Tom McLennan will tip his hat to a special piece of Porsche history at Mount Panorama for Round 6 of the Partner Dixon Porsche Carrera Cup Championship next month.

The 19 year old Queenslander will drive his Earl Bamber Motorsport entry in a car that takes a modern twist to the ‘Pink Pig’ – first made famous on the Le Mans Porsche 917/20.

Porsche designer Anatole Lapine first used the pink body colour on a Porsche for the 1971 24 Hours of Le Mans race, and labelled each of the body parts according to the butcher-style cut of a pig.

At the time, the Porsche caused a sensation and the car was quickly dubbed ‘The Pink Pig.’

Fast forward more than 50 years and the iconic look of the 917/20 has been replicated many times in different racing and road-going Porsches around the world.

At Bathurst next month, McLennan will race his ‘Purple Pig’ – paying homage to the original Le Mans racer, with some subtle and modern differences, including the use of English words, rather than the German language used on the original.

The livery will carry support from McLennan’s regular partners Macpro, as well as a ‘thank you’ to the Porsche Club Queensland. This year, the club celebrates its 50th anniversary, and McLennan is a regular contributor to the club.

McLennan is no stranger to competition at Mount Panorama, having raced at the famous track in both the Bathurst 12 Hour and 6 Hour races this year.

The Queenslander finished second in the GT4 class at the 12 Hour and claimed fifth in the outright class in the 6 Hour race.

Carrera Cup will support the Repco Bathurst 1000 at Mount Panorama, with practice kicking off on Thursday, October 10, and qualifying held all the way through the weekend, culminating in the last of three races on Sunday, October 13.

Tom McLennan

#81 Macpro Porsche

“It’s really cool to run such an iconic Porsche colour scheme on our car for the Bathurst Carrera Cup race weekend,” said McLennan.

“The colour scheme and design of this car was first made famous over 50 years ago, and we’ve seen many different Porsches over the years use the colours. I feel honoured to be part of the history.

“It’s also really great to be representing Porsche Club Queensland at Bathurst. They are celebrating 50 years in 2024, and that’s no mean feat to be supporting its members for so many years.

“This is our first year racing in Carrera Cup, making the step up from Porsche Michelin Sprint Challenge. It has been a steep learning curve, but we are certainly making progress every time we step into the car.

“Mount Panorama is just the best track. And in the Carrera Cup car, it’s an absolute pleasure to drive around. I’ve done quite a bit of racing there this year, so we’ll be looking to put all of our practice and knowledge into use come race weekend.”