As the laps ticked away toward 161 in yesterday’s Bathurst 1000, I felt confident Anton De Pasquale would claim his first Bathurst crown in a Chevrolet Camaro. There were some rumblings about fuel that the commentators picked up on, but the team engineer played it cool, and the radio comms broadcast on TV were initially quite low-key about fuel saving, though they ramped up as the laps ticked by. A safety car late in the race seemed to alleviate the concerns, or so it seemed. Then, with victory all but guaranteed, disaster struck. De Pasquale’s car ran out of fuel on the final lap, and Brodie Kostecki swept past in his Dick Johnson Ford Mustang to take one of Bathurst’s most unlikely wins.

I was euphoric.

It reminded me of something the late Geoff Polites, a previous head of Ford Australia, said many years ago. Those of us of a certain age were born with either a Blue Oval for Ford or a Lion for General Motors Holden metaphorically tattooed on our backsides.

For me, it was always the Blue Oval.

Perhaps it reflects a time when we actually manufactured cars in Australia, and our roads were dominated by big, rear-wheel-drive V8s. You were either a Holden person or a Ford person, and the cars of choice were the Holden, later the Commodore, or the Ford Falcon.  There was even an Australian TV sitcom called Kingswood Country, named after one of Holden’s iconic vehicles.

It was the era of Peter Brock for Holden and Allan Moffat for Ford. It was also the era of win on Sunday, buy on Monday. The cars competing in our premier touring car series back then were pretty much the same as the ones you could buy at your local Ford or Holden dealership. Sure, they were modified for racing, but there was a genuine connection between the cars on the track and those we drove around in. I remember a friend of mine’s dad had a Green Falcon GT; it was a thrill to be driven around in it.

I only ever owned one Falcon, a station wagon for ferrying the kids around. Not quite a Phase 3 Falcon, but it was a Ford!

Today’s Supercars are a little different. They are purpose-built racing machines, with bodywork reflecting the manufacturers they represent. It isn’t quite the same these days, or so I thought!

Then came the final lap.

As De Pasquale’s Camaro slowed and Kostecki charged past, the old Blue Oval tattoo started to shine. And when Will Brown came through to make it a Ford one-two, I was reminded that some things never really change.

We might not manufacture Holdens or Fords in Australia anymore, but for me and I suspect plenty of others, the rivalry lives on. It’s a big part of what makes watching Supercars, and particularly the Bathurst 1000, an essential part of life.

I’ve only been to the Great Race once. My son and I drove across in my Subaru WRX, which remains my favourite car. There’s a certain irony in that, given my loyalty to the Blue Oval, but I suppose not everything in life has to make perfect sense!

Bathurst is a long drive from Adelaide. It’s a country town inland from Sydney, but once a year it becomes the centre of Australian motorsport. Mount Panorama is an extraordinary circuit, rising 174 metres from pit straight to the top at Brock’s Skyline. Then there’s Conrod Straight, where these cars reach speeds approaching 300 kilometres per hour.

It’s a remarkable place, and experiencing the race in person is something I’d recommend to any motorsport enthusiast.

But whether I’m there in person or watching from home, Bathurst is a day to savour. The drama, history, rivalries, and sheer unpredictability make it so special.

I’ve been watching since the mid-1960s, when it was the Bathurst 500, when it was a 500-mile race. That’s a lot of years.

Yesterday’s race was a reminder of just how much Bathurst can get under your skin. With 161 laps almost done, De Pasquale looked to have it in the bag. Then his Camaro ran out of fuel, Kostecki went through in his Mustang, and the race was turned on its head in a matter of seconds. Brown followed to make it a Ford one-two.

I realised I was absolutely thrilled.  After years of watching Bathurst, I thought the days when the result could stir that old Ford-versus-Holden rivalry in me were probably behind me. Clearly not.

George Polites was right. Some of us really were born with that Blue Oval tattoo. Yesterday, it was shining brighter than ever.