Photo shoots

Ahead of the first track action at Bathurst tomorrow, the teams gathered their cars on pit lane for a group shot (above), as well individual team shots (below).

Simpson on the Ginetta GT4s

DSC caught up with Ginetta factory driver Mike Simpson, who’s racing in one of the two Ginetta Cars Australia G55 GT4 in the C class this weekend, to get some more information on the two-car entry.

“Ginetta Cars Australia, as a factory effort, is being run by Mark Griffith, using the same G55 GT4s that ran at the 12 Hour last year,” Simpson said. “The cars are pretty fresh, they were new for last year’s running, and haven’t run since.

“In amongst the line-up is Will Tregurtha, who’s here for the first time as a paid Ginetta driver. This is a reward for him after winning the British GT title last year. He’s got a big opportunity here, in his journey through Ginetta as part of its development programme.

“We can’t wait to hit the track, here, it’s a very competitive GT4 field.”

Weather

This weather in New South Wales has come as a surprise to those trackside so far this week, the temperatures peaking at 21 degrees celsius today, a far cry from last year when during the race it was around 38 degrees. In fact, en route to the circuit, DSC experienced both rain and fog; not typical for a summer afternoon in Australia!

Should the race run with cooler temperatures, there’s speculation that the lap times will fall, especially in Qualifying. However, Steven Richards, owner and driver at BMW Team SRM feels that the GT3 cars this year are highly unlikely to beat Shane van Gisbergen’s 2016 2:01.286 record lap in Tekno Autosport’s McLaren 650S GT3 during the Top 10 Shootout or during the race this year.

“You won’t see sub-two minute. The cars this year the way the BoP works have taken a small step backwards. The track was resurfaced here in 2013, and after time, the first two years the track is green, then in the third fourth and fifth year it’s very fast. But from that point on it slowly deteriorates. Even if we have low temperatures, we’d struggle to see 2:01 laps.

“We’ve also gone to a hard compound tyre, last year we had a mixed compound. Anything can happen, and the track was very fast for the Bathurst 1000 last year, but I can’t see us going faster than van Gisbergen.”

Bathurst impressions

DSC took a coach trip around Mount Panorama today with Bathurst Mayor Graeme Hanger, who gave all the media aboard a good sense of the history and importance that the circuit has to the local region.

For those who haven’t made the trip, the best comparison is the the Nürburging Nordschleife’s relationship with the Eifel Region. It’s an incredibly important part of the local economy, and keeps the area firmly on the map. It’s got a special atmosphere, in part because the Mount Panorama Act prevents the circuit from hosting more than four race meetings a year; it feels exclusive.

It’s dripping with history, dating back to its opening in 1938, the circuit still keeping its old-school feel, providing those trackside with some of the most picturesque, jaw-dropping views in world motorsport.

“The history of this circuit goes back a long way, and the fabric of Australian motor racing has evolved from this circuit,” Steve Richards explained. “If you talk to any Australian person who doesn’t follow motor racing, they know what Mount Panorama is. You don’t want to race here every weekend because it takes away the mystique. It’s also public road, so you can’t shut people out of their houses all the time!”