Australian sportscar ace Ryan Briscoe is keen to take part in the Bathurst 12 Hour after visiting the event last weekend.
“I’d love it do it,” Briscoe told Speedcafe.com when asked if he was interested in a Bathurst 12 Hour berth.
“It’s definitely been on my radar for the last couple of years. I think this race has really grown a lot of traction, here but also worldwide.
“I’ve got quite a few friends that come over and do the race, so I’d love to tee something up to come out and take part,” he added.
“It’s the best track in the world, who wouldn’t want to come here and race a GT3 of some sort around here.”
Briscoe has experience around Mount Panorama, racing in the Bathurst 1000 as a co-driver on three occasions with the Holden Racing Team/Walkinshaw Racing between 2006 and 2013.
However, his current program looks set to rule him out of a similar role in this year’s Pirtek Enduro Cup, with his focus firmly on racing in the United States.
“I think there is a clash with the enduros,” he revealed.
“I wish we could just come and do Bathurst or Surfers (Paradise).
“If you commit to a team over here, they’re going to want the same driver for all three races.
“When you’ve got a program going on, which is your full-time deal, it’s a big commitment. I think it’s really too much for the program I’ve got going on at the moment to commit to coming over here and being as well prepared as I want to be to do all three enduros.
“I did it a few years ago, and it worked, but the program I was on in the US wasn’t as big a deal as what I’m on now.
“If I came here to do the enduros I really want to make sure I was at my best.”
Briscoe is currently committed to the IMSA Weathertech SportsCar Championship in the United States, and is also set to compete at the Le Mans 24 Hours in June.
It leaves the 36-year-old with a busy program of racing and testing that will see him jetting between the States and Europe once he leaves Australia.
“Sebring’s the next race in March,” he said.
“We’ve got a bit of testing coming up between now and then with IMSA, then go to Europe do a bit of tyre testing for Le Mans as well.
“And then from Sebring it gets pretty busy with our IMSA championship.”
Briscoe currently leads the IMSA GTLM class after the opening round at Daytona, where he won with co-drivers Scott Dixon and Richard Westbrook.
The next round of the IMSA series is the 12 Hours of Sebring on March 17.
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