It was an hour that Pollicina Motorsports went from hero to zero in a space of half an hour, during hour five of the Armor All Bathurst 12 Hour.
At the four and half hour mark, Jim Pollicina was approaching the Esses when he aquaplaned and hit the tyre wall, but managed to keep the car going. One quarter of a lap later, he was attempting an overtaking move at the Chase when he overcooked in the greasy and increasingly wet conditions to glance the wall and beach it in the sand trap. It was a cruel blow the team who had made up a total of 11 spots from their starting position of 20th place. Fortunately, the damage was minimal, with only the right front headlight ripped out as a consequence.
The loss of track time was also minimal. Up until the accident, the car reached as high as ninth and has only lost four spots to now sit 13th overall. If there is any consolation, the Pollicina Lancer Evo VIII isn’t the only that has gone into the sand trap. Currently, the race is behind the Safety Car due to the wet weather and on track, Pollicina remains 13th. The upside of this Safety Car stanza is the fuel consumption will be minimal and they are able to stay out on track for as long as possible before John O’Dowd hops back in for his second stint.
To follow the live broadcast, log on to www.bathurst12hour.com.au