The Grid.co.uk the national & club motor racing website - est1998
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mail your news to editorthegrid@yahoo.co.uk HUGE FIELDS ENTERED FOR WPS BATHURST MOTOR FESTIVAL The growth of the WPS Bathurst Motor Festival is undisputed with over 200 race cars and hundreds of display cars and bikes set to converge on the famous Mount Panorama circuit for the February event, with entries for the WPS Bathurst 12 Hour officially closed last Friday. The revival of endurance racing at the iconic circuit has continued to be popular, with 40 entries listed on the preliminary entry list for the production car feature, incorporating 13 different manufacturers. Eight of the top ten manufacturers in Australia by volume, including the straight top six, will line up for the race around the clock with Toyota, Holden, Ford, Mazda, Mitsubishi and Honda, as well as Hyundai and Subaru, all represented in the field. Entries have also been received from Thomson Alfa Romeo, BMW, Mini and Proton, and for the first time the Lotus marque will be represented with two Exiges entered for the production car showdown. Event Director James O'Brien said he was pleased to see a healthy increase on the 32 entries in 2007 and more manufacturers represented on the grid for the endurance race. "The field for this year's WPS Bathurst 12 Hour is not only up on last year's but sees more competitors with a chance of outright victory," said O'Brien. "This can only be a good thing for the Australian motor sport industry and for the fans, with more cars, more marques, more drivers and as a direct result, stiffer competition all round on the cards for the 2008 Event. "The wide variety of cars will certainly provide some interest with outright speed, race tactics, fuel strategy and team work all coming into play throughout the race." Along with the WPS Bathurst 12 Hour entries, literally hundreds of other cars and bikes will head to the spiritual home of motor sport over the three days with 10 further races around the 6.21km Mount Panorama circuit and plenty of on and off track entertainment in store for the fans. Capacity fields of 56 Formula Vees, 50 Saloon Cars and two grids (approx 90) Holden HQs will all be in action throughout the weekend in official support of the WPS Bathurst 12 Hour. Along with the run around the clock, and the 10 support races to be contested throughout the weekend, there will be plenty of other entertainment on the cards including the return of the Freestyle Motocross (FMX) Nationals to the Festival with 40+ entries including former FMX National Champion Chad Towers. Also on the bill courtesy of Raceline -- the biggest providers of exhibition vehicle entertainment in Australia - are a further 150 cars for the Superstreet Nationals, the Raceline/Peer Stadium Drifters with 12 cars including Stadium Drift Nationals Grand Champion Josh Young, the Sports Bike Stunt Team, eight Drag and burnout cars, Mad Ron's Jet Truck, a Daihatsu Mini Van powered by a French Fighter Jet engine, Nigel Benson in the 500ci Rear Engined Commodore Ute, the award winning The Don' Mafia Show Piece Ford F350 Truck, the 'Transformers' movie 'Ford Mustang Highway Patrol Car' and Mad Ron's Jet Bike. A further 50 show bikes will be on hand as part of the Festival's commitment to 'bringing back the bikes' with a Street and Custom Motorcycle show and a Club's display day planned for the weekend of the event. The 2008 WPS Bathurst Motor Festival will be held at Mount Panorama on February 8-10, incorporating the WPS Bathurst 12 Hour on Sunday February 10. Tickets can be purchased from Ticketek on 13 28 49 with discounted pricing available to patrons who purchase prior to the event. All patrons receive free entry to the Bathurst National Motor Racing Museum with each ticket, and children under 12 are free when they enter with a paying adult. Access to the top of Mount Panorama will be open throughout the three day Event, with patrons able to catch a shuttle or drive their own car to the Mountain top for a unique viewing point of the track, with the Big Screen ensuring they miss none of the action. WPS BATHURST 12 HOUR PRELIMINARY ENTRY LIST
Class A -- SONAX High
Performance All Wheel Drive
Class B -- PENRITE High
Performance Rear Wheel Drive
Class C -- Hot Hatch
Performance Cars
Class D -- DISC BRAKES
AUSTRALIA Production Vehicles under $50K
Class F -- Production
Sports under $50K
Class G -- Under 2.5 Litre
Production
Class H - Eco Diesel Over
3.5 Litre
Class I - Eco Diesel 3.5
Litres and Under -credit: bathurstmotorfestival.com.au
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