Bentley confirms Bathurst 12 Hour bid

Bentley is the latest manufacturer to confirm it will be a starter in next year’s Liqui-Moly Bathurst 12 Hour.

Bentley will field a pair of Continental GT3s in the Bathurst race next year, to be run by its factory M-Sport operation. The news of Bentley’s return takes the list of brands represented on the entry list to 15.

The team is yet to announce its driver lineup, but is likely to include 2016 podium finishers Matt Bell, Steven Kane and Guy Smith. The factory Bentley trio claimed a podium result in last year’s race and were unlucky not to win on debut in 2015.

Also making a return to Bathurst will be the Hong Kong-based Craft Bamboo Racing, with a pair of Porsche 911 GT3R entries. Two years ago one of Craft Bamboo’s Aston Martins claimed a podium result on debut, edging out the Bell/Kane/Smith Bentley on the very last corner of the 12-hour race.

In what is set to be a star-studded lineup that will boast some of the world’s best sports car drivers, the entry so far also features four Nissan GT-R NISMO GT3 entries, the return of 2014 Bathurst 12 Hour runners-up HTP Motorsport with a new Mercedes AMG GT3, along with a host of locally-run Mercedes SLS and GT3 AMG entries. In addition, seven Audi R8 LMS entries are so far confirmed, alongside the two BMW Team SRM M6 GT3s.

Aston Martin, Audi, Bentley, BMW, Ferrari, Lamborghini, McLaren, Mercedes/AMG, Nissan and Porsche will all be represented in Class A.

The 15 brands include teams from Australia, New Zealand, Germany, England, Switzerland, Hong Kong and the USA.

The driver lineup for the February 5 enduro, while yet to be finalised, looks set to feature a heavy contingent of local Supercar drivers taking on the visiting international aces. Current Supercars stars Craig Lowndes, Jamie Whincup, new champion Shane van Gisbergen, Mark Winterbottom and Chaz Mostert are all confirmed, along with returning retired touring car stars Mark Skaife, Russell Ingall, Tony Longhurst.

Internationals Timo Glock, Marco Wittmann, Patrick Long and Marc Lieb have already been locked in, with a host of additional internationals yet to be confirmed.

Entries close on Friday, December 16, with the final list to be released on December 17.

BATHURST 12 HOUR ENTRY LIST – AS AT 7 DECEMBER 2016

Team	Manufacturer	Model	Class
Miedecke Stone Motorsport	Aston Martin	V12 Vantage	A
Miedecke Stone Motorsport	Aston Martin	V12 Vantage	A
DJS Racing	Audi	R8 LMS	A
GT Motorsport Pty Ltd	Audi	R8 LMS	A
Hallmarc	Audi	R8 LMS	A
Jamec Pem Racing	Audi	R8 LMS	A
Jamec Pem Racing	Audi	R8 LMS	A
Supabarn	Audi	R8 LMS	A
Team ASR Pty Ltd	Audi	R8 LMS	A
Bentley Team M-Sport	Bentley	Continential GT3	A
Bentley Team M-Sport	Bentley	Continential GT3	A
BMW Team SRM	BMW	M6 GT3	A
BMW Team SRM	BMW	M6 GT3	A
Maranello Motorsport	Ferrari	488 GT3	A
Vicious Rumours Racing	Ferrari	488 GT3	A
Kiwi Racing	Lamborghini	R-EX	A
Lago Racing	Lamborghini	R-EX	A
Trofeo Motorsport	Lamborghini	Huracan GT3	A
Keltic Racing	McLaren	650s	A
McLaren GT	McLaren	650S	A
Objective Racing	McLaren	650S	A
HTP MOTORSPORT	Mercedes AMG	GT GT3	A
Mark Griffith	Mercedes AMG	GT GT3	A
Scott Taylor Motorsport	Mercedes AMG	GT GT3	A
Erebus Motorsport	Mercedes Benz	SLS	A
Erebus Motorsport	Mercedes Benz	SLS AMG GT3	A
Nissan	Nissan	GTR Nismo GT3	A
Nissan	Nissan	GTR Nismo GT3	A
Wall Racing/Hobson Motorsport	Nissan	GT-R	A
Wall Racing/Hobson Motorsport	Nissan	GT-R	A
AMAC Motorsport	Porsche	GT3 R	A
Competition Motorsports	Porsche	991 GT3 R	A
Craft-Bamboo Racing	Porsche	911 GT3 R	A
Craft-Bamboo Racing	Porsche	911 GT3 R	A
Walkinshaw GT3	Porsche	911 GT3 R	A
Grove Motorsport	Porsche	TBC	B
Synep Racing	Porsche	991 Cup Car	B
Wall Racing	Porsche	997 GT3 Cup Car	B
R-Motorsport	Aston Martin	V8 Vantage GT4	C
M Motorsport	KTM	X-Bow GT4	C
Donut King Racing	Lotus	Exige	C
McLaren GT	McLaren	570S	C
Brookspeed	Porsche	Cayman GT4 Clubman	C
Brookspeed	Porsche	Cayman GT4 Clubman	C
PROsport Performance	Porsche	Cayman PRO4	C
PROsport Performance	Porsche	Cayman PRO4	C
R-Motorsport	Aston Martin	Vantage GT8	I
Daytona Sportscars	Daytona	Coupe	I
MARC Cars Australia	MARC	Focus V8	I
MARC Cars Australia	MARC	Focus V8	I
MARC Cars Australia	MARC	MAZDA 3 V8	I
MARC Cars Australia	MARC	MAZDA 3 V8	I
MARC Cars Australia	MARC	MAZDA 3 V8	I
MARC Cars Australia	MARC	Focus V8	I
MARC Cars Australia	MARC	Focus V8	I
MARC Cars Australia	MARC	Focus V8	I
On Track Motorsport	BMW	335i	I
Ric Shaw Racing	Mazda	RX7	I