German youngster gunning for Bathurst hat-trick

Twenty-three year-old German Christopher Mies will return to Mount Panorama next month in an attempt to win his third consecutive Liqui-Moly Bathurst 12 Hour crown.

With 2012 winning outfit Phoenix Racing scaling back to a single entry as part of Audi’s reduced involvement in the race this year, Mies has joined the two-car Melbourne Performance Centre squad to drive a recently imported Audi R8 Ultra alongside gentleman racers Mark Eddy, Marc Cini and Dean Grant.

As previously reported by Speedcafe.com, V8 Supercars stars Craig Lowndes and Warren Luff will partner car owner Rod Salmon in what shapes as MPC’s lead entry.

A co-winner of the 2012 Blancpain Endurance Series, Mies took victory in last year’s Bathurst 12 Hour alongside fellow internationals Darryl O’Young and Christopher Jöns despite a mid-race spin that saw the trio’s R8 LMS needing to be towed out of the Murray’s Corner gravel trap.

O’Young remains hopeful of returning to Bathurst this year despite being yet to lock in a deal, while Jöns is also unconfirmed to return, but could form part of Phoenix’s yet-to-be-named line-up.

Few of the race’s 52 entries teams have confirmed their full driving crews, although the likes of Craig Baird and Matt Griffin (Clearwater Ferrari), Allan Simonsen, Mika Salo and John Bowe (Maranello Ferrari), David Russell and Peter Kox (JBS Lamborghini) and Steven Richards (Justin McMillan Lamborghini) are among the big names already locked in.

The race received a boost this week when reigning World Endurance Championship winning squad, AF Corse, lodged a late entry. Although its driver line-up is yet to be confirmed, the team co-owned by NASCAR legend Michael Waltrip is expected to be a formidable force.

Further details of the AF Corse Ferrari 458 entry are expected within the coming days, with the race itself set to take place on February 10.

See below for the current entry list