Courtney to miss Bathurst 1000

But V8 Supercars star James Courtney has revealed his heart could have been crushed – literally – if he had defied doctor’s orders and contested Sunday’s Bathurst 1000.

Holden Racing Team driver James Courtney has been confirmed to miss the Bathurst 1000 race this weekend due to his injuries sustained in a freak accident at Sydney Motorsport Park earlier this year.

Veteran Russell Ingall will replace the 2010 V8 champion and partner Jack Perkins in Sunday’s race.

“I’m massively, massively annoyed…”

“It’s our grand final”.

Perkins raced full-time last season and had a strong showing at the Bathurst race.

While Ingall will return to Mount Panorama for one last hurrah, another familiar face will not.

“With the circumstances of the way it happened… it’s the race we all live for and I can’t do it, so I’m gutted”.

“But it’s in the best interests of the team despite how much I wanted to get out there and get on with it”.

The injured driver has been trying to speed up his recovery with electrical pulses applied to his nerve endings around his ribs but has admitted that there is still a lot of soft tissue pain.

Officially ruled out by his surgeon on Tuesday night, Courtney flew to Bathurst this morning and will spend the weekend supporting the team.

Despite the severity of the injury, Courtney says he’s given no thought to taking an extended absence from racing and will be back as soon as the Castrol Gold Coast 600 in two weeks time.

Courtney said he had received an apology from the Navy but had not heard more on their joint investigation with V8 Supercars into the freakish accident.

Courtney said his return date would depend on how his arm mobility and breathing had improved.