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Murphy to make Bathurst wildcard return

Ed JacksonAAP
Greg Murphy will return to race at the Bathurst 1000 in October for the first time in seven years.
Camera IconGreg Murphy will return to race at the Bathurst 1000 in October for the first time in seven years. Credit: AAP

New Zealand motorsports icon Greg Murphy is coming out of retirement to compete at this year's Bathurst 1000 in a wildcard entry.

The four-time Bathurst champion will race alongside compatriot Richie Stanaway in a Boost Mobile-backed Commodore as part of the Erebus Motorsport team at Mount Panorama on October 10.

It will be Murphy's 23rd start in the 1000km endurance race and comes seven years after the 48-year-old retired from Supercars in 2014.

"I'm very fortunate and lucky to be presented with the opportunity to go back and race at a place that means so much to me," said Murphy, whose most famous moment at Mount Panorama was arguably his 'lap of the gods' qualifying effort in 2003.

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It will Stanaway's fifth start at Bathurst after the 29-year-old walked away from racing in 2019 after a 61-race Supercars career that included victory in the 2017 Sandown 500, but was also hampered by poor results and a neck injury.

Stanaway's best Bathurst result was 12th-place finishes in 2016 and 2019.

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The pair will run under No.51 - a number synonymous with Murphy's career.

"The number fifty one has become a signature that has been associated with me and my career for quite some time so it will be cool to bring it back," Murphy said.

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