News

1 August 2013 | General

BUMPER EASTER PROGRAM FOR BATHURST MOTOR FESTIVAL IN 2014

THE FORMULA 3 Australian Drivers Championship will return to Mount Panorama in 2014, forming just one part of another bumper race program at the annual Bathurst Motor Festival.Held across the Easter long weekend (April 18-20, 2014), the Bathurst Motor Festival has grown in recent years to form a marquee weekend of accessible motor sport for both competitors and fans keen to enjoy the iconic Mount Panorama circuit.As they have for the past two seasons, the record-breaking Formula 3 open-wheelers will return to the Easter long weekend whilst a packed program of seven strong categories in total will ensure a massive weekend of on-track action.The Bathurst Motor Festival facilitated Formula 3’s historic Mount Panorama debut in 2011, the Bathurst round quickly becoming the ‘one to win’ on the Gold Star calendar.This year Sydney driver Nathan Morcom brilliantly won in wet conditions, after setting an equally stunning 2m03.2393s lap in qualifying to score pole – the fastest officially recorded lap in Bathurst history.”Winning at the Bathurst Motor Festival was special,” Morcom said at the time.”Any win at Bathurst has to be a highlight in any drivers’ career, but to do it in a Formula 3 car and at a great event like the Motor Festival is even better. It’s pretty relaxed but very organised and this year had a lot of variety on the program.”The opportunity to stand on that famous podium having won at Bathurst will stay with me for a long time.”It’s great for F3 to be there and winning there has certainly been the highlight of my season. After making their debut at the Event this year, the NSW-based Production Touring Cars category – a battle between production based vehicles from Mitsubishi, Holden, Ford, Mazda and more – will return to showcase their competitive racing.The automotive exotica that form the Production Sports Car grid will also return: Porsche, Ferrari and Lamborghini heading a packed grid that includes everything down to Mazda MX5s in furious class-versus-class racing.Both the Production Touring and Production Sports cars tackle longer races with compulsory pit stops and this year produced remarkable racing, with nearly 100 entries between the two classes alone.The Historic Group N Touring Cars showcase a taste of Bathurst’s past with classic metal from the 1960s running in their original specification going head to head, whilst the two regularity categories – run by the Porsche Club of NSW and the NSW Road Racing Club, respectively – open up the event to competitors who otherwise might not have the opportunity to compete at Mount Panorama.The seventh and final category to appear on the Bathurst Motor Festival program will be confirmed by Event organisers in due course.Entering its fourth year, the annual Bathurst Motor Festival has established itself as a major event in the New South Wales Central West and Bathurst regions across the Easter Holiday period.Nearly 10,000 people attended the Event this year, the three day weekend offering value entertainment on and off the famed 6.213km circuit.