Bathurst 12 hour 2024 - NOMAD Sim Racing

View the pre-race event details here

The Bathurst 12 hours happened over the weekend, and that's about as much positive as can be said about it unfortunately.

Prestanda NOMAD fielded 5 cars: 1 in the first time slot, and 4 in the traditionally "main" slot. The first car suffered a DNF around a quarter of the way into their race, with Matt Distill and Jason Close not able to cash in their Australian luck on the mountain.

Of the other cars, all three of the four managed to suffer damage on (or even before) the first lap. The other car managed to put off damage for a little longer, but still within the first hour.

From there it was a case of dragging cars as close to the finish as possible for everyone involved. The results ended up being:

#561 (Split 4): P18
#562(Split 5): P26
#563 (Split 6): P27
#564 (Split 14): DNF
#561 – Timeslot 1 (Split 1): DNF

Driver Comments

"Our race ended before it even began. After that, it was just about bringing it home for the team." Daniel Gilding

"Unfortunately, it was not the race we had hoped for. We sustained damage very early in Matt's start, prompting us to pit and attend to the car. I was behind the wheel when, regrettably, our race came to an end as we collided with the wall at the elbow. I am deeply apologetic to Matt, who drove exceptionally well in the initial stints. This is definitely one we'd prefer to forget." Jason M Close

"Not the result that Jase and I were expecting. Unfortunately, I qualified deep in the field. I was patient on the opening lap and avoided incidents, only to sustain minor damage on Conrod. From there, it was about managing the pace and slowly working our way through the field. Jason unfortunately made a small error and clipped the wall at Forest Elbow, which damaged the car and forced a DNF. Bring on the next enduro, when Jason and I can team up again for redemption." Matt Distill

"Like many others today, our race was over before the start line, as an overeager competitor slammed into the back of our car on the pace lap. This put us 3 laps down, where we remained until the end. Chris and I executed a near-perfect race from there, but that was only good enough due to the issues other cars faced. It's a real shame after so much preparation." Jason Dilworth

"Despite the initial tense atmosphere at the race's beginning, with some contact during the pre-start check ups, the 562 team can take pride in their performance on the mountain. Dan drove exceptionally well, and I achieved my personal goal of avoiding any incidents. This ensured that, despite the tough start, we never gave up. We always strive till the end, even when the situation seems bleak. P26. Let's go." Ryan Scott Hamilton

"That has to be one of, if not the toughest endurance race I’ve ever driven. We had the pace, but issues in the first hour set us back quite a bit. However, we didn’t give up. So, I am proud of our perseverance. Due to our determination, we managed to finish just three places behind our starting position, despite falling back near the rear in the first hour." Taylor Lane

"It was fun to race with Jason after a long time. We had a good run and almost maximized our race. I had one small spin that cost 10 seconds, but I would have taken that at the start. We had good pace in a tough split. Thanks, Jason, for a great day!" Chris Chadderton