MOTORSPORT: Youlden back for Bathurst

Luke Youlden, Bathurst 1000 winner and carsales track and road test ace, is a Supercars racer again.

He got back to business at Phillip Island today during a pre-season sponsor ride day, completing more than three hours of driving at the high-speed Victorian track in the Ford Mustangs of Kelly Grove Racing.

His successful return to Supercars ahead of this year’s Great Race comes after a year on the sideline following a demoralising practice crash at Mount Panorama in 2019.

Youlden was lured back to the driver’s seat by David Reynolds, who is looking to recreate the Bathurst magic from 2018 after a messy break-up with the Erebus Motorsport team following a derisory championship campaign last year.

“We’ve got the band back together. Everyone is smiling again. It’s great to have Luke with us,” Reynolds told carsales at the end of the day.

“It’s really good. He’s a great person to have around. And he is normally pretty fast and adds a lot to the team, and myself.”

There was no lap timing at Phillip Island to check his pace, but Youlden had a giant smile after renewing his connection to his Bathurst-winning crew – Reynolds, chief engineer Al McVean and title sponsor Penrite – despite the change of team and the switch from a Holden Commodore to the Mustang.

“The transition has been very easy. It’s the same sponsor, the core guys are all here at the team, and Supercars all feel much the same,” Youlden says.

“It doesn’t really feel like much has changed. But it’s exciting to be back, and to be wanted by those guys, even after a season out.

“I must have done some things right along the way, even if there were maybe a few things wrong,” he laughed.

Youlden shared the team’s two Mustangs, one for Reynolds and the other for his teammate Andre Heimgartner, to get maximum laps and the best feel for his new ride.

“It was good. It definitely didn't feel like I’d been away for 14 months. There are lots of subtle differences between cars and teams but I felt at home pretty quickly.”

Retired racer Rick Kelly and Brenton Grove, one of the new shareholders in the Kelly outfit, also drove throughout the day.

“It’s nice to have a couple of racers at the helm of the team,” said Youlden.

Even though he was demoralised by his Bathurst crash at Erebus, Youlden says he has moved on from the giant impact at the top of Mount Panorama.

“I understand the reasons why it happened. And I’m pretty confident it won’t happen again.

“The year away has really helped me. I knew I still wanted to do it. I’ve just turned 43 but I’m pumped.”

Apart from another Bathurst 1000 assault, Youlden will this year also contest the 2021 Porsche Carrera Cup and Australian GT Championship – in addition to his duties as a Porsche driver trainer, Toyota 86 Series mentor and carsales road tester.