Field launched ahead of Bathurst 12 Hour

The field for this weekend’s Liqui-Moly Bathurst 12 Hour has been presented ahead of tomorrow’s opening practice.

A 53-car field, spread across six classes, is set to head out for first practice at 0825 on Friday morning.

Missing from the unveil were the two factory Bentley Continentals, which were delayed en-route to Mount Panorama but are expected to arrive overnight.

The field, which boasts 12 marques and drivers representing 17 different nationalities, is arguably the most credentialed the event has seen.

Ten winners of the Bathurst 1000 are poised to take part in the race, four Le Mans 24 Hours winners, and three World Endurance Champions.

Mercedes-AMG driver Maxi Buhk, who was second for Bentley on debut in 2014, believes almost any of the 28 GT3-spec machines could claim the honours on Sunday.

“Surely this weekend we will try to go for the win but when you see all the line-ups they are 15 or 20 cars that have the potential to win, I think a top five would be nice but the win is what we want,” said Buhk.

Having finished third in the 2017 Blancpain GT Series, Buhk said he’s impressed been impressed by the local drivers, and the overall quality of the field.

“I came here in 2014 and I thought ‘I’m Maxi Buhk from Germany, I know how to drive a race car’ and I was pretty impressed by all the Aussie guys who know how to drive well,” he said.

“It was pretty tough for me to learn the track and get confident in the car.

“We were two laps down in the beginning and then we fought back and in the last half hour I was battling with Craig Lowndes and I enjoyed that time a lot.

“I rate Craig really high, for me he is one of the best drivers I was racing against. I’m following him and other guys when I watch the V8 Supercars so I’m really impressed with them.”

Buhk this year will drive for British squad Strakka Racing, alongside Max Gotz and Alvaro Parente in a Mercedes-AMG GT3.

It’s one of 13 Pro entries, with the balance of Class A made up of 12 Pro-Am and three Am class cars.

Opening practice, the first of four times the cars are on track tomorrow, commences at 0825 AEDT.

View Speedcafe.com’s comprehensive Liqui-Moly Bathurst 12 Hour Form Guide, presented by our platinum partner Mercedes-Benz.