- 02/01/2019
- 1 Min Read
- By: Evan Madore
Pregame The Superbowl With 12 Hours Of Endurance Racing This Weekend
If you were left disappointed with the chaotic, yellow-flag cruise that was the Rolex 24 at Daytona, there's another chance to get your fix of endurance racing this weekend. The LIQUI-MOLY Bathurst 12-Hour at Mount Panorama proves to be some of the highest quality endurance racing, right up there with the 24 Hours of Nürburgring and 24 Hours of Spa.
What is the LIQUI-MOLY Bathurst 12 Hour:
If you're not familiar, the LIQUI-MOLY Bathurst 12 Hour is one of the most intense endurance races on the planet. Mount Panorama is an unusual circuit by current design standards. The 3.9-mile partial street circuit is incredibly fast and features almost 600 feet of elevation change with incredibly steep grades. With the lack of runoff and walls dangerously close to the racing line, the LIQUI-MOLY Bathurst 12 hour is always an entertaining watch.
*As of writing this, Mount Panorama has already crossed two cars off the grid, the #540 Black Swan Porsche and the #3 Audi Sport.*
There are four classes in the LIQUI-MOLY Bathurst 12 Hour:
- Class A - GT3
Class A is divided into three sub-classes. Pro, comprised of all-professional drivers, Pro/AM for teams with a maximum of two professional drivers, and AM, where no professional drivers are permitted.
Class A features vehicles that comply with GT3 regulations, which is now the most successful GT category worldwide. Car brands include Aston Martin, Audi, Bentley, Ferrari, Lamborghini, McLaren, Mercedes-Benz, Nissan, and Porsche. - Class B - GT3 Cup
Class B is comprised entirely of Porsche GT3 Cup Cars from the global Carrera Cup championship.
- Class C - GT4
Class C is GT4, which is comprised of cars that are closer to production cars than GT3. These cars all comply with global GT4 regulations. This is one of the fastest growing categories globally, especially in Australia with many major manufactures located here. GT4 is one of the most exciting classes to watch with some of the closest bumper-to-bumper racing of the LIQUI-MOLY Bathurst 12-Hour. - Class I - Invite
Invitational class is made up of cars deemed eligible by the race organizers. This could be anything from production vehicles to custom endurance race cars.
When:
The main event, the LIQUI-MOLY Bathurst 12-Hour, begins at 1:45PM EST Saturday, February 2nd. Local time in Bathurst, New South Wales, Australia is 5:45AM. That's right, this is one of the few races in the world that starts in the dark and ends with the setting sun.
If you're interested, another race worth checking out leading up to the 12-Hour main event is the Top 10 Shootout. You can check that out at 12:40AM EST Saturday morning, especially appropriate for those with insomnia.
How:
Amazingly, the LIQUI-MOLY Bathurst 12-Hour is easier to watch than most other races. The race in its entirety will be streamed live worldwide and available here. You can find live coverage of the practice, qualifying, support, and the Pirelli Top Ten Shootout through the same link. If you are on the road, you can tune in to the Radio Le Mans stream as well.
If you're into this, make sure to check out our motorsports program (in which LIQUI-MOLY is one of our Premier Partners) and subscribe to our YouTube channel. We have an exciting season coming up with our two VW TCRs in the TC America Championship and you won't want to miss the action.
