hero-img

Mostert shouldering factory BMW 'pressure'

02 Feb 2018
Supercars star racing with iconic BMW outfit in 12 Hour
2 mins by James Pavey
Advertisement

Tickford Racing Supercars driver Chaz Mostert accepts that his Bathurst 12 Hour outing with BMW’s iconic Schnitzer Motorsport comes with 'a lot of pressure'.

Mostert is contesting his fifth GT event this weekend in a factory BMW M6 GT3 with DTM frontrunners Marco Wittmann and Augusto Farfus.

The event is the last of Mostert’s current tie-up with the German manufacturer, which has sent its revered Schnitzer outfit to Australia for its second 12 Hour campaign with the M6.

The German squad’s history spans 50 years, with DTM titles accompanied by World, European, British, Italian, Japanese and Asia-Pacific Touring Car crowns, and success in a string of major sportscar races.

Charly Lamm’s outfit last visited Australia in 1987 to contest the Bathurst round of the World Touring Car Championship.

“It’s pretty awesome to be debuting for Schnitzer Motorsport,” Mostert told Supercars.com.

“I’ve got two great team-mates, they were super fast [in Friday practice], I just hope I can put it all together and do the same pace those guys are doing.

“They’re very impressive out there. There’s a lot of pressure basically being part of the factory BMW team.

“It’s a pretty cool story, [Schnitzer] haven’t been here since ’87.

Advertisement

“We’ve got a bit of work to do, with the car, we’ve still got a little bit of a misbalance, but it’s been not a bad first day.”

The BMW finished Friday with the second-fastest time, set by Wittmann in the fourth and final session, after Farfus topped Practice 2 and 3.

Run by Steven Richards Motorsport, the other M6 in the field finished the day fourth, with four-time Bathurst 1000 winner Richards joined by ex-Formula 1 driver Timo Glock and factory GT driver Philipp Eng.

Richards’ outfit ran BMW’s effort last year, while Mostert starred in a MARC Cars Australia-run M6, leading during his first stint.

Mostert’s subsequent BMW outings have included a test in Germany in mid-2017, followed by three Asian Le Mans Series races and the FIA GT World Cup in Macau in recent months.

“Last year was pretty surreal to be in a GT3 car for the first time, and this year I’ve done a lot more running in the car, I did the Asian Le Mans Series and Macau,” he said.

“I have a bit more to offer as a driver, this year in this car, because last year the car felt just amazing, as it does when you come from something like a Supercar to a GT3.

“But this year, definitely, I can start to try to help and try to go faster instead of just feeling happy the whole time.”

Related News

Advertisement