History-making HRT Commodore joins Bathurst field

The Holden Racing Team Commodore that Craig Lowndes put on pole position for the 1995 Tooheys 1000 at Bathurst – setting a record that stands to this day – will make a racing return at this year’s Repco Bathurst 1000.

The #015 Mobil Holden Racing Team Commodore VR has been rebuilt and returned to its period paint scheme and livery and will join a bumper field of 55 cars in the V8 Sleuth Heritage Revival at this October’s Mount Panorama classic.

Lowndes became the youngest-ever pole-sitter in the history of the ‘Great Race’ in the car, taking pole position for his second Bathurst 1000 at the age of just 21. The record still stands to this day.

The very same chassis – HRT 031 – was used by Lowndes during his history-making Australian Touring Car Championship-winning season in 1996 and was raced by Kiwi Greg Murphy to victory in that year’s end-of-season Mobil Series in New Zealand across two weekends at Pukekohe and Wellington.

The car later spent time with Garry Rogers Motorsport and Paul Morris Motorsports. It finished third in the 1998 FAI 1000 Classic at Bathurst driven by Jason Bargwanna and Jim Richards for GRM. Dunlop Super2 Series leading team Eggleston Motorsport owns the car and will run it at Mount Panorama in October.

The ex-Lowndes Commodore will be driven by EMS co-owner and former Development Series driver Ben Eggleston in the V8 Sleuth Heritage Revival. It will be shaken down later this month before its trip north from Melbourne to Bathurst.

The team will also run an ex-Peter Brock HRT Commodore VR in the Revival event, which features a range of Heritage Touring Cars from the Group C, Group A, Super Touring and early five-litre/V8 Supercars eras.

The 55-car field this October will also include the 1992 Tooheys 1000-winning Nissan GT-R driven by Jim Richards and Mark Skaife to a controversial win in the ‘Great Race’.

A horde of Super Tourers from New Zealand will also be among the bumper field, including an ex-Jim Richards Volvo S40 and ex-Tony Longhurst and Paul Morris BMWs.

The V8 Sleuth Heritage Revival will run at this year’s Repco Bathurst 1000, which will be held at Mount Panorama across October 10-13.

A range of other cars and drivers competing in the event will be confirmed in upcoming weeks ahead of a full field taking to the famous circuit.