·         Motor racing royalty hit the Mount Panorama circuit today as the legendary Jacky Ickx returned to Bathurst, 45 years after winning the Great Race

·         Jacky Ickx drove demonstration laps of the legendary circuit in both the Genesis X Gran Berlinetta Concept, making its global racetrack debut, and the Genesis GV60 Magma Concept

·         Ickx also donated the 1977 Bathurst 1000 winning trophy to the National Motor Racing Museum, at the request of his co-driver from that race, Allan Moffat

International motor racing legend Jacky Ickx, and 1977 Bathurst 1000 victor, has returned to Mount Panorama thrilling the crowds and reliving past glories by cutting some laps in the Genesis X Gran Berlinetta Concept as it made its global racetrack debut.

Ickx, whose epic motorsport career spans both many formulae and eras, took the wheel of this stunning Genesis Concept car for some spirited laps during the build up to the Bathurst 12 Hour endurance race, giving the vehicle a fitting first dynamic outing.

Known within the world of Genesis as the “Gentleman Disruptor”, brand partner Jacky Ickx also drove the famous Bathurst track in the GV60 Magma Concept, an all-electric luxury vehicle that represents a new and exciting era for the Korean luxury brand. The GV60 Magma is on track to enter production later this year, becoming the first Genesis Magma model to go on sale.

Genesis ultimately aims to develop a high-performance Magma model for each production vehicle in its lineup, maximising both aesthetics and performance.

Despite not having seen the globally revered Mount Panorama circuit for more than 45 years, Ickx was always going to remember his way around.

“It’s been a while but what I felt and noticed was that, like all the world’s greatest motor racing circuits - Monaco, Nürburgring or Spa - it has barely changed over the years. They’ve put a kink in that giant Conrod Straight to slow people down, but it’s still a fantastically challenging track with plenty of rise and fall,” said Ickx.

“I was blown away by the X Gran Berlinetta Concept, which was a wildly powerful and loud machine to drive. I could tell the crowd really enjoyed both the sight and the sound as I went by.

“Being an EV, my laps in the Genesis GV60 Magma Concept were quite different, and a lot quieter, but the torque and the thrust you get from a modern electric vehicle like that… truly, it’s quite something. The GV60 Magma Concept feels a long way from the Ford Falcon I drove here last time, and quite a lot faster.

“It was a real honour and pleasure, to show off these two very special vehicles for the public. And I loved the opportunity to tackle The Mountain again.”

Ickx, who turned 80 on New Year’s Day, started out racing motorcycles in 1960 before accelerating into the world of Formula One in 1967, winning eight Grands Prix and scoring 25 podiums. The Belgian simultaneously tackled the world of endurance racing, winning the gruelling 24 Hour race of Le Mans a then-record six times, and in 1977 achieved his famous Bathurst 1000 win at his first visit to the track, co-driving for Allan Moffat in the mighty Ford Falcon XC V8.

He was united with that vehicle again on Thursday where he was kind enough to hand over the winning trophy from 1977 to the Bathurst Town Mayor, Robert Taylor.

At the request of Allan Moffat, the trophy will now be permanently displayed in the National Motor Racing Museum (Mount Panorama), next to the 1977 Ford Falcon XC V8 both he and Jacky Ickx drove to victory that year.

X Gran Berlinetta Concept

The stunning X Gran Berlinetta Concept was created as part of Polyphony Digital’s Vision Gran Turismo series and first shown at the 2023 Gran Turismo World Series World Finals in Barcelona, Spain. It has been available to race in the virtual world of the game since January 2024.

GV60 Magma Concept

The bold-looking Genesis GV60 Magma Concept had previously demonstrated its exceptional capabilities on the famous Goodwood Hillclimb, claiming a class win in the four-seater production car category, and taking an impressive 16^th place overall in the weekend's Shootout.

Genesis Magma Racing

Genesis recently announced its intention to enter the world of endurance motorsport with the launch of the Genesis Magma Racing team and will compete in the prestigious World Endurance Championship (WEC) in 2026, followed by the IMSA SportsCar Championship (IMSA) in 2027.

This exciting venture will put Genesis on the world’s most challenging tracks, showcasing the brand’s engineering expertise and endurance capabilities and bring the Genesis notion of Athletic Elegance to the world of motorsport.

By entering the LMDh sports prototype category, Genesis joins an elite group of manufacturers vying for success on the world’s most prestigious racing stages. Iconic endurance events like the 24 Hours of Le Mans and the Daytona 24 require teams to balance peak performance with durability and efficiency, testing both machinery and drivers to their limits.