A NEW endurance motor race of sorts is coming to Mount Panorama next year.

The 2027 Hi-Tec Oils Bathurst 6 Hour will feature a Saturday two-driver Trans Am Cup Series race.

The exact length/duration of the contest is to be confirmed, with the key detail for now being that there will be a mid-race pause during which refuelling and driver changes will occur.

A Sunday six-hour production car derby will remain the headline act of the annual Easter event.

“The Hi-Tec Oils Bathurst 6 Hour has become an important event on the Trans Am Cup Series calendar, so when the organisers approached us to take our appearance to the next level by making the race an endurance type format on the Saturday afternoon, we were immediately excited by the idea,” said Trans Am category manager Matt MacKelden. 

“We’ve seen how successful the ‘TA2 Tag Team Enduro’ is, so to now have a Trans Am enduro is brilliant, especially at the home of endurance racing in this country.

“The Hi-Tec Oils Bathurst 6 Hour has established itself as one of the big three at Bathurst, alongside the 12 Hour and the 1000, so we expect to attract an impressive driver line up. It gives both TA2 and Trans Am competitors an opportunity to race against the cream of the crop in Australian motorsport which is exciting. 

“These cars don’t have a dry break fuel system and we aren’t intending to change the specifications of the cars at all, so the format is likely to be a ‘stage’ type race format – an opening race, followed by a short break for refuelling, a driver change, then straight into the next phase.”

Bathurst 6 Hour event director Sally Parkinson said: “We are already fortunate to have the Bathurst 6 Hour as a key part of the Trans Am Cup Series schedule, but we were keen to find ways to build the Saturday component of the event and it made sense to build something really exciting around the Trans Am field.

“Adding in an enduro element, with a unique format specific to the event, was a logical step and just adds to the special nature of the Bathurst 6 Hour weekend.

“With the Trans Am Cup enduro and Bathurst 6 Hour qualifying on Saturday, a packed support program each with full grids and then the big race on Sunday the event continues to build and grow as it heads into its second decade in 2027.”

The 2027 Bathurst 6 Hour will be held across March 26-28.