Twenty years after the death of Australian motorsport icon Peter Brock, seven-time Bathurst 1000 winner Craig Lowndes says the legend's influence remains as powerful as ever — and will again be riding along with him when he lines up for his 33rd attempt at the Great Race this weekend at Mount Panorama.

The 52-year-old will share the No.15 Team 18 wildcard entry with Super2 driver Bayley Hall for what shapes as a milestone edition of the event, with Australian motorsport pausing to reflect on two decades since the nine-time Bathurst conqueror's passing.

Passing on the Brock legacy, corner by corner

Lowndes, a long-time protege of Brock, has made a habit of pairing with younger, less experienced co-drivers since former Triple Eight teammate Jamie Whincup retired in 2021. He says the arrangement gives him the opportunity to pass on lessons he once received directly from Brock himself.

"Bayley and I did a track walk the other day, and I literally recalled everything that Peter taught me — from Turn 1, from Hell Corner, all the way around to Murray's Corner," Lowndes said. "For me, I'm hopefully passing on that legacy in some way. It is a milestone year. There's no doubt about that."

The advice Brock handed down was precise and practical — things like completing all braking over Skyline, or finding the kink on the inside of the Elbow as a turn-in reference point. Lowndes says he can still compress Brock's wisdom on the circuit's 23 corners into about a minute.

"Peter was more than just a teammate," Lowndes said. "His legacy will live on forever. He was bigger than the sport in some regards. He was just very much a person that could capture people's attention, hold their attention, but also inspire them for greatness. Those are the parts that I miss 20 years on."

An emotional 2006 win that defined a generation

The grief of Brock's 2006 death was still raw when Lowndes — partnered with a then-rising Whincup — delivered one of the most emotionally charged victories in Bathurst history just weeks later. The winning margin that day was 0.5 seconds, a figure that carried extra weight given it had long been Brock's own racing number.

"History shows that the gap at the end of the day was 0.5, and that was Brock's number for a long time," Lowndes recalled.

Whincup, reflecting on the same moment, said the pre-race tribute stood out above all else. "The minute's silence — I'll never forget that. You generally got someone on the hill yell out or whatnot, but that day, even the birds stopped chirping. It was my first win for the team and a memory that I'll take to the grave."

A changed grid as Whincup steps aside

This year's race will be the first since Whincup's 2002 debut that the seven-time Supercars champion will not feature on the grid, having stepped back to focus on his role as Triple Eight team principal. In his place, Nick Percat will co-drive alongside title contender Broc Feeney, who sits second in the championship standings behind Grove Racing's Matt Payne — last year's race winner.

Feeney and Percat will be keen to bounce back after a tough result at last month's The Bend 500, where they finished 24th out of 26 cars in what served as the Bathurst curtain-raiser. Feeney is yet to claim victory in the 1000km classic.

Meanwhile, Ford teams head into the weekend with a technical development to address, after pre-event testing revealed the Mustang loses power at altitude due to barometric pressure conditions at Mount Panorama. Changes to the Mustang engine are being evaluated across practice sessions.

What to watch and when

Drivers have four practice sessions before qualifying on Friday at 4.10pm AEDT. Friday's schedule also includes Supercars practice at 10.05am and 1.15pm AEDT. Saturday's coverage begins at 10am AEDT, with further practice at 10.05am and 1.10pm AEDT ahead of the race itself on Sunday.