Campbell Expects “No Problem” in Type-992’s Bathurst Debut

Photo: Gruppe C Photography/SRO

Matt Campbell and Laurens Vanthoor are optimistic on the Type-992 Porsche 911 GT3 R’s debut at the Repco Bathurst 12 Hour, with the Manthey EMA drivers believing they’re well prepared considering the car has had a year’s worth of competition worldwide.

Campbell and Vanthoor are teaming up with Ayhancan Guven in the No. 912 entry, which is one of two of the latest-generation Porsches in the 30-car Bathurst field.

In addition to Phantom Global Racing’s Type-992 Porsche, a Type-991.2 example is also being fielded by Manthey EMA for the Pro-Am class trio of Yasser Shahin, Alessio Picariello and Harry King.

“I think it will fare good,” Campbell told Sportscar365. “It’s going to be very different across the top [of the mountain] compared to the previous generation car for sure, no question about it.

“So it will maybe take a little bit of tuning.

“The helpful aspect is when we are bringing the new generation cars a year after they’ve been out already to this event with the rules.

“You’ve got that knowledge of the car already and it’s much easier to tune and get into a window.

“I think we’ll have no problem getting up to speed. I think we’ve got a really, really strong package going into the race.”

Vanthoor added: “They know the car quite well from DTM, obviously. So they have quite a lot of experience, from Manthey’s side.

“In the end, I think they can translate pretty good to here. There might be some question marks to be answered but I don’t see much of an issue.”

Campbell, who is riding the momentum from his and Porsche Penske Motorsport’s victory in last month’s Rolex 24 at Daytona, is the only retained driver from Manthey EMA’s Bathurst lineup from last year.

The Australian teamed with Matheiu Jaminet and Thomas Preining for a runner-up finish in the 2023 event.

“Last year, I feel like we did the absolutely perfect race for what we could do and we ended up P2,” Campbell said. “Obviously we want to go one better this year.

“The field is super strong, just like every year at the 12 Hour. I’m sure it’s going to be another 12-hour classic. There’s always something exciting happening towards the end.”

Vanthoor, who is making his first Bathurst appearance since 2020, believes they have the ingredients to go for the win.

“I think it’s quite positive because Manthey EMA doesn’t need an [introduction],” he said. “We have an Australian part of the team with a good Australian driver.

“The car normally works well here. It’s the 992’s first time, so we have everything we need to do well. Now we’ll see.

“The cards are good but we still have to start driving.”

John Dagys

John Dagys is the founder and Editor-in-Chief of Sportscar365. Dagys spent eight years as a motorsports correspondent for FOXSports.com and SPEED Channel and has contributed to numerous other motorsports publications worldwide. Contact John