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In the build up to Australia’s greatest race of the year, race fans flock to Racecentre to get their driving fix. What better way is there to appreciate what the drivers go through than to race it yourself, right? For the V8 league, double points were on offer for the 2 hour race with no co-drivers to lighten the load.

Quallify:

Drivers received only one hot-lap in qualifying, a pressure similar to the top-10 shootout. Chris Beresford rose to the occasion giving his very own version of the ‘Lap of the Gods’ for pole position. The qualifying format was perhaps a little too tricky to handle for a trio of the other quick drivers who failed to post a clean lap.

Race:

Chris demonstrated a typical ‘Mark Skaife’ type start by dropping a few positions on the opening lap. Shane Gilfeather launched into first place from fourth with Matt Pisani close behind. However, Matt made an early mistake which handed the other Matt (Anderson) second place. Enda Murphy and Gavalas quickly made up for their poor qualifying by jumping up to fourth and fifth respectively in the opening laps.

As the first round of pit stops approached, drivers were keeping a very close eye on their right rear tyre wear. Matt A blinked first near the 9-lap mark, whilst Shane managed 10. The rest of the front runners managed to stretch a few laps further, some reporting more than 14 laps. It soon became obvious that we were seeing a varied approach to car-setup and driving styles that could ultimately decide a race. Shane appeared to control the pace most of the race, whilst pit stop cycles allowed Chris, Enda and Matt A a couple of brief opportunities to lead.

Like we have come to expect at Bathurst, the unexpected often happens. Chris and Greg both found themselves caught out by the track – Greg, quite literally found himself on the other side of the barricade. Up front, the tension was building as Shane soon realised that he would have to succumb to an extra stop compared to the other guys managing tyres. His answer – put the foot down and go for it! A spirited charge put Shane a mere one second lead to Matt A after exiting pit lane for his final stop. Shane, in the zone, put in stunning drive to completely drive away from Matt and the rest of the field from there. Despite having to stop an extra time compared to most of his rivals, he managed to lap all but two other cars! Matt A and Enda rounded out the podium, followed by Wade Keenan who had started from last!

Next round is the Gold Coast drivers' home track, and arguably an even tougher one than Bathurst – Expect some Carnage!

By Matt Anderson

Race Results:

Championship Table: