Erebus Motorsport wins Bathurst 12 Hour
In what's seen as a positive sign for Erebus ahead of their V8 Supercars debut later this month, the Erebus SLS AMG GT3 car driven by the international team of Bernd Schneider, Thomas Jager and Alex Roloff survived a chaotic final hour to take the win.
After 12 hours of racing, the #36 car's winning margin was only a lap over the second-placed Clearwater Racing Ferrari 458 GT3 (Craig Baird, Matt Griffin, Mok Weng Sung). Third place went to the #5 VIP Petfoods Porsche 911 GT3R driven by Klark Quinn, Shane van Gisbergen and Matt Kingsley. Last year's Bathurst 12 Hour winners, Phoenix Racing, finished fourth in the Audi R8 LMS Ultra GT, with the Network Clothing/Hallmark Audi completing the top five.
The race started in fine sunshine, ended in pouring rain and was interrupted by a record 16-safety car periods. 49 cars started the race, with 19 different automotive brands represented. The attrition of the 12 Hour saw 15 non-finishers at this year's event.
"I have been racing for 40 years, it has been a long time since I have had to learn a new circuit," Schneider said of his first experience of Mount Panorama. "We have achieved something really special, especially since it's (my) first time and such a difficult race."
Class A cars dominated the top ten, with the clean sweep broken by Hunter Sports Group's Porsche 997 GT3 Cup car, which finished ninth overall and won Class B. First in Class C was the nurburgring.com.au Lotus Exige S. The GWS Personnel BMW 335i took the honours in Class D, while the Racer Industries' HSV Astra VXR won Class E and finished an impressive 18th overall. I1, I2 and I3 class wins went to Team Peugeot RCZ (Peugeot RCZ Cup), Motorsport Services (Seat Leon Supercopa) and Mal Rose Racing (Holden VY Commodore) respectively.
22,453 spectators attended across the three days, an increase on last year, with entrants, media and online viewer numbers also up on 2012. On the back of a successful 2013 race, event organisers have already confirmed the Liqui-Moly Bathurst 12 Hour will return in 2014, with the date set at February 7 - 9.
Images: Erebus Motorsport/BAM Media
