilian Buhk, Maximilian Götz and Raffaele Marciello.

Obviously there will be a large local entry with T888 one of the better known teams. They will run AMG GT3 Mercedes, in Supercheap Autos liveries.



Supercheap Auto will take pole position on Triple Eight Race Engineering’s 2023 Bathurst 12 Hour entry, while the the #888 Mercedes-AMG GT3’s PRO line-up will feature Shane van Gisbergen and Broc Feeney, alongside Mercedes-AMG performance driver Maximilian Götz,

Craig Lowndes will be running..... After raising more than $67,000 for charity this year, the STM Prostate Cancer Foundation Australia team will return to the LIQUI MOLY Bathurst 12 Hour in 2023.

Having fielded a Porsche 911 GT3 Cup Car this year, the Scott Taylor Motorsport squad will step up to the Pro-Am class behind the wheel of Taylor’s Mercedes AMG GT3.

Taylor will again be joined by Craig Lowndes, Alex Davison and Geoff Emery as the combination step up to GT3 competition, having won their class this year.

The Team will again be run by Ash Seward Motorsport, who the Team shared success with in 2022.

A CATEGORY purely for Bronze-ranked drivers will be added to the class structure .

The addition comes off the back of feedback from current and prospective entrants for both the 2023 race and moving forward beyond next year.

The class will be for GT3 entries with either three or four drivers, all ranked Bronze in the FIAs driver ranking system. The Bronze class will add to the various categories within the broader Class A, GT3 competition.


More entry news will be added as it becomes available.

Please feel free to add comment and info at will.

[Everso Biggyballies]

Forgot to mention.... Red Bull will be there as a sideshow.

We will once again witness an F1 car with a V8 pre hybrid era engine wailing around Bathurst' Mount Panorama circuit

Jenson Button and Craig Lowndes drove a McLaren Vodafone MP4/23 V8 (2008 car) back in the day.

Now Red Bull are bringing an RB7 to play with....


Not the prettiest era of F1 IMO but the RB7 is the model which the team raced in the 2011 F1 season, when it and Sebastian Vettel scored their second of four straight constructors’ and drivers’ championships.

Exact details of the “on-track running” have not yet been divulged, but it has been confirmed that the team and cars will be housed in the paddock area, access to which is included for all ticketholders.

A driver has also not yet been named, but Daniel Ricciardo and/or fellow Antipodean Liam Lawson are the obvious possibilities.

[Everso Biggyballies]

Not the most notable entry, other than perhaps its livery (the jury is still out on that one for me, but it doesnt strike me with horror at first glance).... but its a quiet time of year, although now just a month away I expect to see more news forthcoming on the B12Hr. A couple of reasonable drivers in this Merc, plus the gentleman content paying the bills. Cameron brings a fair bit to the table and Padayachee is a consistent stablee runner with a good turn of speed, plus he has driven with the team before. The car has obviously had a few quid thrown at it with the upgrade package and latest aero.

No news on the actual entry list yet, other than "Available soon". I just checked the regs and entries dont officially close for another two weeks yet so still time for those not yet in..





Tigani Motorsport will contest the 2023 LIQUI MOLY Bathurst 12 Hour under the Valmont Racing banner.

A quartet of drivers will get behind the wheel in the Silver Class entry, led by Aaron Cameron and Duvashen Padayachee who join car owners Marcel Zalloua and Sergio Pires.

Cameron’s list of achievements is already sizeable, most notably being his 2021 S5000 Tasman Series Title and numerous race wins in TCR Australia. Recently, Cameron represented Australia in the TCR Category at the FIA Motorsport Games before returning home for the Adelaide 500 where he claimed victory in S5000.

Padayachee is another silver ranked bolster for the team, with back-to-back GT3 Am class victories in the 2017 and 2018 editions of Australia’s International endurance race. Padayachee has recently raced in Porsche Paynter Dixon Carrera Cup, alongside various GT racing starts which include the 2022 12 Hour alongside Zalloua and Pires.

The trio partnered up for the previous edition of the race aboard an outdated spec Mercedes AMG GT3, earning pole position in AAM class. It is the same car that the team will compete with in 2023, after the fitment of the Mercedes Evo Kit which brings the #44 Valmont Racing machine into an outright specification.

Zalloua and Pires have raced together for many years and partnered up through the back half of 2022 in Fanatec GT World Challenge Australia powered by AWS.

The duo claimed Trophy Class victories at Tailem Bend and Bathurst. Pires was involved in an accident at the Adelaide 500, which left him with a broken collarbone, but all indications are that he will be fit in time for the big race thanks to a faster than expected recovery.

In tandem with the aerodynamic upgrades, the Valmont Racing Mercedes has received a colourful new livery ahead of the 2023 season. In addition to backing from Valmont, the team is further supported by Est Lighting, Vittoria Coffee, Rentcorp Hyundai Forklifts and Pacific Road Capital.

https://www.bathurst12hour.com.au/news/ ... hr-attack/

[Everso Biggyballies]

Bike Racers who have raced on 4 wheels at Bathurst


Of course there is a lot of hype regarding the entry of Multi times MotoGP Legend Valentino Rossi.

But by no means is he the first Motor Cyclist to take on the mountain with 4 wheels. Some have done rather well.

Probably none better than the musch missed and lamented Greg Hansord, who sadly lost his life at Phillip Island in a Supertourer race back in March 1995.

Greg holds the unique distinction of winning at Bathurst on two and four wheels.

Hansford was a two-time runner up in the 250cc road racing world championships. With 10 Grand Prix victories to his credit, he is ranked fourth for the most Grand Prix wins by an Australian behind Mick Doohan (54 wins), Casey Stoner (38) and Wayne Gardner (18). raced and won at Mount Panorama at the traditional Easter bike meetings.

He switched to cars and in 1988, having won the Sandown 500 with Alan Moffat in a Sierra almost won at Bathurst....Moffat and Hansford joined by Klaus Niedzwiedz. They led by almost a lap on lap 129 when the car suffered engine (head gasket) failure with Hansford at the wheel.

He then finished 2nd at the 1993 James Hardie 12 Hour with Charlie O'Brien in a Mazda RX-7. He went on to win the big one, the Bathurst 1000, that year, sharing a Commodore with Larry Perkins. He then won the 1994 James Hardie 12 Hour with Neil Crompton, again in an RX-7.


Greg Hansford on his way to a Bathurst win in 1993

As an aside Gregs son Ryan is a big name in Touring Car Masters in his LX Torana SL/R 5000.... he joined the TCM in 2017 and has never finished lower than 2nd.... winning overall in 2020.

Anywaay this is about bikers at Mt Panorama..... this is an article about bikers at Bathurst. I didnt think their couple of lines did justice to Greg Hansford so I wrote my own summary for him. This is the rest of that article without their Hansford bit.

Motorcycle stars who took on Bathurst

Valentino Rossi will be the latest motorcycle racing star to tackle Mount Panorama on four wheels — but others have also taken on the challenge.

Rossi was confirmed in Team WRT’s blockbuster BMW line-up for the LIQUI MOLY Bathurst 12 Hour. The MotoGP legend will race a car complete with his famous #46 and fluoro yellow.

Several bike racers have taken on Bathurst --
American Kevin Schwantz, the 1993 500cc world champion, turned exhibition laps aboard a NASCAR in Bathurst in 1996.

Michael Dowson also won at the Easter events in the 1980s, and scored a class win in the 1989 Great Race.

Wayne Gardner. In Supercars land, just one racer — 1987 world champion Wayne Gardner — has won a championship race.

Gardner won at Mallala (1996) and Calder Park (1997) but had mixed results at Mount Panorama.

He first shared a Holden with Graham Moore in 1992 before joining the Holden Racing Team in 1993.

Gardner finished third in ’93 with Brad Jones and HRT, and third again for his own team alongside Neil Crompton in ’95.



Gardner scored a shock pole in 2000

He took a shook Bathurst pole in dismal conditions in 2000, but engine dramas ended his run before the halfway mark.

Graeme Crosby, who raced for Suzuki and Yamaha, also turned to cars and qualified for the 1986 Top Ten Shootout at Mount Panorama.

A year earlier, 1975 350cc champion Johnny Cecotto notably raced a BMW to second overall.

Cecotto scored a class podium in 1987, and finished fourth with Tony Longhurst in 1992.

Casey Stoner — the 2007 and 2011 MotoGP champion — was one of Rossi's highly-documented rivals.

After his MotoGP retirement in 2012, Stoner turned to the Dunlop Super2 Series. He raced at Mount Panorama and it started well, Stoner finishing ninth in the opening race.

With a maiden podium in his sights in the second race, Stoner scraped the wall under the tree at Reid Park. With a damaged car, Stoner’s last Bathurst start went down as a DNF.

Multiple World Superbike champion and MotoGP race winner Troy Bayliss was the most recent two-wheel ace to take on the Great Race.


The Fiore/Bayliss car crashed out

Bayliss joined Dean Fiore to tackle the 2009 Bathurst 1000.

However, Bayliss spun at the Dipper and crashed out, ending his Bathurst dream prematurely.

Daryl Beattie — later a feature of Supercars broadcasts on Network 10 — first cut laps aboard a Paul Morris car in 2000.

Two years later, Beattie signed up for the 2002 enduros for Imrie Motor Sport.

He partnered Christian D'Agostin and came home 25th in the Queensland 500 — but failed to finish the Bathurst 1000 with Tyler Mecklem.

The likes of Mick Doohan, Kevin Magee and Chris Vermeulen have all driven cars, but never raced at Mount Panorama.

. https://www.supercars.com/news/champion ... -bathurst/

Some extra pics.

The Cecotto / Ravaglia 635 from their 2nd place finish in 1985


Cecotto in the B&H Longhurst car in 1993


And in 1987 at the Dipper


Brad Jones and Gardner 1993 Bathurst



Pic of Beattie at the 2002 Queensland 500. Couldnt find one of him at Bathurst.

[Everso Biggyballies]

No news on the actual entry list yet, other than "Available soon". I just checked the regs and entries dont officially close for another two weeks yet so still time for those not yet in..

Another notable entry confirmed in the Pro Class.

Craft-Bamboo Racing has confirmed that it will contest next months 12 Hour.

The Hong Kong-based team will field a Mercedes-AMG GT3 next month at Mount Panorama in what will represent its sixth attempt at winning the race.

Drivers are yet to be named but the team has confirmed that it will enter the Pro class, which hints at Platinum- and/or Gold-ranked steerers.f

They finished second last year with Maro Engel, Daniel Juncadella, and Kevin Tse behind the wheel. They missed out on victory by less than nine seconds having started last after an engine change on the evening prior.

[Everso Biggyballies]

PremiAir to race in Bathurst 12 Hour

Supercars team PremiAir Racing will compete in the 2023 Liqui Moly Bathurst 12 Hour in partnership with Schumacher Motorsport.

Details are scarce as yet, although PremiAir says it will be “battling for outright honours” and counts oil brand Fuchs as major sponsor.

Drivers have not been announced but its latest Supercars recruit, Tim Slade, already has a relationship with Schumacher Motorsport. Brad and Tim have shared Brads Audi R8 LMS before.... at the Fanatec GT World Challenge Australia Bathurst International last year.

Brad Schumacher will 99.99% sure be driving (and is a Bronze driver) so it points at a Pro-Am entry. Brad has become a regular in GT World Challenge, and has entered the 12 Hour three times. He finished fourth in last year’s race in an Audi shared with Kelvin van der Linde and Nathanael Berthon .... actually last year they were in the box seat and leading before copping a two-minute penalty for a driving time breach..

Maybe it will be Golding Slade and Schumacher? SHould get more news next week when the entry list closes.

[Everso Biggyballies]

The livery which the Craig Lowndes-spearheaded #Get Checked Prostate Cancer Foundation Australia (PCFA) entry will carry at the 12 hour

Lowndes will share driving duties with owner Scott Taylor as well as Alex Davison and Geoff Emery,

They won Class C in a Porsche 911 GT3 Cup Car last time the Bathurst 12 Hour was run, in May 2022, as well as raising $67,000 for the PCFA.

They will be running for the charity again this year with donation points at the event, at the town-to-track activation on Thursday prior to the race and via online portals.

[Everso Biggyballies]

28 car Bathurst 12 Hour entry list released

Twoo cars entered under T888, one a Pro Class for SVG, Feeney and Maximilian Gotz, the other a Pro Am car likely for the Ibrahims and Whincup.

Also intriguing is that the SunEnergy1 Mercedes-AMG has been entered in the Pro class this time around, despite solar magnate Kenny Habul being a Bronze-ranked driver. The other issue I have there is Habul is running his Mercedes at the Daytona 24 hour the weekend prior, so maybe he has two cars or is leasing one. Habul won the event in is Pro-Am post Covid guise in 2022. Although his car it was run by T888, albeit managed by the retired from T888 by then Roland Dane.

No drivers listed on the entry but we know many of them already

The world will return to Mount Panorama this February 3-5 with entries from Australia, New Zealand, Germany, Hong Kong, Belgium and the United States all featured on a 28-strong entry list of GT3 and invited vehicles.

The race will again double as the opening round of the Intercontinental GT Challenge powered by Pirelli.

The 22-strong GT3 entry, spread across Pro, Bausele Pro-Am and Silver categories, includes manufacturer representation from Mercedes-AMG, Audi, BMW, Porsche and Lamborghini.

Nine Mercedes AMG GT3s are entered, the most of any single GT3 model in the 12-Hour’s history, while BMWs M4 GT3 will make its Bathurst debut this February.

The field is headlined by an eight-strong GT3 Pro contingent which includes each of the defending 2022 race podium finishers: winners SunEnergy1 Racing, Craft-Bamboo Racing and Triple Eight Race Engineering.

The pair of BMW Team WRT entries will also contest for outright honours, while Audi will field an all-Pro entry in their bid for a record fourth 12-Hour win.

The exciting addition of Manthey EMA ensure the all-German battle for outright supremacy will continue to include a Porsche 911 GT3 R.

The Bausele Pro-Am category will also be fiercely competitive and includes another eight cars, including Grove Racing – who will partner with EBM (Earl Bamber Motorsport) Giga Racing.

Triple Eight Race Engineering will field a Pro-Am entry alongside their Professional class car, while Pro-Am will also be the home of the Scott Taylor Motorsport / Prostate Cancer Foundation squad headed by Craig Lowndes.

The first of two GT3 entries from Volante Rosso Motorsport features in Pro-Am, with a sister car in the Silver class.

A host of competitive Audi R8’s and Mercedes AMG GT3s add to the Pro-Am battle, as does a second EBM Giga Racing Porsche 911 GT3R.

Notable among the Pro-Am entries is Hallmarc Racing and their Audi, long-time owner / driver Marc Cini who should start a record 11th Bathurst 12-Hour race this year.

The Silver class has received six entries, including the lone Lamborghini Huracan GT3 in the race.

A six-strong Invitational Class adds further variety to the field: a pair of the ever-popular MARC Cars Australia cars are entered, as is the KTM X-Bow GT2 fielded by M Motorsport and the Our Kloud – Up To 11 MotorSport Porsche 911 GT3 Cup Car.

Mark Griffith will enter his Mercedes in the category, while a wildcard and likely popular addition to the field will be the Sin R1 entered by the Daytona Sports Cars team, who previously contested the race on several occasions with a Daytona Coupe and a Dodge Viper.

Drivers already confirmed include MotoGP World Champion Valentino Rossi, Bathurst legend Craig Lowndes, current Repco Supercars Champion Shane van Gisbergen, reigning DTM champion Sheldon van der Linde and a host of other superstar drivers from here and abroad.

The full entry list, including drivers, will be released closer to the event.

https://www.bathurst12hour.com.au/news/ ... t-12-hour/


2023 LIQUI MOLY BATHURST 12 HOUR ENTRY

Sun Energy 1 PRO Mercedes-AMG AMG GT3
Supercheap Auto Racing PRO Mercedes-AMG AMG GT3
GruppeM Racing PRO Mercedes-AMG AMG GT3
Mercedes-AMG Craft-Bamboo Racing PRO Mercedes-AMG AMG GT3
Melbourne Performance Centre PRO Audi R8 LMS Evo 2
Team WRT PRO BMW M4GT3
Team WRT PRO BMW M4GT3
Manthey EMA PRO Porsche 911 GT3R
Schumacher Motorsport Fuchs Racing PRO-AM Audi R8 LMS Evo 2
Melbourne Performance Centre PRO-AM Audi R8 LMS Evo 2
Hallmarc PRO-AM Audi R8 LMS Evo 2
Makita Volante Rosso Motorsport PRO-AM Mercedes-AMG AMG GT3
Triple Eight Race Engineering PRO-AM Mercedes-AMG AMG GT3
Scott Taylor Motorsport PRO-AM Mercedes-AMG AMG GT3
EBM Giga Racing PRO-AM Porsche 911 GT3R
EBM Giga Racing PRO-AM Porsche 911 GT3R
Harrolds Volante Rosso Motorsport SILVER Mercedes-AMG AMG GT3
Valmont Racing SILVER Mercedes-AMG AMG GT3
Wall Racing SILVER Lamborghini Huracan
Supabarn SILVER Audi R8 LMS Evo 2
Melbourne Performance Centre SILVER Audi R8 LMS Evo 2
Melbourne Performance Centre SILVER Audi R8 LMS Evo 2
Our Kloud – UpTo 11 MotorSport INV Porsche 991 GT3 Cup Gen II
Nineteen Corporation INV Mercedes-AMG GT4
MMotorsport / Vantage Racing INV KTM GT XBOW
Daytona Sports Cars INV SIN R1
MRA Motorsport INV MARC I Mazda
Wheels / FX Racing INV MARC II V8

[Everso Biggyballies]

Full Schedule of times and sessions for the Bathurst 12 hour meeting

I have highlighted the key 12 hour sessions to help those O/S trying to follow. All times local.


Summary of qualifying onwards:

Qualifying is split into two parts and the break in between those sessions will see the highly anticipated demonstration of the Red Bull Racing Formula 1 car.

The first qualifying session, 25 minutes in length, starts at 12:45, followed by a 40-minute Qualifying 2 at 13:55.

That will set the grid from 11th position onwards, but also decide which cars make it into the Top 10 Shootout which commences at 16:10.

Notably, the shootout will be held across two segments of 15 minutes each: the bottom half of the top 10 to run first, followed by the quickest five cars last.


Race day on Sunday sees cars head to the grid at 05:15 ahead of the traditional 05:45 start time


Thursday 2 February
Start Finish Category Duration (h:mm) Session
10:30 13:00 Bathurst 12 Hour 2:30 Town to Track Activity

Friday 3 February
Start Finish Category Duration (h:mm) Session

8:20 8:50 Combined Sedans 0:30 Qualifying 1
0:10
9:00 9:30 Formula Ford 0:30 Practice
0:15
9:45 10:25 Bathurst 12 Hour 0:40 Practice 1
0:10
10:35 10:55 Combined Sedans 0:20 Qualifying 2
0:10
11:05 11:45 Bathurst 12 Hour 0:40 Practice 2 (Bronze Drivers only)
0:10
11:55 12:15 Formula Ford 0:20 Qualifying
0:15
12:30 Bathurst 12 Hour Refuellers Briefing
12:30 13:00 Bathurst 12 Hour 0:30 Resident Access
0:15
13:15 13:45 Combined Sedans 0:30 Race 1 – 10 Laps or 1 lap after 13:42
0:15
14:00 14:40 Bathurst 12 Hour 0:40 Practice 3 (Bronze Drivers only)
0:10
14:50 15:20 Bathurst 12 Hour 0:30 Demonstration
0:10
15:30 15:55 Formula Ford 0:25 Race 1 – 1 lap after 15:52
0:15
16:10 16:50 Bathurst 12 Hour 0:40 Practice 4
0:10
17:00 17:15 Bathurst 12 Hour 0:15 Commence Circuit Opening


Saturday 4 February
Start Finish Category Duration (h:mm) Session

7:20 7:50 Combined Sedans 0:30 Race 2 – 10 Laps or 1 lap after 7:47
0:10
8:00 8:25 Formula Ford 0:25 Race 2 – 1 lap after 8:22
0:10
8:35 9:35 Bathurst 12 Hour 1:00 Practice 5
0:15
9:50 10:40 Bathurst 12 Hour 0:50 Sponsor ride session
0:10
10:50 11:50 Bathurst 12 Hour 1:00 Practice 6
0:10
12:00 Bathurst 12 hour 0:30 Team Managers & Drivers Briefing (2)
12:00 12:30 Bathurst 12 Hour 0:30 Resident Access
0:15
12:45 13:10 Bathurst 12 Hour 0:25 Qualifying – Part 1 (Q1)
0:15
13:25 13:45 Bathurst 12 Hour 0:20 Demonstration
0:10
13:55 14:35 Bathurst 12 Hour 0:40 Qualifying – Part 2 (Q2)
0:15
14:50 15:20 Combined Sedans 0:30 Race 3 – 10 Laps or 1 lap after 15:17
15:00 Bathurst 12 Hour 0:30 Autograph Session
0:10
15:30 15:55 Formula Ford 0:25 Race 3 – 1 lap after 15:52
0:15
16:10 16:25 Bathurst 12 Hour 0:15 Top Ten Shootout Part 1 – Lower 50%
0:10
16:35 16:50 Bathurst 12 Hour 0:15 Top Ten Shootout Part 2 – Upper 50%
0:10
17:00 17:15 Bathurst 12 Hour 0:15 Demonstration
17:15 17:30 Bathurst 12 Hour 0:15 Commence Circuit Opening



Sunday 5 February
Start Finish Category Duration (h:mm) Session

5:15 Pit Exit Open
5:20 Pit Exit Close
5:45 17:45 Bathurst 12 Hour 1 lap after 17:42 RACE
Podium
17:55 18:10 Bathurst 12 Hour 0:15 Commence Circuit Opening

[Everso Biggyballies]

Reynolds to drive Mercedes in Bathurst 12 Hour

David Reynolds will join Jordan Love and gentleman driver Tony Bates in a Volante Rosso Motorsport Mercedes-AMG GT3 at next month’s Bathurst 12 Hour.



It represents a switch for both Reynolds and Bates, who had driven an Audi together during last year’s Bathurst 12 Hour and also Fanatec GT World Challenge Australia Powered by AWS (GTWC). Reynolds has however driven a Mercedes in 5 other appearances in the 12 hour. Love drove the Harrolds Volante Rosso Merc in GTWC at last November’s Bathurst International.

The car will run in the Pro-Am Class.



ADP in the Grove Racing Porsche GT3 R

Fresh from their great result in the Dubai 24 hour this last weekend (4th overall) Andre de Pasquale will again steer the squad’s Porsche 911 GT3 R in the Pro-Am class.... he will share driving duties with Grove Racing team owners Stephen and Brenton Grove. It will be ADP's 3rd 12 hour.
No Earl Bamber with them this time though. (Bamber was the 4th driver in Dubai)

[Everso Biggyballies]

Bathurst 12 Hour start with T888 Merc for Stanaway

T8 Race Engineering has confirmed details of their second Bathurst 12 Hour entry, running in partnership with Johor Motorsports Racing and Boost Mobile.



The #99 Mercedes-AMG GT3 will see Prince Jeffri Ibrahim joined by former 12-Hour winner Jamie Whincup and newly-signed Triple Eight Supercars enduro driver Richie Stanaway.

It joins the teams Pro class entry to be driven by Shane van Gisbergen, Broc Feeney and Maximilian Götz.

Stanaway will contest the Pro-Am class with Jamie Whincup and Prince Jefri Ibrahim .... his first competitive outing with Triple Eight before co-driving with Shane van Gisbergen in the Sandown 500 and Bathurst 1000.

It will also be his first tilt at the 12 Hour, although he is a race winner in the LMGTE Pro class of the World Endurance Championship as a factory Aston Martin driver. Stanaway did five seasons in the FIA World Endurance Championship with Aston Martin, including three starts at Le Mans, before returning to Australia to race Supercars
.

[Everso Biggyballies]

Auer out of Bathurst 12 hour.

It was always quite clear prior to reading confirmation that Lucas Auer wont be taking part in the Bathurst 12 hour following his horrible crash in prsctice at Daytona.... which left his with broken bones in his back requiring surgery. Lucas was due to be part of Craft-Bamboo's all-Pro Mercedes entry alongside Daniel Juncadella and Nicky Catsburg.

Factory Mercedes drivers Philip Ellis and Fabian Schiller, who currently don't have Bathurst drives locked in, are expected to be in the frame to land the Craft-Bamboo seat. A decision will obviously have to be made in the next 24 hours for a driver to be able to physically get here, given the 10 hours we are ahead of Europe already, before you start looking at a minimum 24 hr journey time from Europe.

[Everso Biggyballies]

Official Driver list now published

2023 Bathurst 12 Hour Entry List

Num Team Car Driver 1 Driver 2 Driver 3 Driver 4
Class A Pro
32 Team WRT BMW M4 GT3 Sheldon Van Der Linde Dries Vanthoor Charles Weerts
46 Team WRT BMW M4 GT3 Augusto Farfus Maxime Martin Valentino Rossi
74 Audi Sport Audi R8 LMS Evo 2 Christopher Haase Patrick Niederhauser Mattia Drudi
75 Sun Energy 1 Mercedes-AMG GT3 Kenny Habul Jules Gounon Luca Stolz
77 Mercedes-AMG Craft-Bamboo Racing Mercedes-AMG GT3 Daniel Juncadella Phillip Ellis Nicky Catsburg (**Ellis in for the injured Lucas Auer)
888 Supercheap Auto Racing Mercedes-AMG GT3 Shane Van Gisbergen Broc Feeney Maximilian Gotz
912 Manthey EMA Porsche 911 GT3 R Matt Campbell Mathieu Jaminet Thomas Preining
999 GruppeM Racing Mercedes-AMG GT3 Maro Engel Mikael Grenier Raffaele Marciello

Class A Pro-Am
4 Grove Racing Porsche 911 GT3 R Stephen Grove Brenton Grove Anton De Pasquale
9 Hallmarc Audi R8 LMS Evo 2 Lee Holdsworth Dean Fiore Marc Cini
24 Makita Volante Rosso Motorsport Mercedes-AMG GT3 Tony Bates Jordan Love David Reynolds
55 FUCHS Lubricants Racing Audi R8 LMS Evo 2 Brad Schumacher James Golding Frédéric Vervisch
99 Boost Mobile Racing Mercedes-AMG GT3 Jamie Whincup Richie Stanaway Prince Jefri Ibrahim
222 Scott Taylor Motorsport Mercedes-AMG GT3 Craig Lowdnes Alex Davison Geoff Emery Scott Taylor
777 The Bend Motorsport Park Audi R8 LMS Evo 2 Christopher Mies Ricardo Feller Yasser Shahin

Class A Silver
6 Wall Racing Lamborghini Huracan Tony D’Alberto David Wall Grant Denyer Adrian Deitz
10 MYLAND Audi R8 LMS Evo 2 Daniel Gaunt Dylan O’Keeffe Andrew Fawcett
44 Valmont Racing Mercedes-AMG GT3 Marcel Zalloua Sergio Pires Duvashen Padayachee Aaron Cameron
47 Supabarn Audi R8 LMS Evo 2 David Russell Jonathon Webb Theo Koundouris James Koundouris
65 Melbourne Performance Centre Audi R8 LMS Evo 2 Chaz Mostert Fraser Ross Liam Talbot
101 Harrolds Volante Rosso Motorsport Mercedes-AMG GT3 Ross Poulakis Josh Hunt Kevin Tse Jonathan Hui

Invitational
19 Nineteen Corporation Mercedes Benz Mark Griffith TBC TBC
50 MMotorsport / Vantage Racing KTM GT XBOW Trent Harrison Jayden Ojeda Glen Wood David Crampton
52 Wheels / FX Racing MARC II V8 Keith Kassulke Hadrian Morrall Cameron McLeod
66 Daytona Sports Cars SIN R1 Ben Schoots Dylan Thomas Shane Woodman
111 111Racing / MRA Motorsport MARC I Mazda Darren Currie Grant Donaldson Geoff Taunton

[Everso Biggyballies]

Daytona done and this weekend it is the Bathurst 12 hour.....

Given the late abandonment of V8SC Gen 3 testing all of a sudden we have tracks available and unbooked.....a number of 12 hour teams have been testing of late ahead of the Bathurst 12 Hour, with the Supercheap Auto Mercedes-AMG GT3 recently having an outing at Phillip Island alongside others. Testing for the GT cars day was about systems checks, familiarisation, and driver comfort/ fitting.

This weekend’s Bathurst 12 Hour begins on Friday in terms of the on-track action, however, the traditional Town to Track parade kicks off the event on Thursday morning.

Qualifying follows on Saturday before the race itself gets underway at 05:45 local time/AEDT on Sunday morning.


A late change to the driver lineup as posted in the previous post is due to the unfortunate injuries suffered by Lucas Auer at Daytona ruling him out of the Craft-Bamboo (Merc AMG GT3 Car #77).

Philip Ellis is the like-for-like (ie factory driver) replacement for Lucas Auer, alongside Daniel Juncadella and Nicky Catsburg so that entry remains full 'Pro' lineup.

[theracer120]

There is only two support categories this weekend which is a bit underwhelming, although they both have over 50 entries if I've counted correctly.

https://www.bathurst12hour.com.au/support-categories/

It wasn't really reported anywhere but it looks like there was two withdrawals from the original entry list, one of the Silver class Audis and the Porsche Cup car so it'll be 26 cars starting the 12 Hour if there isn't any cars taken out in incidents during practice/qualy.

And here is a spotter's guide: