Bathurst 1000 2022: Supercars legend Russell Ingall Mount Panorama preview

What does it take to win one of the toughest races on the planet? A legendary former Bathurst winner outlines where the race will be won and lost on Sunday.

Brodie Kostecki car.

The team that wins Bathurst this year won’t just need the best driver.

They’ll also need the best co-driver and the best team strategy because the forecast of wet weather means the normal plans go right out the window.

A lot of people make the mistake of just looking at the main driver because they’re usually the household names, but to win at Bathurst, you need to look at who they‘re paired up with because it takes a whole team effort to conquer Mt Panorama.

Unlike most of the regular season races, at Bathurst you’re sharing the car with another person so if the co-driver drops the ball, or the main driver drops the ball, then you‘re not going to win the race.

It’s often the team that makes the least mistakes that finishes first and that puts added importance on having a great co-driver.

If you look back at some of the classic Bathurst races, it’s always the best teams that come through, but this becomes even more important when there’s changeable weather, going from wet to dry, because that’s where experience counts.

There’s a lot of different pairings this year, including many really good co-drivers from Super 2, but make no mistake about it, they’re going to be put under a lot of pressure.

They‘re going to be in the limelight, at the front of the grid, surrounded by more experienced drivers in the biggest race of the year and it’s raining!

That puts a lot of pressure on a young kid, which is why the team’s strategy for the co-driver is also going to be so important in deciding which car eventually finishes first.

There are always things that can go wrong during a race that can stop you from winning, whether it’s pit stops or mechanical issues.

But with rain expected, the single biggest thing this year will be the plans and strategy around both drivers because this is not going to be a straight fight.

Scott McLaughlin takes the checkered flag in 2019.

If it was a straight fight and dry all day, you’d usually have one set plan that you’re going to try and stick to, but with a bit of room to alter plans if there are problems along the way.

When you‘ve got changeable weather, that all goes straight out the window so you’re having to do it lap by lap, which is where the team comes into it.

Because of all the rain that’s already fallen, the gravel traps are soggy so if you end up in them you’re going to be bogged and that’s race over.

If it’s wet and dry and maybe wet again, there‘s going to be no room for mistakes so teams need to work together, which gives a huge advantage to the bigger teams.

One of the things viewers should take note of when the cameras flash into the pits, is the amount of engineers looking at computer screens in a garage. The bigger teams really focus in that area to constantly analyse and come up with alternative strategies on the fly.

Winning Bathurst means making the right decisions so the more manpower you have, the more brain power you have, so you need to be able to think on your feet and make the big calls.

You don‘t really see this from the outside because all you see is a bunch of cars going round and round in circles over six hours but so much effort goes into all the things behind the scenes.

These all add up and if you can save just 10 seconds during a six hour race, that can be the difference between winning and losing the great race.

Shane van Gisbergen wins the race in 2020.

INGALL: WHICH DRIVER WILL ETCH THEMSELVES INTO HISTORY?

If a Holden wins Bathurst on Sunday, whichever team and driver it may be, they will write a chapter into Australian motorsport history that can never be repeated.

Imagine for a moment the legacy of being the driver to take one of Australia’s most iconic brands to the top of the mountain for the very last time. It would almost be a shame if Ford won instead.

If you’re a driver flying the red flag this weekend you shouldn’t need any more motivation to uncork a blistering Bathurst drive than knowing this will be the final time we see a Holden in the Great Race.

The favourite to salute will and should be Shane van Gisbergen. With the way he has raced this year, if he finds himself in the lead, he’ll bolt away. He’ll be gone.

Larry Perkins (r) celebrating his victory with co-driver Russell Ingall.

The way he thinks about his race craft is unlike anyone else. He’s the expensive whisky at the top of the liquor cabinet and everyone else is two shelves down with the cheap cooking wine.

He’s got his art form so refined I can’t see anyone getting near him which is dangerous, because if Triple Eight doesn’t have any problems this weekend, it could be a one-horse race.

The car last year wasn’t fast enough. He tried to drive it harder than it wanted and in the end it cost him. I don’t think they’ll make that mistake again. I always like the underdog but you have to be realistic, too. Unless something unforeseen happens, he has to be the firm favourite.

Back when I was racing with Larry Perkins, the whole year for him was essentially just a test session for Bathurst. I saw it differently. Of course I loved winning Bathurst, but I wanted a championship and more championships. I think that’s Shane’s train of thought as well. In my view he would like more championships, but you never knock winning a Bathurst in-between.

He has such a dominant lead in the championship that he can approach this Bathurst like he never has before. And that makes him even harder to beat. I don’t think we’ll see the same Shane this weekend. Because it’s such a long race he won’t take the same sort of risks he takes during the year. We won’t see the same aggression. Because during the season you can afford to throw a single race away – you don’t want to throw Bathurst away.

Russell Ingall says Shane van Gisbergen is often a step ahead of his rivals.

If Shane sees clear air, it will take a brilliant drive to reel him in.

My Holden head says SVG takes it but a team with more red history is Walkinshaw. Triple Eight has been on both sides of the red and blue divide whereas the Walkinshaws have been Holden through and through. When you look at them they’re more the True Red Holden team so if one of their cars got up, it might be more fitting.

Chaz Mostert returns as reigning champion and he has an experienced co-pilot in Fabian Coulthard next to him. If that car is even close to the one they rolled off the truck last year, I think they’re cooking with gas.

Why Thursday is so important

I know a lot of people say they don’t take much notice of the first practice session but at Bathurst it’s very much about how you roll out of the truck. If the car comes out a jet, it makes your weekend a hell of a lot easier.

Just ask Mostert and Holdsworth last year. Holdsworth was comfortably the fastest in the co-driver sessions and Mostert did the same in his. They came out and blew everyone off the track.

If the car comes off the truck looking like a dog, you actually don’t have much time in the sessions to get things right. Because they’re such long laps, you don’t get to do too many. Whereas if you have a fast car straight out the gate you can use the rest of the sessions to fine tune and maintain that momentum.

Rain is forecast Thursday right through to Sunday which means that first practice session may be the only chance to see the cars in dry conditions before the race. If you’re playing catch-up in the wet all week and suddenly the sun comes out on Sunday, your whole race could go out the window.

This is where I think this year in particular favours the bigger teams. With the last race being in New Zealand it’s been a pretty hectic schedule for teams getting back to Australia. It’s a bit of a cliché but the bigger teams will always have the facilities and technical ability to strip the cars back faster and build them better – and Bathurst is all about preparation.

You can’t win Bathurst before Sunday, but you can certainly go close to losing it.

Russell Ingall says Broc Feeney (right) will relish partnering Jamie Whincup. Picture: Supplied.

Only as strong as your co-driver

A lot of punters will look at the main driver but he doesn’t matter if you’ve got a dud co-driver. You have to look at the list and the pairings to get a proper idea of who can be a contender.

When you have your Garth Tanders of the world with van Gisbergen, well that’s a strong combo. I had dinner with Broc Feeney on Sunday night and he’s pumped because he’s with a champion, Jamie Whincup. They’ll be strong.

On the DJR side of it Will Davison is going really well this year but I’m not so sure about his chances. His brother Alex hasn’t done a whole lot of racing recently.

Then you go to Mostert. He’ll be strong with Fabian in his corner who hasn’t been out of the saddle for long. If they don’t do anything silly, even if they roll out with the exact same setup as last year, they’ll be a big chance.

Could Brodie Kostecki (right) cause a boilover?

Mother Nature the great equaliser

Everything I’ve said to this point could go out the window if the heavens open on Sunday and we’re racing in the wet, which is a very real possibility. That’s when we get an underdog coming out on top.

Some of the top drivers don’t like the wet and especially in the co-driver side of things, we might see an outsider come to the fore. Brodie Kostecki has come from a NASCAR dirt track background so someone like him will be super quick in the wet. Andre Heimgartner is another that goes really well in the wet. When the clouds roll over and the rain comes down all of a sudden someone can be leading the race who you weren’t even considering.