The pre-Bathurst endurance race for the second consecutive season will again spice up the V8 Supercars Championship -where primary drivers for each team are not permitted to drive with one another, meaning all full-time drivers will again be paired with co-drivers for the 113-lap race.

Last year, Team Vodafone re-united former HRT teammates Craig Lowndes and Mark Skaife. The combination took victory after the other team car of Jamie Whincup/Steve Owen encountered mechanical problems while leading the race. Mark Winterbottom and Luke Youlden came second for Ford Performance Racing while Jason Richards and Andrew Jones worked their way from almost last to a podium finish.

The L&H 500 Phillip Island, this weekend sees the start of the highly anticipated endurance races and is the traditional shake down for the next race, the Bathurst 1000. The title fight for the V8 Supercars Championship heats up as 28 regular drivers pair with a co-driver for over 500 gruelling kilometres at the Island.

On the points scene the pairing of Lowndes and Skaife could, with some good driving and luck, project Craig Lowndes to the top of the table ahead of team-mate Jamie Whincup. Certainly if history repeats last year’s results, Lowndes will be ahead after the Bathurst bash.

Whatever the results at the end of the day, Phillip Island is ready to rock for a weekend of nonstop spectacular racing action.

BATHURST 1000 LIVE ON US TV

Following the recent decision of V8 Supercars’ to hold a race in Austin, Texas, from 2013, V8 Supercars have further gained traction in the US with motor racing’s leading dedicated television channel Speed (Foxtel) to broadcast the Bathurst 1000 live from Mt Panorama on 9 October into North America.

Speed, which streams into over 80 million homes in the US, will send its primary commentary team with former NASCAR star Darrell Waltrip for the race and will also broadcast the Gold Coast 600 live across the United States and Canada later in October.