Shane van Gisbergen and Craig Lowndes are set to deliver a high-profile, transtasman, V8 Supercar angle to next weekend's Highlands 101 endurance race.
The front-running, Holden-driving rivals are tackling the Highlands event in very different machinery - van Gisbergen in a McLaren GT3 with Australian GT Championship top five contender Klark Quinn, and Lowndes joining one of New Zealand's best-known racers, Inky Tulloch, in the brand-new Camaro GT3.
The pair are both entered in the 101-lap enduro, the feature race of the Highlands 101 event running over the weekend of November 8-9 on the Central Otago circuit.
Joining Tulloch in the Camaro thanks to a three-way conversation involving Highlands owner Tony Quinn, Lowndes is excited to race at Highlands for the first time and to pilot the first Camaro GT3-spec race car in the southern hemisphere.
''One of my biggest reasons for doing the event is to get to race on the Highlands track,'' Lowndes said.
''It looks awesome. I've heard great things about it and I can't wait to get there. Learning new tracks is both challenging and fun, I am looking forward to it.''
The Highlands 101 race weekend is the first time the 650hp, 7.9-litre Camaro GT3 will be seen in action on the big 4.1km Highlands circuit.
Tulloch is looking forward to having a professional of Lowndes' ability in the car.
''The early form of the Camaro has been promising, but we're still working through some of the 'new car' gremlins,'' Tulloch said.
''Craig is an outstanding driver with outstanding technical ability to get the best out of any car so I'm looking forward to racing with Craig and seeing him help uncover the true potential of the Camaro.''
Tulloch and Lowndes are also entered for the final round of the Australian GT Championship, giving them additional practice and race time on track before the Highlands 101, for which they should presumably qualify with ease.
The Highlands 101 race meeting includes several different races, including the enduro, where a full grid of 42 cars is expected.
