The who's who of Mercedes-AMGs aces

IF there was any thought Mercedes-AMG would take things easy on their opposition following their comprehensive 1-2-3 sweep of the podium last year, their commitment to the 2023 iteration of Australia's International Enduro firmly suggests otherwise. 

The German marque has sent a squad of factory drivers to complement the rosters of both their factory supported and Customer racing teams entered in the race this year.

Those drivers are a remarkable collection of international GT talent who can account for claiming a vast majority of the key GT3-based enduros around the world at some point in their careers.

Announced first yesterday was the SunEnergy1 squad, which will see Jules Gounon and Luca Stolz return to partner Kenny Habul.

At 28, Frenchman Gounon - who interestingly competes now under the flag of Andorra - is regarded as being one of the best GT racers in the world at present and backed that up by adding to his 2020 Bathurst win last year.

He then partnered with Raffaele Marciello and Daniel Juncadella to win the GT World Challenge Europe Endurance Cup and the Total 24 Hours of Spa.

Stolz, who was recently a late call-up to drive with Habul's team at Daytona, will start his fifth 12-hour this year and has rapidly become one of the most accomplished overseas drivers to race here.

The 27-year-old German made his debut in 2018 aboard a Black Swan Porsche to finish third, then finished fifth in 2020 driving for Craft-Bamboo.

His win last year was the biggest of his GT career and this year marks the first time he'll race at Bathurst in the same team as the year prior.

Six factory drivers fill the squads at GruppeM Racing and fellow Hong-Kong based Craft-Bamboo.

At GruppeM, Maro Engel will slide into the team as one of the most experienced drivers at Mount Panorama on the grid, irrespective of nationality.

His six prior starts have delivered a mixture of joy and frustration, though second last year represented his best ever result.

Engel also claimed the first Allan Simonsen Pole Award in 2014, in emotional circumstances. The Macau GT Cup winner last year makes his first start with GruppeM this year, having raced the last three editions with Craft-Bamboo.

Raffaele Marciello's return to Bathurst brings with it incredible anticipation, the 28-year-old Italian proving to be one of the quickest and most spectacular internationals ever to race the B12.

He inherited the Allan Simonsen Pole Award in 2019 after Jake Dennis' Aston was disqualified, but it's been the races where he has been the most spectacular.

He was second on debut in 2018, third in 2019 and crossed the line second in 2020 before a post-race penalty for a pit stop infringement dropped his GruppeM car off the podium.

GruppeM's third will be Canadian driver, Mickael Grenier. The 30-year-old from Quebec has a long and extensive racing CV, dating back to performing as an IndyCar test driver in 2014.

He finished second in the GTD class at Daytona in 2021 and before that, claimed the 2017 Lamborghini SuperTrofeo Championship.

Over at Craft-Bamboo, Spain's Daniel Juncadella brings his wealth of open-wheel history to the team once again - looking to build on the strong second place earned last year.

After Bathurst, Juncadella went on to claim the drivers' title in the Intercontinental GT Challenge powered by Pirelli.

A welcome returnee to the Mountain will be Nicky Catsburg, the 34-year-old Dutchman switching BMW for Mercedes-AMG as he makes his third Bathurst start.

His two priors on the Mountain didn't go to plan: His car was out after just 28 laps in 2019 with an Oil Pressure issue, while Wildlife ended their day in 2020.

He has spent the last three seasons driving for Corvette Racing in IMSA competition and last year won the Sebring 12 Hours, in the GTD Pro class.

Completing the CBR trio is a 28-year-old Austrian, Lucas Auer.

While he will make his Bathurst debut this year, he's hugely experienced and last year finished second in the DTM Championship; to Audi driver Dries Vanthoor, who will also race this year.

Auer has been a DTM staple since 2015, and will head to the 'States to tackle IMSA's GTD class this year.

The 12-Hour will mark his return to this part of the world for the first time since 2013: he was third in the Toyota Racing Series that year.

PHOTO: 2022 Total 24 Hours of Spa winners, Raffaele Marciello, Daniel Juncadella and Jules Gounon. All will race at Bathurst this year.