MICHELE Abbate was not alone in driving her first laps at Mount Panorama as part of this year’s Bathurst 6 Hour field, but for her it was a memorable moment for more than just that.
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The two-time Sports Car Club of America champion came to Bathurst as part of her honeymoon.
"We had honeymoon plans originally for somewhere else and I was given the opportunity to get into the seat of the 86 with the Pedders team and at the time my fiance and I couldn't think of anything better,” the Las Vegas native told Australian Production Cars.
Sunday’s race did not bring the best of results for Abbate and her team, finishing in 49th position and 27 laps down on the victor.
But she still learned why so many drivers rate the Bathurst track as one of the world’s finest. "Just watching so many videos, doing simulations, just studying my favourite drivers here - you can not get the respect like you do driving it. It's just a fantastic track,” she said.