Track sealant proves major Bathurst talking point

Recently-laid epoxy sealant at Mount Panorama proved a major talking point on Thursday.

Rain stayed away on opening day at the Repco Bathurst 1000, and the pace was hot.

Garth Tander’s 2:04.135s flyer in Practice 2, the co-driver session, was the best time of the day.

Tander had green tyres at his disposal in Shane van Gisbergen’s #97 Commodore.

It was the fastest Tander, a veteran of 23 starts, had ever gone around Mount Panorama.

It proved quicker than any practice lap in 2021, although that event was held in warmer conditions.

Drivers were pushing hard as they enjoyed the new grip, but some went beyond the limit.

Notably, van Gisbergen brushed the Reid Park wall in Practice 1, with Anton De Pasquale also spinning at Forrest's Elbow.

Cam Waters paced Practice 1 in 2021 with a 2:05.023s, before Lee Holdsworth clocked a 2:05.225s in the co-driver session.

Tander believes fresh epoxy, which was used to seal cracks in the track surface, has helped drivers find grip.

"There’s been a lot of talk about the epoxy that’s down on the circuit,” Tander said after the session.

“The track grip was probably a little bit inconsistent [in Practice 1].

“But you can tell straight away when we went out for [Practice 2] that the track was much more consistent.

“The grip delivery was much more consistent, corner to corner.

“The track was fully dry for the majority [of Practice 2]... track’s really very fast.

“That’s as fast as I’ve ever been around here in a Supercar, so conditions are good… today.”

Jack Perkins, who is racing with Will Brown and Erebus Motorsport, was perturbed by the recent sealing.

“I think they were putting sealant on the track on Tuesday,” Perkins said in the broadcast.

“Someone can probably explain it but it doesn’t make a lot of sense to me.

“The track surface here has been really good, it doesn’t get raced on on year.

“I guess it’s the same for everyone, so I don’t really need to complain too much."

Rain is forecast for the next three days, but when it arrives will prove crucial.

Drivers had two dry sessions on Thursday, and there will be two more practice sessions before Friday qualifying.

That 40-minute session will set the running order for Saturday’s ARMOR ALL Top Ten Shootout.

Cars have been handed an extra set of wet tyres - up from five to six - to help combat expected extra rain.

Each car will also have 13 sets of Hard event-marked tyres for the weekend.

Tander is adamant the rain will clear come Sunday race start at 11:15am local time.

That could contribute to a fast race pace.

“The forecast for Sunday is that at 11 that it will stop raining, and the track will be dry in the afternoon,” Tander said.

“I think the bigger question is how the epoxy reacts after the cars run on the race track tomorrow in the rain.

“And whether the grip comes back to the same level that we had this afternoon.”

Practice 3, an all-in session, will get underway on Friday at 10:10 local time.