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First Holdens confirmed for Revival class at the Bathurst International
The first entries have been lodged for the Holden Bathurst Revival at Mount Panorama as part of the Bathurst International this November.
Over a dozen entries have been confirmed, including a mix of Holdens from the V8 Supercars era, Group A and other historic models from The General’s myriad of makes.
The first V8 Supercar to confirm its place on the grid is the Perkins Engineering-built Commodore VR of Darren Freeman.
The chassis PE018 was originally built to VP specification for West Australian privateer racer Ian Love. Now in the ownership of Freeman, the car lives on in the colours that Mike Imrie and Rodney Crick raced it in during the 1999 Bathurst 1000, pictured below.
Freeman is using the Holden Bathurst Revival to fulfil a life long dream of driving a V8 Supercar around the famous mountain in anger.
“I’ve been to Bathurst before, but not in a V8 Supercar, and this is going to be a bucket list moment for me,” said Freeman.
“I’ve driven around the mountain in my Clubman Birkin, but this will be something completely different.
“Bathurst is an iconic circuit. I’m one of those guys who’d get up early to watch the Bathurst 1000, sitting there all day with my dad and watch the whole race. Since I was five years old, I’ve loved the place.
“To drive any car there is awesome, but to drive a Supercar in anger is going to be something again. And to have the chance to do it in a period correct, legitimate V8 Supercar is bucket list stuff for anyone who loves motorsport.”
Also confirmed to enter the Holden Bathurst Revival is the Group A Commodore VK, formerly raced by Gerald Kay in the late 80s, now in the hands of Richard Wells.
Originally built by the Holden Dealer Team as a customer car, Kay used the car in ‘The Great Race’ from 1985 to 1988. Alongside Geoff Munday, Kay finished with a best result of eighth in the 1988 Bathurst 1000.
Wells bought the car in 2015 and has used it on track and club days, and this will mark his first experience at Mount Panorama.
“I’ve been to Bathurst plenty of times before, but I’ve never driven a race car around there, so I’m really looking forward to it,” said Wells.
“I’ve used the car a few times at track days, but it’s always been a dream to drive at Bathurst. I wouldn’t be confident racing it in the heritage touring cars. I don’t have the experience, but something like this is perfect for me.”
Adding to the diversity of the growing Holden Bathurst Revival entry list is a 48-215 Holden owned and raced by Brian Russell.
Russell refurbished the car in 2001, winning its class in Targa Tasmania that year, and he says that the Holden Bathurst Revival offers him the chance to drive in anger around the mount.
“I’ve been watching Bathurst since it was first on television, and this will fulfil all of my racing dreams,” said Russell.
“We started racing Holdens in Appendix J in 1969, I’ve always had early model Holdens, and we’ve always wanted to go to Bathurst.
“It’s so expensive to do the real races, and while this is not a ‘race’, it will tick a big box for me.”
The Holden Bathurst Revival will pay tribute to all eras of the ‘The General’s’ motorsport history, from competition variants of the first ever Holden model – the 48-215 – through to modern V8 touring cars.
Eligibility extends to Holdens from almost every circuit racing category that the marque has been represented in, including grass roots categories Group N and Improved Production/Club Cars, as well as series no longer contested such as V8 Utes, Commodore Cup and Future Tourers.
The Holden Bathurst Revival will be one of many classes competing at the Bathurst International, including TCR Australia, S5000, Touring Car Masters and the production cars, competing for the Hi-Tec Oils Bathurst 6 Hour.
The four-day event will run on November 12-15, 2020.
For information on how to enter your Holden racer in the Holden Bathurst revival events@australianracinggroup.com for more details.