Mount Panorama has seen its fair share of controversies over the decades.
Whether it was one driver ruining another’s race, having two Bathurst races in a matter of weeks or a small item of safety clothing, Bathurst is never short of drama.
As Aussie revheads gear up for the 60th anniversary of the Great Race, Foxsports.com.au takes a look at ten of the most controversial moments in Bathurst history.
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10th: Top nine shoot-out? (2014)
A crash in the final practice session unfortunately ruled Holden Racing Team (HRT) duo Garth Tander and Warren Luff out of the Top 10 shootout.
With the No. 2 car from HRT so badly damaged, it opened the door for HRT’s sister car — No. 22, driven by James Courtney and Greg Murphy — to be promoted up the order to complete the one-lap dash.
However, that idea was shot down as Triple Eight Race Engineering threatened to protest No. 22’s promotion up the order.
Ultimately it meant only nine cars competed in the shootout.
9th: From teen reality star to Supercars sensation (2011)
Some reality shows offer the prize of love, others for significant sums of money.
But in 2011, one lucky young driver would receive the ultimate prize of a lifetime: a drive in the Bathurst 1000.
Run by legendary racing duo Rick and Todd Kelly, Shannons Supercar Showdown was finally whittled down to two drivers in the final: Andrew Jordan and Cameron Waters.
It was Waters who ended up winning the show and a chance to drive at the 2011 edition of the Great Race alongside Grant Denyer.
A then-17-year-old Waters sadly hit the wall at Forrests Elbow, bringing an end to his debut Bathurst appearance.
But Waters has since gone on to win nine Supercars races throughout his career and has finished on the podium for the last three Bathurst 1000 events.
8th: So nice they had to race twice! (1997)
Two Bathurst races in the same month?
You best believe that’s what took place in 1997, as AVESCO — the organisers of V8 Supercars — and the Australia Racing Drivers’ Club, organisers of the Bathurst 1000, were locked in a heated battle over TV rights.
Given that peace was highly unlikely between the two parties, Bathurst City Council brokered a deal where AVESCO’s Bathurst race would run two weeks after the ARDC’s Bathurst 1000 event, although AVESCO’s would involve a field of Australian and British touring cars.
The two-race Bathurst system lasted just two years as V8 Supercars claimed the race back in 1999.
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7th: ‘Frosty’ gets spun (2014)
With just a handful of laps remaining a late safety car was brought out, meaning there would mean a crazy finish for the field.
Unfortunately for Mark Winterbottom, he was on the wrong end of the late drama.
Fighting for second place, ‘Frosty’ got spun by Craig Lowndes at the exit of Hell Corner and dropped seven places as a result from being spun.
Race officials took a little over a lap before issuing Lowndes a drive-through penalty and he ultimately finished the race in 10th.
Lowndes later said the setting sun contributed to him spinning Winterbottom.
6th: Goodbye Flappy Bird, hello Flappy Door (2003)
Of all things to derail a race, a flapping door is not quite a high-chance option.
Unfortunately for Mark Skaife, that was exactly what derailed his race in 2003.
Skaife made contact with John Bowe at the end of Conrod Straight and the damage from the collision caused his rear door to flap open while he was in hot pursuit of race leader Greg Murphy.
Protests from those in pit lane about the danger of Skaife’s flapping door forced Holden Racing Team to bring him in for a 10-second penalty.
As a result, Skaife tumbled down the leaderboard where he finished eighth as Murphy held on to win.
5th: Whincup zooms past safety car (2015)
With 20 laps to go, a late safety car lured the vast majority of teams into pit lane.
In an attempt to avoid double-stacking, Triple Eight Racing’s Jamie Whincup decided he’d stay out on track for another lap.
However, Whincup’s decision ignored his team’s orders to come in to the pits.
Whincup pitted a lap later, but in the process of doing that he overtook the safety car, a forbidden act unless the driver is signalled to do so by the safety car in the form of a green light.
The legendary driver was handed a drive-through penalty, dashing his chances of victory as he eventually finished in 18th.
Yet there would be a major twist as on-board vision later confirmed Whincup had been given the green light to pass the safety car.
4th: Great Race stopped for mid-track repairs (2014)
As if the 2014 edition of the Great Race hadn’t delivered enough controversy, there was still a little bit more to come.
Three crashes at Griffins Bend caused the race to be red-flagged as the road began to open up.
It was the third time in Bathurst’s glittering history it had to be suspended, but this was the first time it had to be paused for track repairs.
Despite the race being red-flagged, not enough laps had been raced to determine a winner.
Several teams were left in a state of confusion during the break as to whether they could fix and repair their cars and although the rules said they could, a number of teams vented their frustration and claimed it was an unfair advantage.
The race eventually resumed under red flag conditions, but for a vast amount of time, it seemed like it could have been stopped altogether.
3rd: Kiwi star’s mega meltdown after pit stop mishap (2002)
A major miscommunication during a routine pit stop saw K-Mart Racing’s Greg Murphy exit his pit box while his team were still refuelling his Holden.
Fuel spilt everywhere and was immediately doused in foam to prevent an inferno erupting in the pits.
Murphy was handed a five-minute time penalty for the error, forcing him back into pit lane.
Upon returning, the furious Kiwi hopped out of his car and had one of the biggest meltdowns ever seen as he eventually finished the race in 13th.
2nd: Whincup’s appeal falls short as rivals taken out (2016)
The 2016 running of the Great Race was 150 laps deep when Jamie Whincup and Scott McLaughlin were engaged in a heated battle.
Whincup attempted to pass down the inside of McLaughlin at the chase, which forced McLaughlin onto the grass.
In his efforts to redress the situation, Whincup slowed down to let McLaughlin back onto the track.
However, the third-placed Garth Tander attempted to take advantage of the situation and pass both drivers but in doing so collided with McLaughlin.
It forced Tander and McLaughlin out of contention and brought out a safety car while Whincup was handed s 15-second penalty.
Another safety car meant Whincup’s efforts to generate a 15-second buffer between him and second place fell flat as he ultimately finished 11th with the penalty added despite crossing the line first.
Triple Eight Racing appealed the penalty claiming it wasn’t consistent with the punishment system outlined to the teams earlier that year, but the Supercars National Court of Appeal dismissed Whincup’s case.
1st: Balaclava-gate (2005)
Who could have predicted a small piece of clothing would have generated such controversy?
On the 104th lap, a drive-through penalty was issued to Warren Luff for not wearing a safety balaclava underneath his helmet.
Luff’s Stone Brothers Racing teammate Marcos Ambrose, who was out on track, exploded over the radio.
“You have got to be kidding me,” Ambrose said.
“This is a joke. Absolute joke.
“The biggest race of the year and they black-flag him for that? You have got to be kidding me.”
Just six laps later and the SBR team were desperately pleading to see if Ambrose had made the same mistake.
The Tasmanian was then forced to pit as the crew hastily put a balaclava over his head.
But the unscheduled stop proved extremely costly as it took 40 seconds in total.
Ambrose’s anger didn’t stop once he had returned on track.
“I want the whole field checked, the whole field!” Ambrose exclaimed.