BATHURST 1000
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DICK Johnson is a man who will forever be part of Bathurst 1000 folklore, but come this Sunday there is man who can add another dimension to that legend.
While Johnson retired from driving in 1999, he stayed involved with industry and now runs a two-car Dick Johnson Racing outfit.
Steering one of those cars in this year's edition of the Great Race is young gun Scott Pye, a driver who knows how much finding success at Mount Panorama would mean to his team boss.
"It is an exciting time for us, Bathurst for Dick Johnson means more than the championship," Pye, who is currently ranked 13th in championship, said.
"There are a lot of people who love Bathurst, but it would be hard to love it as much as him."
Pye was a nine-year-old when Johnson retired from racing with three Bathurst victories to his credit.
It was in 2012 that Pye made his Bathurst 1000 debut alongside Taz Douglas, the pair lasting 97 laps before their bid came to a halt.
But last year Pye, who shared driving duties with Paul Morris, gave a better indication of his talent by running sixth. It was his best result as a full-time V8 Supercars driver at that stage.
He went on to place 27th in the championship, but switching to Dick Johnson Racing this year has brought better results for Pye.
He has notched up seven top-10 finishes, the most recent of which was a fifth placing in the Sandown 500 alongside good friend Ash Walsh in the #16 Falcon.
As has been the case all year, qualifying was a disappointment for the team and Walsh started the endurance season opener in 19th on the grid.
But the race day car was much better as Walsh had climbed to 10th by the time he handed over to Pye, the young talent further picking his way through the field with laps that matched the effort of eventual winner Jamie Whincup.
"My car has been quick all year and there is not a lot of difference through the field, but it was certainly a good feeling when we got into fifth place and I was closing the gap to Craig [Lowndes] as well," Pye said
"But we always seem to have a pretty good car come Sunday and have been able to come through the field, so I am hoping we can come into our own for the endurance season and get some really strong results."
Having a better run in qualifying at Bathurst is definitely a goal for Pye the South Australian native keen to take part in his first top 10 shootout.
But even if that is not forthcoming, Pye knows he and Walsh will have time to work their way through the field.
"It has been disappointing we haven't been able to have a good qualifying car, every time we have tried to have a really aggressive qualifying car, I feel it has helped us to have a better race car," he said.
"For me, I'd love to do the top 10 shootout, to be out there on my own for a lap would be amazing.
"Ash and I certainly hope we can be there spraying champagne on Sunday night, but there is a long way to go and anything can happen at Bathurst. You do a hundred laps and there is still a lot of racing to go, it's 161 laps.
"Bathurst is a place that, no matter how many laps you do around there, you have to give it the utmost respect. I remember last year even that last lap I was really nervous.
"Ash and I will be going out there to do the best job we can do, last year was a promising result, but I want to do better than that this year. Hopefully Ash and I will be standing on the podium at the end of the day."