2000 FAI 1000

The 2000 FAI 1000 was a race for V8 Supercars, held on 19 November 2000 at the Mount Panorama Circuit just outside Bathurst in New South Wales Australia. The race was the thirteenth and final round of the 2000 Shell Championship Series. It was the fourth running of the Australia 1000, first held after the organisational split over the Bathurst 1000 that occurred in 1997. It was the 43rd race that traces its lineage back to the 1960 Armstrong 500 held at Phillip Island.

Pole position was claimed by Wayne Gardner, with the race victory going to Garth Tander and Jason Bargwanna also driving a Holden Commodore for Garry Rogers Motorsport. It was held in mostly wet conditions which resulted in several safety car periods. As a result, the average race speed of the winning car was the slowest since the 1974 Bathurst 1000.

The event's naming rights sponsor was FAI Insurance.

Central West NSW had suffered a deluge of rain in the week leading up to the 2000 Bathurst 1000. Both Thursday practice sessions were cancelled, with only pre-qualifying taking place. With a grid capacity of 55 and a field of 56, only one car was cut from the field – Trevor Crittenden Motorsport's Kiwi pairing of Chris Butler and Miles Pope were the unlucky team having suffered electrical problems; their blue-and-white Holden Commodore VS only completed 200m of its out lap, and despite a battery change did not set a time. Practice Three did take place, and proved eventful with crashes for both Adam Wallis in Ross Halliday's Ford Falcon EL at the Chase, and Dean Lindstrom in the second Clive Wiseman Racing Holden Commodore VS having aquaplaned on Mountain Straight.

"We seem to have a lot of drivers out there from Planet Mork. There are so many dickheads and wankers out there I can't believe it. Out of the number of years I've been here, this is the worst."

The circuit dried enough for slicks by Friday Qualifying. Championship leader Mark Skaife set the benchmark with a 2:11.8882, one-tenth of a second faster than Paul Radisich from Dick Johnson Racing. Privateer Mick Donaher in the lead Clive Wiseman car had led early in the session with rain threatening, and ended the session a remarkable 14th. A number of high-profile drivers were affected by traffic in the session, with Russell Ingall earning a AU$10,000 fine and a verbal quarrel with privateer cult-hero Richard Mork for his blunt summation of the situation.

The Top 10 Shootout was held on Saturday morning, the last morning Shootout before a switch to a Top 15 Shootout held in the afternoon from 2001. 1987 500cc motorcycle World Champion Wayne Gardner took pole in the second Glenn Seton Racing Ford Falcon AU in an all-Ford front row, as Steven Johnson lined up alongside him despite setting a time over a second slower. Skaife in third was the only Holden driver to set a representative time as Todd Kelly, Russell Ingall and Garth Tander all went off the circuit on their timed laps.

Gardner led a 53-car grid off the start. Alan Heath's Power Racing Falcon failed to start the race having blown an engine in the warm-up, whereas the second Paul Morris Motorsport Commodore of Owen Kelly started from the pits with an unidentified problem in the rear end. Having completed a lap, Kelly returned to the garage to retire the car having discovered a broken axle. Radisich jumped a row on the start and finished the opening lap in the top three.