Audi all set to battle it out at Bathurst with R8 LMS

With the colours of a Kangaroo and a Spider, the two Audi R8 LMS from Phoenix Racing unmistakably represent Australia’s wildlife. The exterior though is not designed to mislead anyone about the high ambitions pursued by the run as two prominent driver teams supported by Audi Sport customer racing, Audi’s customer sport department and Audi Australia are to drive for overall victory yet again. Mark Eddy, the current Australian GT Champion in the Audi R8 LMS, is sharing the cockpit of car number “2 with Australia’s touring car legend, the three-time V8 Supercar Champion Craig Lowndes, and Warren Luff. Lowndes set the fastest race lap last year in the Audi R8 LMS, Luff achieved the fastest time in qualifying. 

Two of the three winners from last year, the German Christopher Mies and Darryl O’Young from Hong Kong are at the wheel of car number “1.” Their new team-mate Christer Jons from Germany is making his debut in Australia. Phoenix Racing is meeting strong rivals in the GT3 class at Bathurst. A total of 33 cars will be on the grid, including an Audi R8 LMS from United Autosports. The Anglo-American customer sport team is competing for the first time with the native South African Mark Patterson, the Franco-Chinese Alain Li and Frank Yu from Hong Kong at the 12-hour race.

For the fans and the drivers, the 6.213-kilometre race track at Mount Panorama is a dream. The roller-coaster circuit features a 170-meter vertical difference, includes 23 turns, makes for high suspense with its unusual radii and barriers close to the track and is considered the home of Australian motorsport. It is also the venue of the annual Bathurst 1000 race which Craig Lowndes has decided in his favour as many as five times.