Supercars Enduro at The Bend

Supercars racing at Shell V-Power Motorsport Park rises to a whole new level in 2025 as it hosts the first of this season’s two endurance events. AirTouch 500 at The Bend, on September 12-14, is the first Supercars enduro to be held at the Tailem Bend racetrack, marking a new era in motorsport that is being eagerly awaited by drivers and teams as well as fans.

Nick Percat at the 2023 OTR SuperSprint

South Australian driver Nick Percat will be racing for Matt Stone Racing and says while it is always exciting to race at the home track, the extra elements that are involved in an enduro race will make it even more interesting. “I’m looking forward to going there because it is something different and it's obviously a world-class venue, so I’m hoping having it as an endurance venue, it puts on a good show for Supercars,” he says.

WHAT IS THE AIRTOUCH 500 AT THE BEND ENDURO?

This year, Supercars will have one long race at Shell V-Power Motorsport Park, on Sunday, September 14, instead of three sprint races across two days as previously has been seen at the world-renowned racetrack. Supercars drivers will complete 500km during the race, or about 100 laps. That doesn’t mean there won’t be a lot of Supercars on-track action to see on Friday or Saturday of the race weekend. In fact, fans will be treated to several more practice sessions than usual as teams and drivers learn how to tackle the long laps over a larger distance, as well as qualifying on Saturday. But it won’t just be the usual Supercars drivers who will be involved. Alongside each primary driver will be a co-driver, who will take the wheel of their race car for about a third of the race. Three wildcard entries run by three of the race teams will also line up on the grid, meaning 54 drivers will be racing 27 cars, instead of the usual 24.

As no team or driver has any experience with racing a Supercar for 100 laps straight at The Bend, which has 18 corners around its 4.95km International Circuit, there may be some surprising results, Percat says. “I think until we do it, no one’s going to know which way the best kind of strategy is,” he says. “I think it should spice things up. You might see a little bit of a mixed result and I think that the co-driver is very, very important there because there's such a long lap and it’s easy to make mistakes. “So I think having a solid co-driver is very important and one that's done enduros before is quite helpful as well, just for the duration, the stints and the lap length as well.”

Supercars leaving the pit lane at Shell V-Power Motorsport Park

Pit stops will be even more crucial than in the past, as drivers and co-drivers swap while the race goes on. Teams will also have other tasks during pit stops, such as refuelling.

“The enduro definitely has a different feel, from a fan side of things instead of having 24 drivers it's all doubled up and they can see things like pit stop practice or even the pit stops – there’s differences that you see around how the teams carry out the pit stops (compared to other types of racing),” Percat says. “Seeing different guys in the cars is exciting as well because everyone gets to know how we race all year pretty well. Spicing it up with some co-drivers and some different cars, it will bring a bit of action as well.”

AIRTOUCH 500 AT THE BEND’S PLACE IN HISTORY OF THE ENDURO

The word enduro is short for endurance and in motorsport it tests the mettle of drivers and race cars alike. Its roots go back to the 1960s, when first a 500-mile race was held annually at Victoria’s Phillip Island racetrack, then the race was moved to Bathurst. In 1973, that race distance was extended to its now famous 1000km.

Either way, just completing the race was quite the feat. Not only did the race car have to last mechanically while being driven at race speeds lap after lap for a total of 1000km, but the driver also had to last the distance physically and mentally to keep the car on course.

In fact, the endurance race continues for so long that since the 1970s, two drivers have been required to complete it, taking turns to drive the same car for the race duration.

Shell V-Power Motorsport Park

Several other endurance motorsport events were held each year during the 1960s, with one at Sandown becoming a traditional Bathurst 1000 lead-in event in September. The 500km race distance was first completed in the 1980s and has remained ever since, with the half-distance serving as a warm-up or tester for teams and drivers for the longer race at Bathurst.

Over the years the location for this lead-in event has changed, and this year the lead-in 500km enduro makes its debut at Shell V-Power Motorsport Park.

WHAT AIRTOUCH 500 AT THE BEND MEANS FOR THE ENDURO CUP & THE CHAMPIONSHIP

This year Supercars has introduced a new prize for drivers and teams – the Enduro Cup – as part of its new championship format. The main-game driver who accumulates the most championship points across the two endurance events at The Bend and Bathurst will automatically be eligible to compete against nine other drivers in its new The Finals series, which will determine the 2025 Supercars champion. So getting a good start at the AirTouch 500 at The Bend will therefore be critical for a driver’s championship hopes, Percat says. “I think both those events are massively important for the Driver’s Championship and the Team’s Championship, so you want a big result, but you don’t want to be making headlines for the wrong reasons,” he says. “All the teams will be looking to minimise mistakes at The Bend just because it’s quite a critical amount of points for the Enduro Cup and obviously for the Driver’s Championship to get into the playoffs.”

Whoever does take the chequered flag and the winners’ trophy on the Sunday afternoon will forever go down in history, however, as the first to conquer The AirTouch 500 at The Bend.