2008 Mt Buller Sprint preview

Headlining the event this year are two former Bathurst winners, Jim Richards (who has won this event twice) will return to unleash his latest Porsche, an optimised 997 GT2. Tony Longhurst promises to be hard on his heels in a previous generation Subaru Impreza STi, hoping that the Impreza’s AWD system can negate most of the GT2’s power advantage as the roads climbs sinuously to summit. When you combine the presence of tarmac rally regulars Jason White and Kevin Weeks in mighty Lamborghini Gallardo Superleggera’s with a horde of Lancer Evolutions (especially those in the hands of Scott Millar and the always committed Dean Evans, editor of Tarmac magazine) the race at the front promises to be enthralling as always.

This year sees the event classes open up to include a classic (pre-December 1981) category to augment the modern class for vehicles from January 1982 onwards. In the classic class, crowds will be treated to the full blooded bellow of V8 muscle in the form of Mark Bryant’s Penske replica Chev Camaro and Craig Harris’ XY Ford Falcon. Further Ford V8 motivation will be found in two South African developed Capri Peranas in the hands of Chris Bailey and Jack Elsegood. The De Tomaso Pantera driven by Keith Callinan provides a dose of Italian exotica to mix with the Germanic efficiency of Steve Cadden’s 1972 Porsche 911.

Mountain Motorsports, the event organisers, have done a great job in securing sponsorship to ensure the Buller sprint continues to run after initial support from Porsche finished in 2006. Tarmac magazine will provide trophies for the first 8 crews to crack a sub-9 minute climb time, while Kuhmo tyres have made discounted tyres available to competitors. Auto-Tek will sponsor three trophies including the Most Popular Car award as voted by the public. These efforts to provide more spectator interaction will no doubt lead to a greater experience for all that make the near 3 hour drive from Melbourne for a wonderful weekend of tarmac rallying.

For more information visit www.mtbullersprint.com

© 2010 lautista.com.au.