By this time next week, the Bathurst 12 Hour will have been run and won, and the result is the focus of this week’s Pirtek Poll.
The first ‘normal’ Liqui Moly Bathurst 12 Hour since the outbreak of COVID-19 features a smaller field than that to which we had become accustomed, but still boasts quality teams and drivers.
So, the question we ask of you is, who do you think will be the outright winners come this Sunday afternoon at Mount Panorama?
The answer is most likely to be found in the eight-strong Pro class, comprised of four Mercedes-AMG GT3s, two BMW M4 GT3s, an Audi R8 LMS GT3 evo II, and a Porsche 911 GT3 R.
Among the four Mercedes-AMGs is the SunEnergy1 entry which prevailed last year.
Three drivers from that triumphant quartet are backing up in Car #75 this time around, namely Jules Gounon, Luca Stolz, and gentleman driver Kenny Habul.
GruppeM (Car #999) has come close to winning the Bathurst 12 Hour already and retains the services of Raffaele Marciello, who is joined by fellow factory drivers Maro Engel and Mikael Grenier.
Similarly, Craft-Bamboo (Car #77) is all-factory steerers, with Philip Ellis a like-for-like replacement for the injured Lucas Auer alongside Daniel Juncadella and Nicky Catsburg.
Triple Eight Race Engineering’s Supercheap Auto-backed Mercedes-AMG (Car #888) may only boast one factory driver in Maximilian Gotz, but Supercars full-timers Shane van Gisbergen and Broc Feeney are also regulars in its GT3 programme.
Team WRT is charged with the responsibility of giving the M4 GT3 its first run at Mount Panorama, and will do so off the back of victory in the Dubai 24H earlier this month.
Granted, the competition was not as strong then as it will face now, but it is a Bathurst 12 Hour-winning team (in its Audi days) which can count on Sheldon Van Der Linde, Dries Vanthoor, and Charles Weerts in Car #32, while Car #46 will be steered by Augusto Farfus, Maxime Martin, and MotoGP champion-turned-factory BMW driver Valentino Rossi.
The #74 Audi Sport entry combines the factory cred – including drivers Christopher Haase, Patrick Niederhauser, and Mattia Drudi – with prolific GT World Challenge Australia winners Melbourne Performance Centre.
Manthey EMA (Car #912) is also an Australian-German collaboration which boasts 2020 Bathurst 12 Hour victor Matt Campbell along with Mathieu Jaminet and Thomas Preining.
Beyond the Pro contingent, a majority of the Pro-Am class entries can also arguably be considered outright contenders if strategy is good and a bit of luck falls their way.
For the purpose of the question, we have also included the six cars from the Silver class per the entry list released by event organisers in recent days.
CLICK HERE for entry list
So, who do you think will win the 2023 Bathurst 12 Hour?
Cast your vote below in this week’s Pirtek Poll.
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