New south wales: Johor Motorsports Racing (JMR) enjoyed a strong debut with the Chevrolet Corvette after securing second place in the Pro-Am class at the Intercontinental GT Challenge season-opening, the Bathurst 12 Hour in New South Wales, Australia. Competing in the Chevrolet Corvette Z06 GT3.R, the No.99 crew finished 14th overall after completing 261 laps of the demanding Mount Panorama Circuit in the 12-hour endurance race.

According to BERNAMA News Agency, the Pro-Am line-up of Tunku Panglima of Johor Tunku Abdul Rahman Sultan Ibrahim, Tunku Putera Johor Tunku Abu Bakar Sultan Ibrahim together with Ben Green and Jordan Love, climbed from mid-grid to Pro-Am P2 within the opening stages and stayed clear of incidents to secure the podium.

'This was my fourth Bathurst 12 Hour and my fourth podium. It's been a long day for us with many challenges, but the team did an incredible job for both cars. We were hoping to get two cars on the podium, but unfortunately our sister car had a mechanical problem and had to retire," said Tunku Abdul Rahman in a JMR statement. He expressed pride in his younger brother's achievement, emphasizing the team's collective effort and support from fans.

Meanwhile, Tunku Abu Bakar shared his honor in being part of the Corvette's debut at Bathurst and expressed satisfaction with the podium finish despite the tough day. It was a bittersweet outing for JMR as its Pro entry, the No.2 Corvette driven by Earl Bamber, Alexander Sims, and Nicky Catsburg, retired late due to mechanical failure while competing for outright honors.

JMR will next compete in the second round of the Intercontinental GT Challenge at Nurburgring, Germany from May 14-17.