Supercars teams have landed in Bathurst ahead of this weekend’s Repco Bathurst 1000, and all eyes are on legend Craig Lowndes, who is set for a truly historic and bittersweet start in the Great Race.
Craig Lowndes is making his 32nd Bathurst 1000 start this coming Sunday, a huge milestone that ties the 7-time Great Race winner with his mentor, the 9-time winner Peter Brock. Fun fact: only Jim Richards has more starts, with 35 to his name
But the real emotional moment? This weekend marks Lowndes’ 20th and final Great Race driving for the powerhouse outfit, Triple Eight Race Engineering. Lowndes described the last 21 years with the team as “massive”. To celebrate the occasion, Triple Eight surprised him on Tuesday by unveiling a special livery for the No. 888 Supercheap Auto Chevrolet Camaro. Lowndes joked that when the race team told him not to come into the workshop, he thought they were already kicking him out.
Lowndes hopes to close this incredible chapter with Triple Eight in the “best way we can”. He looked back fondly, recalling that team founder Roland Dayne’s belief in him was “quite incredible” and had actually “turned my career around.” Lowndes is proud of his role in helping develop the car, structure, and engineers, which was key to Triple Eight becoming the “dominant team in Australian Motorsport”. He noted that their first-ever win at Eastern Creek/Sydney Motorsport Park was a favorite moment because it changed the team’s outlook from “a believer to believing”.
Guiding the “Black Sheep” at Bathurst
Driving alongside the veteran is Bathurst debutant Zach Bates, a 21-year-old up-and-comer. Bates comes from a family famous for success in rally racing, but Lowndes jokingly calls him “the black sheep” because he is the only one who chose bitumen over dirt racing.
Lowndes is confident in Bates, describing him as “very chilled,” “well spoken,” and “very relaxed.” Lowndes added that Bates is an “incredible” driver whose feedback is “absolutely unbelievable”. Now, Lowndes is focused on passing on wisdom to Bates about understanding and respecting “The Mountain,” just as Brock helped him do back in 1994.
Bates is using the disappointment from The Bend as motivation for Bathurst, which Lowndes says gives him a “great platform” to show his skills and potentially secure a spot in the main game for next year.
Lowndes is ready for a fight. Despite his seven wins, he maintains that they were “on target for maybe even a podium” last year before a small mistake put them out of the top five. He stressed the need to get the car in the right “window” and give Bates the car in a good position.
Teams have now settled in for the 65th running of the Great Race. The action kicks off with practice on Thursday, followed by Boost Mobile Qualifying on Friday, and the iconic Top Ten Shootout on Saturday. The 2025 Repco Bathurst 1000 starts at 11:45 a.m. AEDT Sunday
