THE popularity of the Liqui-Moly Bathurst 12 Hour endurance race at Mount Panorama is such that many people believe it has the potential to trump the Great Race for number one spot on the Australian motorsport grid.
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The grid for the event reached 52 at yesterday’s 100-day countdown to the February event with the addition of two more DV9 Aston Martins from Hong Kong.
With international coverage of the event and all the big names in manufacturing sending teams, the potential for further growth seems assured.
It’s a fact not lost on local councillor Warren Aubin, who has always believed the 12 Hour would be something special.
“The turning point for the event was getting the GT cars on board and it’s been going gangbusters ever since,” he said yesterday.
“You only have to look at the cars on the grid for 2015 to realise this. You’ve got Ferrari, Mercedes, Lamborghini, Audi, Porsche, Nissan, McLaren, BMW, Subaru and even Lotus, Aston Martin and Bentley.
“That’s just huge to have these types of cars on the grid at Bathurst. It makes the 12 Hour a spectacle that has appeal all around the globe.
“In time, I believe there is even the potential for this race to become as popular as, or even take over the mantle from, the Bathurst 1000 as Australia’s premier motorsport event.
“I know that’s a big statement, but when you have a mix of these exotic cars, the best drivers in the world all wanting a start here and our mountain, it’s something that is very special and rare in our country.
“The good thing is that Bathurst is the big winner and it’s all thanks to the fact we have such an iconic circuit right in our own backyard.”
According to the promoters of the Bathurst 12 Hour, the addition of Dutch owner/driver Cor Euser with a Lotus Lotus Evora GT4 took the confirmed field to 50 cars.
However, event organisers say the event-imposed 55-car starting cap has been relaxed for 2015 and the addition of the two Aston Martins take the field to 52.
Initially the cap was imposed due to the limited overtaking opportunities across the top of Mount Panorama, when the field comprised a large number of slower vehicles. With the field now comprising a majority of GT vehicles, the requirement for the cap no longer exists.
Another example of the popularity and drawing power of the Bathurst 12 Hour comes from Bentley chairman and chief executive, Wolfgang Durheimer, who told Carsguide.com.au that the factory was assembling the two-car attack with the twin-turbo, V8-powered Continental GT3.
“We are coming with the factory team to the Bathurst 12 Hour. We decided last week at our headquarters in Britain,” he said.
“It will be two cars.”