Bathurst: Whanganu's Earl Bamber and team mate Shane van Gisbergen chase dream

Shane van Gisbergen has been joined by Whanganui's Earl Bamber to try and win the iconic Bathurst 1000 this weekend.

Sorry, Ford fans from Whanganui, but if patriotism and home town loyalty are paramount in sport, then you're backing Holden this weekend.

Expat Whanganui driver and two-time Le Mans winner Earl Bamber will join friend and current 2018 Supercars Championship points leader Shane van Gisbergen in trying to tame the mountain when the 2018 Supercheap Auto Bathurst 1000 gets underway on Sunday.

Bamber is van Gisbergen's co-driver in the Triple Eight team for the three enduro events the series in Sandown, Bathurst and Surfers Paradise.

Having previously won twice in his class at Bathurst in the 12 Hour GT race, the 28-year-old will finally get to emulate his hero Greg Murphy and enter the iconic Australian race in a Supercar.

With van Gisbergen also trying to regain the points championship he first won in the 2016 season, the all-Kiwi team are looking solid contenders to claim the Bathurst crown after they came runnerup at the Sandown 500 in September behind team mate and perennial Bathurst favourite Jamie Whincup.

They crossed the line 6.8 seconds behind Whincup after they had to climb back from starting 11th after qualifying.

Having just arrived from Europe, where he has been busy as the factory Porsche driver while also competing in the WeatherTech SportsCar Championship in North America, Bamber adapted fairly well.

He spent most of his stint in the bottom half of the Top 10, but picked through enough of the field that van Gisbergen had the shot to get the car on the podium when he jumped in the driver seat.

Van Gisbergen had nothing but praise for his co-driver.

"Earl did a great job, from 11th up to the front and then some good strategy. It's an amazing day."

While Whincup and talented co-driver Paul Dumbrell are short-price favourites to win the 'Great Race', hardcore sports fans, especially Ford barrackers, will gleefully point out the series of self-inflicted incidents which caused the Holden pair to miss out on victory in 2014, 2015 and 2016.

Engine issues meant they weren't in contention last year as David Reynolds and Luke Youlden won a wet Bathurst race, while van Gisbergen finished fifth with co-driver Matthew Campbell.

The Kiwi has had his own hard-luck stories at the mountain, coming a close second in 2016, while losing his lead in the dramatic 2014 race when his car stalled on its final pit stop.

Bamber hopes to help get him over the line tomorrow, while having the opportunity himself to show New Zealand motor racing fans exactly what he can do on prime time television.

"For me, at the moment the Bathurst 1000 is the next big thing to try and win," he told Supercars.com ahead of Sandown.

"When you look as a kid on TV in New Zealand or Australia, you sit down and watch the Bathurst 1000.

"In Europe it's the Le Mans 24 Hours, but here it's Bathurst and it's mega.

"It's also great to do it with Shane because we grew up racing go-karts, Formula Fords and all that sort of stuff together.

"It's going to be really special to go there for the first time to the 1000.

"You go there for the 12 Hour, but the atmosphere in a Supercar will be completely different.

"The fans, the crowd, the passion, I think that's what real motorsport is all about and I can't wait to go there."