Steven Lacey on giving GT3 cars a second life at Bathurst: “Why don’t we get some of those cars out of the sheds?” GT REPORT

Each February, the focus at Mount Panorama falls squarely on the headline act of the Meguiar’s Bathurst 12 Hour. Yet in recent years, one of the most diverse and eye-catching parts of the weekend has been the Duggan Family Hotels Combined Sports Cars and Sedans grid.

With a 55-car field again in 2026, the category blends GT cars, Production Sports and Sedan machinery, Sprint Challenge Porsches and space frame Sports Sedans. It has become a staple of Australia’s flagship GT3 race, and, increasingly, a home for older-spec GT3 cars that might otherwise sit idle.

GT REPORT spoke to Category Manager Steven Lacey during the Bathurst 12 Hour weekend about how that evolution came about and where the class is heading.

Bringing in GT3

The arrival of GT3 machinery was not accidental. It was a deliberate move made in collaboration with the event organisers.

“It’s something that we started working on for last season and it was pretty much at the end of the 2023 event that we did,” Lacey explained. “We sat down with Supercars and they said, ‘What can we do to make it a little bit different and also bring it more in line to what we’re doing here with the GT cars?’ And we said to them, ‘Why don’t we go with some older GT3 equipment and get some of those cars out of the sheds?’, which we’ve managed to do, which is fantastic.”

The category has also worked closely with SRO to ensure the inclusion of GT machinery fits comfortably within the broader GT racing ecosystem. As Lacey explained:

“We’ve worked very closely with SRO, who obviously look after the current GT series, and they vet each of the cars to make sure none of our cars are non-compliant. If they’re still compliant for GT3, then they can’t run with us. But as you can see, these are more older-spec cars.”

In that sense, the class has become a second stage for previous-generation GT3 machinery. Still quick, still spectacular, but no longer bound by top-level homologation cycles.

Different tools, similar lap times

On paper, mixing GT cars with space frame Sports Sedans and production-based chassis cars could have created imbalance. In practice, Lacey says the lap times have aligned naturally.

“If you look at the space frame class, that’s where we’re looking at similar lap times. There’ve been no issues there. We run production sports and sports sedans together in New South Wales as part of our normal championship these days, just to maintain grids.

“What we do find, whilst the lap times might be very similar between a space frame sports sedan and a GT car, the GT cars technically are much more advanced in many cases. They travel with ABS brakes, traction control, so a lot of driver aids that give them the opportunity to do a lap time similar to a space frame car, but in a very different way.

“The space frame cars are obviously very fast in a straight line, but non-ABS brakes, brake early, turn in. So what we see is production-based GT cars coming under brakes and going underneath the sports sedans, and then the sports sedans passing them down the straights. But it’s a good blend.”

At Mount Panorama, that contrast plays out dramatically, especially along Conrod Straight and into The Chase.

Growth, but not a GT takeover

The 2026 field includes a strong contingent of older Porsche machinery alongside Lamborghinis and other marques, but Lacey is clear that balance remains the priority.

“We’ve certainly got more this year than last year. As you can see, it’s pretty much Porsche-dominated, we’ve got two Lamborghinis still here with us, and we’ve certainly had some interest from other marques. But at this point in time, I think the blend is right.

“This year we’ve got 28 chassis cars, 14 sports cars and 14 sports sedans in space frame. I think that’s a good mix. We’re not looking to take the whole thing down a sports car route. I’m sure in time there might be an opportunity for that, but at this point in time there’s not.”

How original are the GT3 cars?

Most of the GT3 entries remain close to the specification in which they originally raced, though without the strict requirements of modern homologation.

“A lot of the cars we’ve got running with us in production sport trim are probably similar to what they would have run back in their day,” Lacey said.

“I think a couple of them here have probably removed restrictors and bits and pieces that we don’t have a requirement for them to meet the original strict specification rules. So that’s my guess at how some of these Porsches are going in a straight line. Maybe there are exhaust changes and a few other mods they’ve done.

“But yeah, they principally are the original GT3 cars.”

The Bathurst factor

Ultimately, Lacey believes one element explains the consistent, capacity grids for the Combined Sports Cars and Sedans.

“I think the allure of Bathurst is what brings everybody. I’d like to say it’s our good management, my wife and I,” he added with a smile, referring to fellow Category Manager Bronwyn Lacey. “Obviously they have a great time when they’re here as well. And that’s what it’s all about – to get the guys to be able to bring their cars out.

“As individual categories, none of these groups could actually pull it off in terms of being able to afford to buy grid time at an event such as this – the international Bathurst 12 Hour. So to give those guys the opportunity to run at such a high-profile event, at such a fantastic track… that’s Bathurst.”

For some, the weekend also doubles as preparation for other events, including the Bathurst 6 Hour for production-based machinery.

“It’s great to have them still involved and still have a place to come. To be included in the whole category with everybody, that’s one of the things that Bronwyn and I have concentrated on.

“There are people here who’ve been with us since 2011, every year in some form or another. We previously ran a regularity event up here, and many of the guys in those production cars were here right from the start. So we give them the opportunity to keep coming back to Bathurst because they’ve always supported us.”

Across the weekend, the category delivered exactly what it had promised: full grids and competitive racing across the classes. Brad Shiels dominated proceedings, winning all three races in his rotary-powered Fiat 124 Coupe Sports Sedan and stamping his authority on the Mountain. In the shadow of the GT3 headline act, the Combined Sports Cars and Sedans field had once again proven its value, giving older GT machinery and loyal production racers their moment on one of Australian motorsport’s biggest stages.

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