BATHURST 12 HOUR FROM THE INSIDE: DAY 1

This is it. The months of preparation, testing and transport have culminated in the PPE-run Abarth Fiat Motorsport Class F 695 Assetto Corse racers grunting out onto Mount Panorama for the first time.

And, according to team driver – and motoring.com.au Editor-in-Chief – Mike Sinclair, ‘grunting’ is an apt description: “Perhaps the most surprising thing is the torque these cars have,” he explained after Friday’s practice sessions. “The Fiat is much quicker hauling up The Mountain than we anticipated.”

It’s all relative to the competition of course, but Sinclair’s professional teammate Luke Youlden managed to lap the hallowed 6.2km ribbon of tarmac in a competitive 2:33.2, the #96 Fiat covering 20 laps in the morning session.

To put that in perspective, the quickest non-GT3 car lapped in 2:17.5 during the same session. Youlden believes a 2:31 lap is possible with a clear lap.

PPE team boss Alan Heaphy was very pleased with the day’s progress: “We’ve achieved everything we set out to for today; the car had good pace and ran reliably.

“The data gained from a ‘clean’ day has been valuable, showing good tyre wear and indicating that a mid-race pad change is likely. The biggest problem is the traffic!

“Our little Fiats are matching the pace of some Class D vehicles, but we don’t have the straight-line speed to overtake. Hopefully it’s better over the remaining days.”

The day was a dream come true for Sinclair, who took in his first ever race laps of Bathurst today and ended up with a solid 2:37.5 time.

“My initial thought was ‘How am I ever going to do this? Just park it and be done’. But once I stopped looking at the scenery and worrying about the mirrors and how narrow the track was, the circuit really started to flow.”

Sinclair notes Reid Park as perhaps the most challenging of the corners, though admits to backing off early for the ‘Chase’ at the end of Conrod Straight.

“We were quick across the top, but it is a different story on the straights, particularly up the hill. We may have good relative torque, but when an SLS GT3 Mercedes blasts past you realise the difference in performance,” he says.

The Bosch Collision Avoidance System has already proved useful in the mixed-class practice, allowing the Fiat team’s drivers to “concentrate more on what’s ahead and not have to constantly ask questions as to where the quicker cars are passing,” Sinclair explains.

Two Saturday qualifying sessions remain before the team can get on with race preparing the pocket rockets for the 12 Hour epic on Sunday.

You can follow our coverage from the motoring.com.au homepage, on Twitter @motoringcomau or via our Facebook page

images: www.photo-4.com