While some of the Victorian motor racing attention is being centred on the V8 Supercar round at Phillip Island this weekend, there is another meeting being run in the southern state.
The annual Historic Sandown meeting is being held at the outer-Melbourne track, with a large array of cars and stars competing and displaying over the weekend.
The feature racing class of the meeting is the popular Biante Touring Car Masters class. 31 cars are entered, although series regular John Bowe is not one of those entrants.
The Camaro that Bowe has campaigned this year has been sold and he has elected not to contest the event.
Instead, the two-time Bathurst winner will pilot a race-prepared GT40 replica in the speed comparison sessions against Geoff Brabham in a current model V8-engined BMW M3 coupe and Geoff’s 15 year-old son Matthew in a Spectrum Formula Ford. Victorian Historic Racing Register Patron Sir Jack Brabham will drop the starter’s flag for the speed comparison.
Bowe is disappointed, though, that he won’t be racing in the final round of the Binate Series.
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“I found out at very late notice that I can’t drive the Camaro at Sandown this weekend,” he said.
“I’m obviously very disappointed that I’m going to miss this round. Sandown is one of my favourite tracks – I first raced there in 1979 and have enjoyed a lot of success there over the years.
“While I know I was never going to be able to steal the championship title from Gavin (Bullas), I was really looking forward to having a big go against him and Jim Richards this weekend, and trying to finally take a round win from them this season.”
Bullas has a comfortable lead in the Biante Series and needs a disaster to strike to lose. Richards is the only man with a mathematical chance of overcoming him.
