The 2023 Bathurst 12 Hour endurance race is now formally within the historical past books, having taken place from February 3 by 5. Although it was Valentino Rossi’s first-ever run on the Bathurst 12 Hour occasion, he got here into it sizzling on the heels of getting been a part of BMW M Motorsport Team WRT’s third-place-finishing effort on the 24 Hours of Dubai in January, 2023.
Rossi’s teammates for the Bathurst 12 Hour, Augusto Farfus and Maxime Martin, are each gifted and skilled GT racers in their very own proper—and actually, Martin was one among Rossi’s teammates on the 24 Hours of Dubai, as properly. So, how did the staff fare throughout the Doctor’s first Bathurst 12 Hour outing?
Team WRT fielded two automobiles within the race, with the quantity 46 BMW M4 GT3 piloted by Farfus/Martin/Rossi having certified in sixth place, and the quantity 32 piloted by Sheldon van der Linde, Dries Vanthoor, and Charles Weerts beginning in ninth place. When it was all stated and accomplished, although, Team WRT automobile quantity 32 completed the race in fourth place, whereas quantity 46 completed precisely the place it began—in sixth place.
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Crashes that precipitated security automobile intervals occurred at just a few factors throughout the race, however usually have been fewer than has occurred at previous runs of the Bathurst 12 Hours. In reality, the ultimate inexperienced flag interval set a brand new report for the longest inexperienced flag interval in Bathurst historical past, lasting longer than the ultimate third of the race (4 hours and double-digit minutes). As a end result, commentators remarked that it was additionally the quickest Bathurst 12 Hour in historical past—and actually, the highest three finishers of the 2023 occasion crossed the end line inside 1.4 seconds of each other.
Although the Mount Panorama circuit is famend for each its historical past and its somewhat tight confines, it was most positively a race—not a parade. (In an interview throughout the weekend, somebody requested Rossi in regards to the distinction between racing bikes and racing automobiles, and he famous that automobiles are completely the right car to race at Mount Panorama. He wouldn’t wish to race bikes right here in trendy instances.)
At one level, the quantity 46 automobile was combating within the high three—however an endurance race is most similar to a marathon, and never a dash. A brake gentle concern resulted in a necessity for the automobile to pit late within the race for a restore—and naturally, each second counts, in order that’s no less than a part of why quantity 46 discovered itself again in P6.
“My first Bathurst experience has been very good because it’s a great place. For us Europeans, it is a legendary place because we always play it on the simulator,” Rossi stated in a press release after the race.
“To have the chance to race here and experience the real track is great. It is a fantastic circuit. You have to maintain attention but it is very enjoyable when you drive. I think that also my speed and performance were good. I feel good in the car; it is very good to drive, but during the race, especially in the hot conditions, we need a bit more pace. We could have been in the top five but overall it was a good race, and being the first experience, it was very positive,” he concluded.
Rossi’s teammates, in addition to BMW M Motorsport head Andreas Roos and BMW M Team WRT staff principal Vincent Vosse all complimented the six drivers on the excellent job that they did, with Vosse even saying “There is a very positive point and that’s the line-ups. All six drivers have done an outstanding job. They made no mistakes at all, they all had a similar speed. We also need to mention what Vale did; that was on a very high level for his first attempt at Bathurst. It was also really a pleasure to have Augusto in the team for the first time, and great to have Sheldon back with us after a few years. Now we are looking forward to Kyalami.”
Kyalami is the second spherical of the 2023 Intercontinental GT Challenge endurance racing sequence, of which the Bathurst 12 Hour was the primary spherical. Rossi received’t be competing in that spherical, with BMW M Works driver Philipp Eng battling for place in South Africa as an alternative.
Source: www.rideapart.com