Fast Facts: Supercheap Auto Bathurst 1000

1. Ford Performance Racing is the defending Peter Brock Trophy winner at the Supercheap Auto Bathurst 1000 but their victory last year bucked a trend of two other teams dominating the race in recent times.

Between them, the Holden Racing Team and Triple Eight Race Engineering (Red Bull Racing Australia) have won eight of the last nine Bathurst classics.

With 2013 winners Mark Winterbottom and Steve Richards no longer driving together at FPR, this is just the second time in the last seven years that reigning Bathurst champions have not paired together to defend their crown the following year.

2. Volvo makes its return to the Supercheap Auto Bathurst 1000 this year for the first time in 16 years. Swede Rickard Rydell and Jim Richards won the two-litre Super Touring AMP Bathurst 1000 in 1998 from pole position in a five-cylinder S40.

This year Valvoline Racing GRM will have two V8-powered S60s driven by drivers from four different nations - Scott McLaughlin (New Zealand), Alex Premat (France), Robert Dahlgren (Sweden) and Greg Ritter (Australia).

The addition of Volvo means there are five different manufacturers on the grid for a Bathurst 1000 for the first time since 1998.

3. Jamie Whincup and Paul Dumbrell recently became the first combination to win the Wilson Security Sandown 500 from pole position in 18 years and history also suggests it's going to be difficult for the pole-sitter at Bathurst to claim victory.

The car starting from pole position has won the race just three times in the last 15 years. Garth Tander and Will Davison were the last drivers to do it back in 2009 for the Holden Racing Team.

4. Holden is aiming for an unprecedented 30th win in the Supercheap Auto Bathurst 1000 in 2014. No other manufacturer has won more Bathurst classics than Holden.

Should they claim victory at Mount Panorama this year, it would also be the 50th V8 Supercar Championship race win for the VF Commodore since it was introduced at the start of last season.

5. The last four Supercheap Auto Bathurst 1000s have been decided by a total combined margin of 1.2523-seconds with no race in that time won by more than half a second - amazing to consider such a statistic after 644 laps and 4000 kilometres of racing in that time.

The closest finish was 0.1733s in 2010 when Craig Lowndes led home Jamie Whincup in a 1-2 'form' finish, while the closest 'racing' finish was 0.2917s in 2011 when Garth Tander led home Lowndes.

6. Russell Ingall is the most experienced driver in this year's Supercheap Auto Bathurst 1000 and is lining up for his 23rd start in the race, which he won in 1995 and 1997 with Larry Perkins.

Only 15 drivers have more starts in the history of the race than Ingall, who has a great finishing record on the Mountain with 20 finishes from 22 starts.

7. Team BOC's Jason Bright will tie the late Peter Brock for sixth on the all-time Australian Touring Car Championship/V8 Supercar Championship starts list at Bathurst.

Bright will line up for his 212th round start at Mount Panorama as he makes his 18th start in the Supercheap Auto Bathurst 1000.

Bright won with Steve Richards in 1998 though has not finished on the podium at Bathurst since 2002 when he finished third with Tomas Mezera.

8. There are four rookies making their first Supercheap Auto Bathurst 1000 start in 2014 and all of them are from overseas.

Brits Oliver Gavin (Heavy Haulage Australia Racing) and Alex Buncombe (Jack Daniel's Racing) join Swede Robert Dahlgren (Valvoline Racing GRM) and New Zealander Andre Heimgartner (Super Black Racing) as the rookie class of this year.

All bar Dahlgren has previous Mount Panorama experience - Gavin and Buncombe competed in this year's Bathurst 12 Hour, while Heimgartner has raced at Bathurst in Porsche Carrera Cup and the Dunlop Series.

9. There are 12 combinations in the 2014 Supercheap Auto Bathurst 1000 where the co-driver has more starts in the race than the regular, primary driver.

The biggest gap in experience levels is in the #6 Pepsi Max Crew Falcon between Chaz Mostert (one Bathurst 1000 start) and co-driver Paul Morris (21 starts).

The most experienced combination is the #888 Red Bull Racing Australia Commodore of Craig Lowndes and Steve Richards with a combined 41 Bathurst starts.

10. The Dunlop Series will hold the longest race in its history at Mount Panorama with a 41-lap, 250-kilometre race on Saturday afternoon.

A total of 10 drivers are due to compete in both the Dunlop Series race and the Supercheap Auto Bathurst 1000 - Paul Dumbrell, Andrew Jones, Paul Morris, Steve Owen, Ash Walsh, Cameron Waters, Chris Pither, Ant Pedersen, Andre Heimgartner and Tony D'Alberto.

Owen and D'Alberto will act as co-drivers for Heimgartner and Josh Kean respectively in the Dunlop Series race.

It's the first time in Dunlop Series history that a pit stop and co-drivers have been part of the race format.

Grab your tickets for the Supercheap Auto Bathurst 1000 now - it begins this Thursday.