The Ford and Holden domination at Bathurst 1000 will end as both Nissan and Erebus Mercedes AMG join the ranks this weekend.
The Holden Assault on the Mountain (16 entries) will be led by the Triple Eight Red-Bull outfit with Jamie Whincup – the favourite to take the race from team-mate Craig Lowndes in the second of the Holden Red Bull entries. The Holdens will be the dominant force, having won nearly everything that’s been on offer this year including the Sandown 500.
Erebus Motorsport (three entries) Mercedes AMG’s team took out their best ever finish of fourth (Lee Holdsworth) at Sandown despite losing 14 seconds in additional pitstop stationary time due to their higher fuel consumption.
Nissan Motorsport (four entries), is expected to head into the season’s biggest race with minimal changes to its package. The Kelly brothers team proved unable to crack the top 10 at Sandown, because of a lack of top end speed and poor fuel economy. With seven compulsory pit stops at Bathurst for all makes the Nissan and Mercedes teams will benefit.
Ford Australia President and CEO Bob Graziano will be at Bathurst on the weekend, but insists that his presence trackside is not to confirm ongoing sponsorship of the factory race team. Established in 2003, Ford Performance Racing (FPR) has yet to win Bathurst or the V8s Supercar Championship. Their multi-million-dollar contract has come up for renewal as Ford faces an expensive exit from local manufacturing and the termination of the Falcon nameplate.
The number of Falcons on the 29 car grid has shrunk to just six. The best chance for victory in the Ford camp is Mark Winterbottom and Will Davison.
The race will be broadcast live on the 7 network from 7.00am on Sunday with the Great Race starting at 10.30 am until the finish of the event, estimated to be around 5.00 pm.