While normally a staple of our Australian Carrera Cup Championship, it is quite a treat for our Sprint Challenge drivers to get the opportunity to compete at the famously daunting Mt Panorama circuit at Bathurst, NSW.
Lockie was no doubt looking for his first round win and after his race win at The Bend and previous experience at ‘the mountain’, we were confident of an awesome weekend. Our expectations for our Bathurst rookies Caleb and Clay were much more modest and they were under strict instructions to keep their cars off the fence and ensure they complete every lap available to them over the weekend. Brett is always a contender for the Pro-Am class win and this weekend was no different.
Congrats to Brett on his excellent 2nd place for the weekend, and he even snagged 3rd in the Pro-Am championship despite missing two rounds during the season. Lockie had the misfortune of a blowout on his left front tyre in race 1 which completely derailed his weekend and he had to come from the rear of the grid for race 2 to 10th on the road after race 3.
Both Clay & Caleb followed their instructions perfectly and completed every lap of every session and built a terrific bank of information and experience for the next time they visit this crazy place.
Undoubtedly a highlight for the MR team and the whole Porsche Michelin Sprint Challenge family was the guest appearance of our great mate and Pro-Am front runner Richard Cowen only 12 weeks after his life-threatening accident at Queensland Raceway.
The MR crew enjoyed a few festivities on Saturday night to celebrate the season’s achievements at the annual awards dinner where Luffy also won the Sportsman of the Year award for his amazing care and support for Richard and his family in the hours and weeks after his QR shunt.