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Craig Gardner wins Bathurst 1000

31.03.2024 - A typically tight V8 qualifying session at Bathurst ended with Gardner lined up on the front row, 0.114 seconds behind pole sitter Eric Rosberg. Overnight there was substantial talk of Gardner potentially pulling off a home victory at V8's crown jewel, though there were also a lot of Holden loyalists rooting for Jan Bonmati to overturn the deficit on the Mercedes duo.

The race did not start well for Gardner, as light rain produced conditions that he has struggled in throughout his V8 career. Just when the running order seemed set though, Dexter Morgan hit the tyre barrier hard on lap 96, bringing out a safety car that would neutralize all time gaps.

Bonmati was caught out strategy wise, needing to pit right after the SC came in, whilst Gardner still had 12 laps to establish something resembling a lead. Rosberg was still the best placed overall on strategy however... until lap 135 when he almost crashed out going over the top at Frog Hollow and spun out in the process of keeping it off the wall. By the time he was straightened out, Gardner was 7 seconds ahead with both still needing one more pitstop.

Though Rosberg was clearly the fastest driver on the day, fatigue continued to plague him whilst Gardner's drive was almost faultless. Craig accomplished one of his major career goals, winning the Bathurst 1000 by 2.933 seconds. Rosberg's 2nd was still enough for him to retake the championship lead, as Bonmati also had damage that his mechanics could not fix and could only salvage 5th place.

Craig Gardner is likely to finish 3rd in the championship this season, having a good points lead over Simon Rasmussen in 4th but also being well behind the championship fight.