The 33-year-old Vernay put on a controlled display over the Port Macquarie course in 2007 pulling away on the run leg and tipping out perennial crowd favourite Jason Shortis.

Shortis will be on the sidelines this year but Vernay will be back to defend his title stating he enjoyed racing in Australia revelling in the hot conditions.

But don't think the Aussie challenge stops at Shortis. Luke Bell has confirmed he will be on the start line despite an ongoing knee injury that has contributed to some below par results recently.

In February Bell toughed out the Ironman 70.3 Geelong race to finish seventh but then failed to finish Ironman New Zealand, retiring 3km into the run after his knee had begun to swell.

"I was really wanting a Hawaii spot in New Zealand but my knee blew up pretty bad so I didn't want to risk further damage, so I had to pull the pin on the run," Bell, who was in a strong third place at the time, said.

Tests revealed two pieces of floating bone in his knee, chipped off from his kneecap and a slight tear of the lateral meniscus.

"It's just such a relief to finally have a diagnosis, this has been an ongoing problem and the doctors reckon it's been there since I was a kid from my basketball and footy days," he said.

Bell has finished a very credible fifth and seventh at the Ironman World Championship in Hawaii and will aim to secure his 2008 Hawaii Ironman spot at Port Macquarie.

Also looking to be among the podium finishers this year is Victorian doctor Mitch Anderson.

He had to make do with fourth in 2007 after Craig Alexander, in a stunning Ironman debut, stormed home in the run leg.

Anderson has recently decided to turn his back on a medical career as a doctor in pursuit of his dream as a full time professional Ironman. Anderson's bike leg is one of the most potent in the sport and his improved run leg will surely see him challenge for the top spot.

The 2007 Panthers Ironman Australia Triathlon is a qualifier for the Ironman Triathlon World Championship held in Kailua-Kona, Hawaii.

The race takes place at Westport Park from 7am with the final competitor having to cross the finish line before midnight, the official Ironman triathlon cut-off time.