LOWNDES AND RICHARDS WIN BATHURST 2018

Craig Lowndes claimed a seventh victory in the Bathurst 1000 when he combined with Steven Richards to take out the 2018 Supercheap Auto Bathurst 1000 in his last visit to the mountain as a full time driver in the Virgin Australia Supercars Championship. In doing so, Lowndes moved closer to the record set by Supercars legend and mentor, the late, great Peter Brock.

DON’T FORGET TO ORDER YOUR LIMITED EDITION SOUVENIR VELOCITY BATHURST 1000 MAGAZINE 

The huge crowd went wild when Lowndes managed to overhaul race pace-setter and pole sitter, David Reynolds as the race counted down towards the final 20 lap sprint. There was heartache for Reynolds shortly after when his foot slipped from the brake pedal momentarily during his last scheduled stop, which allowed the car to creep whilst still being refuelled. A pit-lane penalty for the infringement saw the number 9 Erebus Penrite Commodore drop out of contention for the win. Reynolds stopped again shortly after with leg cramps and handed the wheel to co-driver Luke Youlden.

Scott Pye and Ian Luff inherited 2nd place which they held to the finish, whilst Scott McLaughlin moved closer to regaining the 2018 Virgin Australia Supercars Championship lead when he and Alexandre Premat brought the number 17 Shell V-Power Ford Falcon home in 3rd. It was a fitting finale for the Falcon brand which is to be replaced by the Ford Mustang in 2019.

Lowndes and Richards set a new race record for the event with just a handful of Safety Car periods throughout the race. Two to retrieve the stranded Walkinshaw Andretti United Commodore of James Courtney and Jack Perkins which expired with a blown engine and the Bigmate Racing Commodore, which had become stuck in the gravel at Murray’s corner. The other intervention was for a piece of debris that sat on the race line

DON’T FORGET TO ORDER YOUR LIMITED EDITION SOUVENIR VELOCITY BATHURST 1000 MAGAZINE 

Whilst the number of Safety Car interventions were few, there were a number of incidents which dramatically altered the complexion of the race.

The Red Bull Racing Holden Commodores were expected to dominate the race, given the turn of speed demonstrated by the team at the Rabble Sandown 500. Even though Jamie Whincup and Shane van Gisbergen had been pipped by the explosive David Reynolds in the Top 10 shoot out, few really expected the Erebus Penrite Commodore to be able to match the pace of the factory Holdens over the 161 laps. In the end it was quite the opposite.

David Reynolds and Anton de Pasquale took the race by the scruff of the neck in the early stages of the race and, to the disbelief of the crowd, ran 1-2 in the early stages of the race, before a faulty passenger door latch forced the Erebus Penrite team into an alternate race strategy and an unscheduled pit stop. The number 99 car dropped back after an off at MacPhillamy saw the car collide with the tyre wall and crab back to the pits for repairs.

Roger Penske and Michael Andretti both made the trip to Bathurst, keen to see their respective teams claim a first Bathurst 1000 victory for an ‘American’ team. Andretti’s chances were halved before half distance when an oil pressure issue led to an engine failure in the number 25 entry.

Michael Caruso’s chances fell away when co-driver Dean Fiore suffered wheel and tyre damage at Hell corner and effectively dropped out of contention as Fiore was forced to limp the Nissan Altima for the best part of a lap. Jamie Whincup’s race also fell away when Paul Dumbrell had a right front wheel depart the car on the main straight. Dumbrell elected to drive the 3 wheel Commodore slowly back to the pits for repairs. A new wheel was fitted and the car returned to the fray but suffered throughout the race with suspension and undertray issues which resulted when the components scraped along the ground on the way back to the pits.

Shane van Gisbergen and Earl Bamber were always there a-bouts, though never really threatened for the lead. Scott McLaughlin and Alexandre Premat took the lead during the co-driver stints and remained close to the front, though it really became a two way battle between Reynolds and Lowndes as the race moved into the final sprint.

Chaz Mostert/ James Moffat and Cameron Waters/ David Russell had looked good early in the race, however a misjudgment by Mostert, when he looked to pass Russell at Forrest’s Elbow resulted in contact and Russell slipped into the outside tyre wall and damaged the front suspension of the Monster Energy drink Falcon. Mostert continued to threaten the leaders but, like the rest of the field, was unable to match the final pace of the Autobahn and Erebus Penrite Commodores.

The weather also looked to influence the race with isolated showers casting parts of the circuit in a light haze of water, though never really heavy enough to see the introduction of wet weather tyres, it did manage to gain the attention of the drivers behind the wheel at the time.

In the end Craig Lowndes equalled another Brock record and actually managed to achieve what Brock was unable to do 21 years before, win at his last full time drive in the Great Race.

All photos: John Morris.

DON’T FORGET TO ORDER YOUR LIMITED EDITION SOUVENIR VELOCITY BATHURST 1000 MAGAZINE 

For all our news keep your eyes peeled on the Velocity Magazine website and social media, Facebook, Twitter and Instagram for our daily updates and to get the latest edition of our glossy magazine subscribe here from just $55 for 6 issues.