Supercars: Bathurst to go ahead despite wet weather

Supercars has assured fans the Repco Bathurst 1000 will go ahead as planned despite inclement weather.

According to the Bureau of Meteorology [BOM], rain is forecast across all four days of track action at this year’s Mount Panorama enduro.

Rain fell throughout Wednesday, including during the transporter and driver parade through the Bathurst CBD.

At the time of publication, the BOM is predicting 15-30mm of precipitation on Sunday.

Supercars CEO, Shane Howard, released a statement late on Tuesday confirming no major changes to the event are expected at this stage.

“The Repco Bathurst 1000, one of Australia’s premier outdoor sporting events will be proceeding as planned this weekend,” said Howard.

“In light of the weather forecast over the coming days, patrons are encouraged to plan accordingly.

“Sessions will begin for all categories on track on Thursday and run through until Sunday’s great race.

“Off track entertainment at the top and bottom of the mountain will also proceed as planned.

“We will act accordingly to ensure the safety of patrons and competitors at all times.

“We saw this morning thousands of fans lining Bathurst’s CBD to welcome the drivers to town at the driver’s parade and autograph sessions.

“We thank our fans who have arrived at Mount Panorama and look forward to four memorable days at the Repco Bathurst 1000.”

As reported by Speedcafe.com earlier this week, the forecast raises questions as to whether or not race start for the 161-lapper will be brought forward from its scheduled 11:15 local time/AEDT.

That was indeed the case in 2020, when the threat of thunderstorms saw the official start time shifted half an hour from 11:30 to 11:00.

The concern centred around the race potentially finishing in the darkness given the slower pace due to the wet weather and increased likelihood of Safety Car periods due to incidents.

While 2021 featured the latest start time ever of 12:15, the kick off for Great Race has been wound back to a more traditional morning start.

Practice 1 at Mount Panorama starts at 11:00 AEDT on Thursday.