Audi's Rene Rast to stand in for Craig Lowndes at Bathurst 12 Hour
Audi factory GT driver Rene Rast will replace injured V8 Supercars star Craig Lowndes in next month's Bathurst 12 Hour
Triple Eight Holden driver Lowndes broke his collarbone while riding a motorcycle last weekend, and is facing a fight to be fit for the start of the V8 season in Adelaide in March.
It also means he will not race the Audi R8 he was due to share with fellow V8 Supercars champion Garth Tander and Steve McLaughlan on February 5-7.
The Melbourne Performance Centre team has moved quickly, enlisting Rast, who finished fifth in a Phoenix Racing Audi at Bathurst in 2014 with Laurens Vanthoor and Rahel Frey.
"We had to find a replacement driver to share the car, the phone was pretty busy when Craig announced he was out yesterday," Tander said.
"We've secured one of Audi's top level factory drivers in Rene Rast.
"It's huge shoes to fill, but when you talk about GT racing in Europe this guy is number one.
"It says a lot about the race and how it's growing that Audi are prepared to send a guy like him out.
"There's going to be 40 cars, 15 V8 Supercars drivers and some of the best drivers from around the world. It's not just a 12-hour cruise around."
Previous article
Injured Craig Lowndes out of Bathurst 12 Hour, Rick Kelly in
Next article
Kox hits out at Praha Ferrari team's ban from Mugello 12 Hour
The ex-IndyCar racer in "uncharted territory" of British GT team ownership
This weekend’s British GT finale will be a tense title showdown for some but, for those not in the championship fight, it’s a chance to end a challenging year on a high. In the latter camp is Paddock Motorsport's team owner Martin Plowman, whose 2021 season has been a rollercoaster ride of non-stop learning
The unpopular BMW stalwart built for the big occasion
It has won most of the big prizes in endurance racing across its six years in service, but the BMW M6 GT3's key weaknesses meant only a devoted few teams persisted with running it. As it prepares to bow out at season's end, the teams and drivers involved in its story share the secrets of an unpopular winner
The unwanted GT car that changed sportscar racing forever
Had FIA GT boss Stephane Ratel had his way, the Maserati MC12 would never have been allowed to set foot in his series. It duly proved the class of the field that most had expected, but the Balance of Performance that its superiority spawned would keep GT1 battles tight and bring long-term benefits that sportscar racing enjoys today
Why Britain's greatest sportscar was eclipsed on the world stage
The E-Type may be the most famous of all road-going Jaguars, but that didn't always translate into success on the track. After winning on its competition debut in 1961, motorsport success seemed an inevitability, but things didn’t turn out to be quite that straightforward
Why the Jaguar E-type remains special at 60
It’s 60 years since the Jaguar E-type arrived and caused a sensation. As our resident racer Ben Anderson discovered when he got behind the wheel of two special racing versions at Brands Hatch, the thrill of driving them hasn't diminished over time
The rise of a GT squad responsible for a unique 24-hour racing feat
It's a significant achievement to win one 24-hour race in a year, let alone two, and with different manufacturers, but that's exactly what ROWE Racing did in 2020 at the Nurburgring and Spa. This weekend's German classic offers the DTM newcomer a chance of another unique double to add to its growing collection of accolades
The new threat facing motorsport's greatest success story
The manufacturers were unconvinced – and even hostile – when Stephane Ratel launched GT3 in 2006. Now, 15 years on from its debut, they’ve sold more than 2000 cars and counting, but its continued expansion puts the increasingly globalised category at risk of losing its roots
The Lamborghini teams plotting to stop a RAM raid on British GT
With the Silver pairings that dominated 2020 now banned, Mercedes pair Yelmer Buurman and Ian Loggie could be in the box seat after winning last year's Pro-Am crown. But a swarm of Lamborghinis, with the defending outright champion among them, will ensure they face tough opposition
