Touring Car Masters organisers have released the entry list for this weekend’s first round of the season at the Adelaide 500.

Steven Johnson will attempt to defend his title in the same 1969 Ford Mustang Fastback in which he triumphed last year, with a switch to an XD Falcon likely to take place next year.

He is again likely to face stern competition from John Bowe, who will be back in the 1974 Holden Torana SL/R 5000 in which he won last year’s Adelaide round.

Another man with multiple TCM titles and an Adelaide round win to his name, Gavin Bullas, is also on the entry list.

Bullas returned to the series in last year’s finale in Newcastle and will again pilot his 1970 Ford Mustang Fastback.

Mark King is back in his 1970 Chevrolet Camaro RS, which has undergone an extensive rebuild after he was caught up in a multi-car crash at Winton.

Newcomers include V8 Touring Car and production car regular Jim Pollicina in a race-winning ex-Adam Garwood Holden Torana A9X, former open-wheel racer Rob Hackwood in a Ford Mustang Coupe, and former V8 Utes racer Ben Dunn in a 1975 Chevrolet Monza which Greg Ritter has won in on the Adelaide streets.

Andrew Fisher, however, is a non-starter owing to a testing crash which damaged his Ford Falcon GTHO.

Marcus Zukanovic will also delay his debut as he and the family’s Action Racing team work to finish the series’ first XD Falcon.

Touring Car Masters are on-track for Practice on Thursday at 1100 local time/1130 AEDT.

Qualifying and the first of four races will follow later in the day as part of a new weekend format for the series.

Entry list: Round 1, Adelaide Parklands Circuit