Valentino Rossi debuts at Bathurst with fastest practice time
Seven-time MotoGP champion-turned Team WRT BMW driver Valentino Rossi ended the first Bronze session atop the time sheets.
Rossi, 43, clocked a 2:05.4486s to be just 0.0696s clear of closest rival and Bathurst local Brad Schumacher.
For comparison, the fastest ever lap time for a Supercar around Mount Panorama is 2.03.373 set by Chaz Mostert in 2021.
Mostert, driving in an Audi this weekend, was quickest in the opening practice session of the event this morning. Mostert, the 2022 pole-sitter, clocked a 2:04.0879s late on to set the ultimate pace. The two-time Bathurst 1000 winner led an Audi one-two in the 40-minute session.
The 40-minute session Rossi topped did include two crashes for other drivers as international and Australian drivers get used to the conditions on day one of this year’s 12 Hour event.
Valentino Rossi
“Already before I knew I [was going to] race here, we always played in the sim with Mount Panorama.
“To be here in Mount Panorama after 20 years of [racing in] sims is an emotion, when you see the track for the first time.
“It’s one of the mythical tracks, so from the Playstation to iRacing now, I make a lot of laps.
“The track is very impressive, it’s something different. I feel good with the car, I have a good feeling and I have good grip [and] I can push.
“It’s very difficult, very technical, but also very great fun when you drive.
“You have two different tracks — it’s a normal track [at the bottom] and the Mountain is different.
“Every lap you want to try and make it a little bit more [speed] but the walls are there. I always keep five centimetres.
“You have to take a bit of margin because if you make a mistake, it’s a big problem.
“Jerry [Burgess] and Gary [Coleman] my guys of the team [in MotoGP] raced here in the ‘70s and ’80s.
“With the bike you need more space, more run-off area. If you make a mistake it’s a big problem.
“For me it’s better with the cars. I think this track is not so different to Phillip Island [where] you have a lot of space and no walls, but the design is similar.
“Here you have a lot of adrenaline when you drive, but also because you have to make everything good without making any mistakes.
“With the bike you are outside so you feel more the speed. From points of view are different but from points of view is very similar.”
Bathurst local Schumacher — who is racing with James Golding and Frederic Vervisch — looked certain to prevent Rossi’s headline moment. However, the superstar Italian turned up the wick on his final flyer to steal top spot back. All told, Rossi’s 2:05.4486s was just 0.07s quicker than Schumacher, with 2022 winner Habul third. Liam Talbot (#65 Audi) was the final driver within a second of Rossi’s time.
