After missing out in 2020 due to COVID-19 and hosting sprint events in 2021 and 2022, enduro racing returns to Victoria this weekend for the Penrite Oil Sandown 500, the ninth round of the 2023 season and the first endurance event of the year, predecessor to the Repco Bathurst 1000 next month.
Fifty-six drivers are confirmed to take to the track, starting with practice on Friday before qualifying on Saturday, which will determine the grid for the sole 500 kilometre race on the next day.
Event viewing Information:
- What: Repco Supercars Championship (Sandown 500)
- When: Friday Sep. 15 to Sunday Sep. 17
- Where: Sandown International Motor Raceway, Melbourne
- TV Channel: Foxtel, Kayo, SKY SPORT
- Stream anywhere: Start watching
Sandown 500 Race Preview:
This event marks the first 500km enduro event on the Supercars calendar since 2019 and provides racing fans ‘the first opportunity to see all the Repco Supercars Championship drivers and co-drivers battle it out in a 500km enduro race in the new Gen 3 Mustangs and Camaros.
There will be a handful of exciting national categories, including the Porsche Paynter Dixon Carrera Cup, Toyota Gazoo Racing Australia 86 Series, Haltech SuperUte Series, Australia Championship, and the Dunlop Series, featuring both Super2 and Super3.
The racing event will kick off on Friday, September 15 till Sunday, September 17. After three 30-minute practice sessions on the first day and a fourth on the second day, two for all drivers and two additional drivers will lead into ARMOR ALL Qualifying.
The ten fastest drivers from qualifying will set the run order for the Top Ten Shootout, which will finalize the grid for the 161-lap Race 23 on Sunday, September 17.
Penrite Oil has announced a partnership with legendary Australian racing car driver, six-time Sandown 500 winner, and Dementia Australia patron Moffat ahead of the event this weekend.
The partnership focuses on two fronts: firstly, to raise awareness and community support for dementia patients and their affected families, and secondly, to tribute Moffat’s incredible racing career and his contribution to Australian motorsport.
Sandown 500: Broadcasting times & TV Channel
Friday September 15
- Foxtel/Kayo LIVE: 10:30am to 4:30pm
Saturday September 16
- Foxtel/Kayo LIVE: 9:00am to 6:15pm
Sunday September 17
- Foxtel/Kayo LIVE: 9:00am to 6:30pm
- SEN LIVE: 2:00pm to 6:00pm (Live radio coverage on SEN 1116am Melbourne, SEN Geelong, SEN Ballarat/Ballarat/Shepparton/Sunraysia/Gippsland, SEN 1629am Tassie, SEN WA, SEN Peel, SEN Goldfields/Mid West/Great Southern, SEN Spirit Bunbury & Margaret River, SEN 1170am Sydney, SENQ 693am Brisbane, SEN 1620am Gold Coast, and the SENZ Network)
Complete race schedule (AEST Time):
Friday, September 15
1st Free Practice | 10:45 – 11:15
2nd Free Practice | 12:40 – 13:10
3rd Free Practice | 15:45 – 16:15
Saturday, September 16
4th Free Practice | 10:45 – 11:15
Qualifying | 13:40 – 14:00
Super Pole | 17:20 – 17:50
Sunday, September 17
Warm-up | 10:10 – 10:30
Race | 14:15 – 17:45
F&Q: How to watch Penrite Oil Sandown 500 online on TV
How to watch Sandown 500 Supercars in 2023
Where is the Sandown 500 this year: Sandown International Motor Raceway, Melbourne
How to watch Sandown 500 in your country: Best streaming link (Recommended)
How to watch Sandown 500 in Australia: Fox Sports | Kayo Sports | Foxtel
How to watch Sandown 500 in New Zealand: SKY SPORT
In Other Countries: Supercars.com or Youtube via Superview (2023 Championship Pass for AU$69.99)
Drivers & Teams Preview:
With up to 300 points up for grabs, championship leader Brodie Kostecki, who currently holds a 137-point lead over Triple Eight Race Engineering’s Shane van Gisbergen, will be looking to maintain his position at the top of the table, with David Russell by his side.
Champion Shane van Gisbergen, who in 2021 drove from 17th to victory with a broken collarbone, will be joined by one-time Sandown winner Richie Stanaway, who will debut in a Red Bull Camaro at Sandown as co-driver.
Will Brown, Kostecki’s Erebus teammate, will be looking to bounce back after having a difficult round at the OTR SuperSprint in Adelaide last time.
He is one of the few drivers to have led the championship at some stage this year, but to claim what was once his, he will have to cross both his teammates Kostecki, van Gisbergen, and third-place Broc Feeney this weekend, with Jack Perkins by his side.
Whincup, one of the Penrite Oil Sandown 500’s most decorated drivers with five Sandown race wins, is set to make his return to the grid and line up alongside Feeney with hoping to make it three in a row for the first time after winning alongside Lowndes and Paul Dumbrell.
Lowndes is also set to return as one of two wildcard entries under the Supercheap Auto Racing banner alongside Zane Goddard in the #888 Camaro. Meanwhile, the Blanchard Racing Team will see Aaron Love and Jake Kostecki behind the wheel of the #7 Mustang.
David Reynolds will be joined by five-time Bathurst champion and Sandown 500 winner Garth Tander, who is set to make his first start for the “Blue Oval.”
Matt Payne will be joined by Porsche factory driver Kevin Estre, who completed his first Supercars laps at Winton last week. 2021 Bathurst 1000 winner Chaz Mostert will reunite with Lee Holdsworth, and 2017 Sandown 500 winner Cam Waters will team up with James Moffat.
Sandown 500 Circuit Info
- Circuit Length | 3100 m
- Laps Raced | 161
- Direction | Anti Clockwise
- Number of corners | 13
2023 Penrite Oil Sandown 500 Entry List:
Blanchard Racing Team
#7 Ford Mustang GT – Aaron Love / Jake Kostecki (wildcard)
Brad Jones Racing
#4 Chevrolet Camaro – Jack Smith / Jaxon Evans
#8 Chevrolet Camaro – Andre Heimgartner / Dale Wood
#14 Chevrolet Camaro – Bryce Fullwood / Dean Fiore
#96 Chevrolet Camaro – Macauley Jones / Jordan Boys
Walkinshaw Andretti United
#2 Ford Mustang GT – Nick Percat / Fabian Coulthard
#25 Ford Mustang GT – Chaz Mostert / Lee Holdsworth
Tim Blanchard Racing
#3 Ford Mustang GT – Todd Hazelwood / Tim Blanchard
Tickford Racing
#5 Ford Mustang GT – James Courtney / Zak Best
#6 Ford Mustang GT – Cameron Waters / James Moffat
#55 Ford Mustang GT – Thomas Randle / Garry Jacobson
#56 Ford Mustang GT – Declan Fraser / Tyler Everingham
Grove Racing
#19 Ford Mustang GT – Matthew Payne / Kevin Estre
#26 Ford Mustang GT – David Reynolds / Garth Tander
Erebus Motorsport
#9 Chevrolet Camaro – Will Brown / Jack Perkins
#99 Chevrolet Camaro – Brodie Kostecki / David Russell
Dick Johnson Racing
#11 Ford Mustang GT – Anton De Pasquale / Tony D’Alberto
#17 Ford Mustang GT – Will Davison / Alex Davison
Team 18
#18 Chevrolet Camaro – Mark Winterbottom / Michael Caruso
#20 Chevrolet Camaro – Scott Pye / Warren Luff
PremiAir Racing
#23 Chevrolet Camaro – Tim Slade / Jonathon Webb
#31 Chevrolet Camaro – James Golding / Dylan O’Keefe
Matt Stone Racing
#34 Chevrolet Camaro – Jack Le Brocq / Jayden Ojeda
#35 Chevrolet Camaro – Cameron Hill / Jaylyn Robotham
Triple Eight Race Engineering
#88 Chevrolet Camaro – Broc Feeney / Jamie Whincup
#97 Chevrolet Camaro – Shane van Gisbergen / Richie Stanaway
#888 Chevrolet Camaro – Craig Lowndes / Zane Goddard (wildcard)
Penrite Oil Sandown 500 Results
The first of four 30-minute practice sessions was held in sunshine in Melbourne, with the field from putting down some quick times at Sandown.
Feeney’s 1:09.2966s proved best of the lot aboard his #88 Red Bull Ampol Camaro, which he his sharing with five-time Sandown 500 winner Jamie Whincup.
Kostecki clocked a 1:09.3044s as the session wore on in the #99 Coca-Cola Camaro, with Dylan O’Keeffe third in James Golding’s #31 Nulon Camaro.
