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McLaughlin’s Bathurst mindset shift

18 Sep 2019
Kiwi taking different approach to Great Race in 2019
2 mins by James Pavey
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Scott McLaughlin’s commanding 598-point championship lead means he heads to the Supercheap Auto Bathurst 1000 with a different mindset this year.

McLaughlin has entered recent Bathursts locked in tight title fights - leading by 84 points at this stage in 2017 and trailing by 55 in ’18, when he went on to win the championship.

His incredible run through 2019 means he is now nearly two full events worth of points clear of second-placed Shane van Gisbergen.

That leaves McLaughlin promising an all-out attack on the Great Race - an event he’s yet to win in seven previous starts.

DJR Team Penske also hasn’t won in its current guise, with DJR’s last Bathurst victory coming 25 years ago.

“It’s a luxury that we can afford to really attack with,” said McLaughlin of his points lead at today’s Fox Sports Bathurst launch.

“Normally this time of year you’re like ‘I want to win Bathurst, but I want to win the championship as well’ and you’ve got to think about both.

“Now I can effectively throw it out the window, championship-wise, and just have a massive crack for Bathurst with all-risk and not really worry about the unfortunate circumstances if something does happen.

“Not going to be stupid, but I have got that luxury to have a massive crack.”

McLaughlin has won 17 of the 24 races held this year to date - an all-time wins-in-a-season record.

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While rating it as “probably our best chance” for a Bathurst win, McLaughlin is wary of what the Mountain can bring.

“We’ve seen a lot over the years that the fastest cars don’t necessarily win,” he said.

“Certainly that happened to us in 2017, I feel like we had a really fast car there and unfortunately we had an engine problem. Sometimes 5c parts can take you out of the race.

“We’ve been prepping for the last few months to make sure we’ve got every part right, every ounce tuned up. Hopefully we get it right.”

McLaughlin will for the third straight year contest the PIRTEK Enduro Cup alongside his former Garry Rogers Motorsport teammate Alexandre Premat.

Perennially under pressure to deliver, the Frenchman received a resounding vote of confidence from McLaughlin.

“He does the same thing every year and he’s got the most confidence you have ever seen,” he said of Premat, having combined to finish third in 2018.

“He’s a Frenchman and they don’t lack any confidence those blokes, so he will come in and be alright.”

Based in Las Vegas, Premat is due to land in Australia next week and is expected to remain Down Under for the duration of the endurance season.

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