Reigning Bathurst 1000 champion Garth Tander says that the Holden Racing Team is as prepared as they can be for this weekend’s event.
Tander, currently sixth in the V8 Supercars Championship, heads to Mount Panorama quietly confident, despite not having won a V8 race since last year’s 1000km event.
Speaking at a Coates Hire function in Kelso, Bathurst, the three-time Great Race winner says that experience is everything, especially at Bathurst.
“Bathurst is such a different race to all the others, it’s a longer day and longer week and a different type of circuit and it requires different things from different people within the team,” Tander said.
“Most important though is Bathurst experience rather than just good form throughout the championship.
“For us, we are as prepared as we can be and look forward to taking on the mountain”.
Tander will be partnered by rookie winner Nick Percat. He agrees that the team has left no stone unturned in its quest to retain the crown.
“We know what our package is and I know I can comfortably do a certain lap time, so I’m approaching it in the same way,” he said.
“I’m being pretty open-minded and to be honest you don’t really know where you’re at until just after lunch on Sunday, when everyone steps up the pace and jostles for position.”
See below for a video of the HRT drivers reflecting on their 2011 Bathurst 1000 success.
See below for Speedcafe.com’s Supercheap Auto Bathurst 1000 Race Guide.