Bathurst records under threat

ONE of the longest-standing records in Australian motorsport could fall this weekend, during the running of the V8 Supercar 1000 at Bathurst's Mt Panorama.

A total resurfacing of the demanding 6.213km circuit will provide levels of tyre grip never experienced before at Mt Panorama and the 31-yeard old outright lap record of two minutes and 9.70 seconds is set to be broken.

The existing record was set way back in 1970 by Neil Allen in a McLaren Formula 5000 car on a circuit which did not include the Caltex Chase section in Conrod Straight.

Queensland's Mark Larkham set the fastest ever lap at Mt Panorama in 1999 when he clocked a lap of 2:09.514 in qualifying, but it does not count as the official outright lap record because it was not set in race conditions.

Larry Perkins holds the V8 Supercar lap record of 2:12.3398, which he set on his way to winning the 1997 event with Russell Ingall.

The outright race record of six hours, 19 minutes and 14.8 seconds set by Jim Richards and Mark Skaife in 1991 in a Nissan Skyline GT-R is also under threat in the improved conditions.

The main challengers for this year's Shell Series title, Holden Racing Team drivers Mark Skaife and Jason Bright, will not be in the same car at this weekend's event following a decision late last week to split the two drivers.

They shared driving duties at the last enduro event, the Queensland 500, but for this round Skaife will partner Tony Longhurst in the #1 car and Jason Bright will drive with Tomas Mezera in the #2 car.

The dominant HRT outfit have not been able to conquer Bathurst since Craig Lowndes teamed with Greg Murphy in 1996. Splitting their two lead drivers in 2001 may be a case of increasing their chances of putting another win on the board.

HRT's rivals go into this weekend's race with high hopes of knocking them off after the team lost some of its early season advantage with disappointing results in the Queensland 500 and at Winton.

The Shell Helix Racing pair of Steven Johnson and Paul Radisich has been touted as one of the strong Bathurst chances all season. The team's endurance racing form this season has been pretty sharp, with victories in two of the three long-distances events to date.

After narrowly missing victory at Bathurst two years in a row, Shell Helix Racing is determined to make it third time lucky at Mt Panorama this year.

Radisich was beaten to victory by just 2.4 seconds last year, in the closest finish in Bathurst V8 Supercar history. And that result followed the Kiwi's total domination of the 1999 event, which ended almost within sight of the finish after a brush with a backmarker caused a flat tyre.

The fact that Johnson finds himself as the leading Ford driver in the championship and a genuine contender means the win becomes more desirable, as he hopes to become the second son of a Bathurst winner, after Steven Richards, to win the race.

The Kmart Racing entry of Greg Murphy and Todd Kelly also has a strong chance, having won a well-deserved podium spot at the Queensland 500. Kelly would become the youngest winner at Bathurst should their Holden be the first to take the chequered flag on Sunday afternoon.

Garth Tander and Jason Bargwanna are hoping to become the first back-to-back winners of Australian motorsport's most celebrated race since Jim Richards and Skaife in 1991-92. The Valvoline Cummins Holden pair have struggled throughout the year, but encouraging signs of improvement at Queensland and Winton, plus last year's hard fought win ensure they must be considered as a real threat in 2001.

Ford fans will be looking for Craig Lowndes and Neil Crompton who will debut a purpose-built Gibson Falcon at the event.

Glenn Seton will hope that his 18th trip to the mountain can bring him an elusive victory and his Tickford Racing teammate, Steven Richards, may provide just the Bathurst luck he needs, having won here twice and boasting a streak of five straight podium finishes from his last five visits. Seton will also debut a new car at this event.

Dual winner John Bowe has a talented youngster in Simon Wills as his co-pilot in the CAT Falcon and could figure in the final result.

Event Schedule
Friday: Qualifying 1.10pm-2.50pm
Saturday: Top 15 Shootout 10.45am-11.50am
Sunday: Race 10.00am-4.30pm Television Coverage
Saturday: Network Ten telecast will be from Noon-5pm
Sunday: telecast will be from 7am-5pm DRIVERS' CHAMPIONSHIP
1 Skaife (HRT) 2498 points
2 Bright (HRT) 2371
3 Ingall (Castrol Holden) 2281
4 Johnson (Shell Ford) 2217
5 Murphy (K-Mart Holden) 1842
6 Radisich (Shell Ford) 1836
7 Kelly (K-Mart Holden) 1644
8 Ambrose (Pirtek Ford) 1611
9 Tander (Valvoline Holden) 1479
10 Ellery (Super Cheap Auto Holden) 1477