Australia’s international endurance race will bring together the best international GT and sports car drivers and Australia’s top V8 Supercars stars at one of the world’s most famous circuits.

This weekend’s Bathurst 12 Hour will be the 14th around-the-clock enduro to be held at Mount Panorama and the 10th since the event returned in 2007.

And the 2016 race promises to be one of the most competitive yet.

The assembled field is one of the strongest ever and includes 11 manufacturers, drivers from 15 countries and a record eight former Bathurst 12 Hour race winners.

V8 Supercars’ biggest names, including Garth Tander, Will Davison, Rick Kelly, Shane van Gisbergen, Scott McLaughlin and David Reynolds, will face off against international stars including LeMans winner Guy Smith, GT champion Laurens Vanthoor, double winner Christopher Mies, teenage young-gun Austin Cindric and German legend Bernd Schneider.

A host of former Formula One stars, including Mika Salo, Markus Winkelhock and Andrea Montermini, will also line up on the grid.

At least one winning driver from each of the past five years will return this year, while every brand to have tasted success in the 12 Hour’s GT era – Audi, Mercedes-Benz, Ferrari and Nissan – will search for more Bathurst glory.

Four former winners of the Supercheap Auto Bathurst 1000 will also feature on the grid alongside winners of the LeMans 24 Hour, Spa 24 Hour and a majority of the key endurance races around the world.

As well as V8 Supercars champions, the field includes former winners of the German Touring Car/DTM Championship, FIA GT/Blancpain Endurance Champion-ship and multiple open-wheel champions.

An explosion in manufacturer interest in the race will see every major GT3 brand represented on the grid include some form of factory support, while fully “works” teams from defending champions Nissan, Bentley and McLaren will be among the favourites.

Ferrari owners from around the nation will be descending on Bathurst to watch the entries representing the Prancing Horse in action.

Mercedes-Benz will supply the official C63-S safety car, while Audi will also have a significant presence throughout the race week – and will also have the most number of contenders for outright victory this year (seven).

Class racing will also be a feature of the event. Fierce battles are expected in the GT3 Cup Car and Invitational classes, each offering a diverse array of machinery and drivers searching for a place on the Bathurst podium.